It’s always exciting to see a flop at the box office find new life on streaming services such as Netflix, and that’s exactly the case with this 2008 horror film. After more than 15 years after its initial release, it’s proven to be quite popular, as the film just recently broke into the Netflix Top 10. Now that’s certainly impressive.
This film, upon being released in 2008, only earned $22.9 million at the worldwide box office. While that’s quite profitable for some horror films, this particular release was shot with a $25 million budget. This effectively made the horror film now streaming on Netflix a major flop at the time of its release.
Now, however, fans are revisiting the film and it seems to have found an all-new audience. As of this writing, the film has already crossed into Netflix’s Top 10 most-watched movies on the service. Now, when considering that not only did the film flop, but that it’s rated 5.9/10 on IMDb with a 30% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, it’s even more impressive to see its recent success.
The film, titled The Ruins, was released in 2008. It follows two couples that go on vacation to Mexico and eventually visit a Mayan ruin. Things get messy, however, when they discover an infectious species of carnivorous vines. It’s an interesting premise and one that gets under our characters’ skins – literally.
At the time of its release, however, it didn’t seem to connect with viewers. Of course, it’s a rather unique concept, and one that probably didn’t fit the trends at the time. Nevertheless, it’s only taken around 16 years for the film to start finding a new audience.
Carter Smith directed the film which also acted as his directorial debut. The screenplay was written by Scott B. Smith based on his 2006 novel of the same name.
The cast of the film includes Jonathan Tucker, Jena Malone, Shawn Ashmore, Laura Ramsey, and Joe Anderson. Producers include Stuart Cornfeld, Jeremy Kramer, and Chris Bender, while Ben Stiller served as an executive producer on the film.
Stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any additional updates regarding other newly-trending titles on streaming. For now, fans can check out The Ruins on Netflix and see for themselves if the horror flop is worth the newfound attention it’s receiving.