Adapted films—movies that borrow their storylines from best‑selling novels, comics, plays, TV shows, or even other movies—don’t always translate to box‑office gold. Sometimes the source material’s fame masks a cinematic disaster, and the flop can be so spectacular that the title never sees a sequel.

Why Adapted Films Flop

From endless rewrites to budget nightmares, a perfect storm of creative missteps can turn a promising project into a cautionary tale. Below are ten of the most infamous adapted movies that missed the mark in spectacular fashion.

10 Catwoman2004

Catwoman, the feline‑flavored burglar from DC Comics, made a cameo in 1992’s Batman Returns before getting her own solo outing in 2004. The result? A film widely condemned as the worst superhero movie ever made.

The production was a script‑writer’s nightmare: 28 different writers re‑wrote the story, turning the iconic Selina Kyle into a graphic designer named Patience Phillip. In the movie, Phillip is killed after uncovering a sinister anti‑aging cream, only to be resurrected by the breath of a cat belonging to an Egyptian goddess—leaving her with a literal cat‑like appetite and a penchant for rain‑dodging.

Box‑office numbers were bleak: the film earned less than its $100 million budget. It also swept the Golden Raspberry Awards, winning Worst Picture, Worst Screenplay, and Halle Berry took home Worst Actress. During her acceptance, Berry thanked Warner Bros. for casting her in “this piece‑of‑sh—, God‑awful film.”

9 BattlefieldEarth2000

Set in the year 3000, Battlefield Earth imagines an alien regime forcing humans to mine gold. The film is based on L. Ron Hubbard’s novel and quickly became a punchline, with critic Roger Ebert likening it to “a bus trip with someone who has needed a bath for a long time.”

Production woes began with a script penned by the founder of Scientology himself. Major studios balked at the $100 million price tag, so Franchise Pictures and Intertainment AG stepped in with a $55 million deal—only to later inflate the budget to $80 million through fraud.

Even with a shoestring lighting budget and John Travolta personally pitching $5 million, the movie flopped. It bankrupted Trendmaster, the toy maker that expected $50 million in sales. Scriptwriter J.D. Shapiro later apologized, calling it the “suckiest of all sucky films,” and revealed he’d been seeking women at a Scientology branch when he got involved.

8 MyraBreckinridge1970

Gore Vidal’s novel Myra Breckinridge was turned into a 1970 film about a transgender woman chasing stardom. The movie was labeled a “sexual freak show” and earned an X rating for its explicit content, including a notorious rape scene where the trans heroine assaults a male colleague.

Beyond the shocking material, the film lifted footage from several earlier movies, prompting legal threats from those casts. The resulting controversy nearly sank 20th Century Fox and derailed the careers of many involved.

7 TheWizardOfOz1939

While today’s audiences adore The Wizard of Oz, its 1939 debut was a modest flop, pulling in only $200 000 over its $2.8 million budget. Production was chaotic: five directors rotated through the project, twelve scriptwriters tinkered with the story, and at one point the film’s magic was stripped entirely.

Tragedy struck on set. Buddy Ebsen, the original Tin Man, nearly died when aluminum dust from his costume entered his lungs. Margaret Hamilton suffered two fire accidents as the Wicked Witch, and her stunt double, Betty Danko, was also burned. Even Toto the dog wasn’t spared—his jaw was broken when a crew member stepped on him.

The movie finally found commercial success two decades later when CBS aired it in 1959, cementing its place in pop culture.

6 SupermanIVTheQuestForPeace1987

The Superman franchise peaked with its first three films, but the fourth installment, Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, is universally reviled. The Washington Post called it “more sluggish than a funeral barge.”

Budget constraints were glaring: the movie was made for $17 million, a fraction of the $55 million spent on the original. Cannon Films, known for low‑budget productions, took over the rights, and the UK shoot was peppered with red‑painted fire hydrants, hot‑dog vendors, and a prop bag proclaiming “I Love NY.”

