A historical fantasy film starring Keanu Reeves and Shogun star Hiroyuki Sanada cost a lot to produce. Unfortunately, the result was the second biggest flop in film history
Keanu Reeves has been a “Whoa!”-worthy action star since The Matrix at the latest, and Hiroyuki Sanada shouldn’t be known only since his latest series hit Shogun. Putting the two gentlemen together for a semi-historical Japanese fantasy film should make for an interesting mix … you might think.
Unfortunately for Universal Pictures and director Carl Rinsch, this didn’t work out at all, although according to a Variety report at the time, they were hoping for a mixture of The Lord of the Rings and Gladiator. Curtain up for one of the biggest movie flops: 47 Ronin
Fantasy flop 47 Ronin: This is how much the film starring Keanu Reeves and Shogun star Hiroyuki Sanada cost the producers
47 Ronin uses fantasy elements to tell the story of an oft-recited event from Japanese history. Back then, a group of masterless samurai took revenge for the death of their lord, proving the noble loyalty of the warriors. Unfortunately, the 2013 film was unable to win over a loyal following.
(Reeves and Sanada in 47 Ronin)
With a budget of 175 to 225 million US dollars, 47 Ronin grossed just 151.1 million according to The Numbers. With an estimated loss of 126 million, adjusted for inflation, the film ranks second on Wikipedia’s list of the biggest movie flops of all time. Only The 13th Warrior crashed even harder at the box office.
Is 47 Ronin really that bad? You can see for yourself and stream the movie here
While critics tore the film to shreds to match its financial failure (Filmstarts gave it a diplomatic 3 out of 5 stars), according to Rotten Tomatoes audiences seem to be responding a little better to it
If you want to see it for yourself, you can stream 47 Ronin on Netflix, or rent and buy it from Amazon, Apple TV, Sky and MagentaTV
