This Rs 225 crore picture made just Rs 45 lakh in profit; the actress had to forego 90% of her pay; the director resigned and went into television

In order to justify their size and scope, big budget movies are often expected to bring in a lot of money at the box office. However, that doesn’t always happen. Numerous highly-budget movies have been produced, however they were a box office failure. This is the tale of one such movie that, despite having every advantage, was a box office bust.

American sports drama The Replacements debuted in 2000. The 1987 American National Football League (NFL) strike and how the Washington Redskins won all three replacement games without any of their regular players and went on to win the Super Bowl that year served as the rough basis for Howard Deutch’s film. With a $50 million (about Rs. 225 crore) budget, the picture starred Keanu Reeves, who had just released his greatest blockbuster, The Matrix. Oscar winner Gene Hackman and a number of other well-known actors also starred in the movie. However, it was a box office disaster. Box Office Mojo reports that the movie made a pitiful $100,000 (about Rs 45 lakh) in total revenue globally.

At the time, Keanu Reeves held the title of highest-paid actor globally. That’s what The Matrix’s success had made him. However, Keanu was already a bankable celebrity thanks to smashes like Speed. The Replacements’ producers wanted to cast Gene Hackman, one of the greatest stars in Hollywood at the time, when he was brought on board. The only issue was that they lacked the funding for him. Keanu kindly agreed to waive 90% of his costs, giving the producers more money and the opportunity to put Hackman in the movie.

When The Replacements came out, Howard Deutch had been a director of motion pictures for slightly under 15 years. However, the film’s lack of success made him switch to directing TV series almost entirely; he went on to helm episodes of American Horror Story: Coven, Warehouse 13, CSI, Empire, and other shows. After directing two more movies, The Whole Ten Yards and My Best Friend’s Girl, Deutch stopped directing movies completely.