The plot centers on Lex Luthor’s creation of Nuclear Man, a Superman clone who wrecks landmarks—including the Great Wall of China—before battling on the Moon. The film’s love‑interest, Lacy of the Daily Planet, survives space travel without any protective gear, a detail that raised eyebrows even among casual viewers.

5 Batman&Robin1997

The 1997 entry Batman & Robin attempted to cap off the Schumacher‑era Batman series but instead nearly killed the franchise. The film’s tone was off‑kilter, featuring Batman flaunting a themed credit card and gambling for a night with Poison Ivy.

Perhaps the most talked‑about misstep was the inclusion of rubber nipples on both Batman’s and Robin’s costumes—an odd design choice that many fans deemed “too sexy for Batman.” Director Joel Schumacher faced a wave of criticism, later joking that his gravestone would read “the man who put nipples on Batman’s suit.”

4 RaiseTheTitanic1980

Clive Cussler’s novel Raise the Titanic was adapted into a 1980 film about a fictional mission to lift the infamous ship. With a $30 million budget, the movie only recouped $7 million, prompting producer Lord Grade to quip, “It would have been cheaper to lower the Atlantic.”

After watching Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark the following year, Cussler reportedly wept, vowing never to allow another adaptation of his work without full creative control over casting and script.

3 HowardTheDuck1986

Marvel’s first comic‑book movie, Howard the Duck, introduced audiences to a rude, sexist alien duck. Production was rushed to meet a 1986 summer deadline, resulting in major deviations from the source material.

Howard’s human girlfriend, originally a nude model, was reimagined as a rock musician. The duck’s lips barely moved, and voice work was added after filming wrapped, creating a disjointed performance. The film earned $16 million against a $37 million budget.

Director George Lucas, who also helmed Indiana Jones and Star Wars, was forced to sell assets to cover debts, including a nascent computer‑animation studio that Steve Jobs later purchased and renamed Pixar.

2 TheGarbagePailKidsMovie1987

The Garbage Pail Kids trading cards—popular among 1980s boys for their grotesque humor—spawned a 1987 film. While the cards were a hit with kids, adults found them revolting, leading many schools to ban them.

The movie featured the characters as odd‑looking, doll‑like children and was a box‑office disaster, grossing only $1.5 million on a $30 million budget. A planned 13‑episode TV series was scrapped, eventually seeing a DVD release in 2006.

1 TheLastAirbender2010

Nickelodeon’s beloved animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender was reimagined as a live‑action film in 2010. The flop stemmed from a miscast ensemble and a script that stripped away the series’ signature humor and action.

Director M. Night Shyamalan assembled an all‑white cast for heroes originally depicted as Asian and Inuit, while casting Indian actors as the Fire Nation villains. This sparked the “Racebending” boycott movement, accusing the film of cultural erasure. Shyamalan defended his choices, claiming he couldn’t be racist because he wasn’t white, and insisted the movie was aimed at nine‑year‑olds, not adults.

The result was a critical and commercial disaster that left fans yearning for a faithful adaptation.

Every now and then a television series transcends its original format, evolving from a simple programme into a cultural juggernaut that resonates across continents. Several shows have managed to break language and border barriers, spawning national editions in countless countries. Join us as we count down the 10 most widely adapted TV shows that have left an indelible mark on the global entertainment landscape.

10 The Amazing Race

A singular reality‑competition, ‘The Amazing Race’ premiered in the United States in 2001 and quickly became a worldwide sensation. The series has logged 24 full seasons, with a 25th already underway, pitting ten to twelve two‑person teams against each other as they sprint across continents, tackling culturally specific challenges in each stop.

The format’s universal appeal is evident: it has been localized into nine distinct national versions and three continental editions. The American incarnation alone boasts 13 Emmy wins out of 65 nominations, underscoring its critical acclaim.

