Why these Chris Hemsworth films flopped at the box office

The box office numbers for Paul Feig’s 2016 Ghostbusters reboot (starring Chris Hemsworth as goofy but handsome secretary Kevin Beckman) initially looked downright horrifying. A worldwide box office of $229 million on a $144 million budget doesn’t seem too disastrous on paper, but Sony spent a fortune promoting the film. “The studio said the breakeven point was $300 million,” The Hollywood Reporter said at the time. “Now they’re bracing for big losses (think $70 million-plus).” In the years following its release, however, important context emerged around that global success.

The next two installments in the Ghostbusters franchise each grossed just over $200 million worldwide, despite featuring the original Ghostbusters cast. That means 2021’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife and its disappointing 2024 sequel, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, each grossed less than the 2016 reboot. Considering these financial results, it’s clear that modern Ghostbusters films have a hard ceiling in terms of box office. There is a fan base for these films, it’s just not particularly large in terms of the franchise.

Those in charge apparently didn’t realize this when they put Ghostbusters together in 2016. Such a big budget for the reboot meant that the chances of financial success were slim to none. Competition from other big films like Finding Dory and Star Trek Beyond certainly didn’t help either. A hysterical Chris Hemsworth playing against type wasn’t enough to save Ghostbusters from the box office hurdles it faced.