9 The Apprentice

‘The Apprentice’ broke new ground by giving aspiring executives a chance to earn a coveted position with a high‑profile business mogul. Sixteen contestants battle through a series of corporate‑themed tasks, hoping to impress titans such as Donald Trump, Martha Stewart, Tony Fernandes, Robert Justus and Tuncay Özilhan. Debuting in the U.S. in 2004, the series ran for 13 Trump‑led seasons and one Stewart‑hosted season, prompting adaptations in 20 nations and three pan‑regional versions.

8 Popstars

One of the earliest talent‑search formats, ‘Popstars’ first aired in New Zealand in 1999, inviting solo singers to audition for a spot in a freshly formed pop group. The concept ignited a wave of vocal‑focused reality shows worldwide.

Adapted in 38 territories, the series birthed groups such as France’s L5, Germany’s Bro’Sis, Australia’s Eye Q, and several others, cementing its legacy as a springboard for future music‑competition franchises.

7 MasterChef

‘MasterChef’ transformed home‑cooking enthusiasts into culinary contenders, offering a glamorous platform to launch professional chef careers. Originating in the United Kingdom in 1990 as a game‑show, it ran until 2001 before a 2005 revival sparked a global explosion, now airing in more than 42 countries and spawning a pan‑regional edition.

6 Fear Factor

‘Fear Factor’ thrust ordinary people into extraordinary, adrenaline‑pumping challenges designed to test the limits of human bravery. Premiering in the United States in 2001, the series quickly expanded, finding homes in over 35 national adaptations.

While each locale tweaks the format, the core premise remains: contestants tackle grotesque stunts—ranging from hanging from rooftops to crawling through swarms of insects—to win cash prizes, cementing its reputation as a daring global hit.

5 Got Talent Series

Dubbed the “mother of all talent shows,” the ‘Got Talent’ franchise opens the stage to singers, dancers, magicians, stunt performers, painters and countless other acts, all vying for a life‑changing prize. The first edition, “America’s Got Talent,” launched in the U.S. in 2006 and has since completed nine seasons.

Its universal format has been embraced by more than 51 nations, making it one of the most prolific talent‑show franchises on the planet.

4 Top Model Series

‘Top Model’ introduced audiences to the high‑pressure world of fashion modelling. Debuting in the United States as ‘America’s Next Top Model’ in 2003, the series has been localized in over 40 nations and spawned more than five regional versions.

Each season follows 10‑16 aspiring models as they navigate photo shoots, runway challenges, and industry critiques, all vying for a coveted modeling contract.

3 Idol Series

Arguably the most iconic singing competition, the ‘Idol’ franchise began in the United Kingdom as ‘Pop Idol.’ The format quickly spread, finding homes in over 41 countries and spawning six multinational editions.

It has launched the careers of global superstars such as Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Abhijeet Sawant, Phillip Phillips, Guy Sebastian, Will Young, Carly Rae Jenkins, and many more, underscoring its massive cultural footprint.

2 Big Brother

A trailblazer in social‑experiment reality TV, ‘Big Brother’ first aired in the Netherlands in 1999 and now boasts 52 distinct international versions. Contestants—sometimes celebrities—are sealed inside a house equipped with a garden and pool, completely cut off from external communication.

Each week, housemates nominate peers for eviction; the public then decides who leaves, continuing until a sole survivor claims victory.

1 Who Wants To Be A Millionaire

This groundbreaking quiz show gave everyday people a shot at the ultimate dream: becoming a millionaire. Contestants answer a ladder of increasingly difficult questions for escalating cash prizes. First broadcast in the United Kingdom in 1998, the format has been adapted by more than 35 countries, inspiring countless hopefuls worldwide.

Lots of iconic stuff is adapted from other iconic stuff – Jaws the movie from “Jaws” the novel, the Pirates Of The Caribbean skeleton monsters from Keith Richards, and the works of Terry Gilliam from full-blown dementia.

But not these. These iconic works are adapted from … well, weird crap. Crap you’d never think to adapt to film, unless you were on an obscene amount of cocaine, which is the only explanation we have for these:

This is an encore presentation of one of our lists as presented by our YouTube host Simon Whistler. You can read the full list here!

Have you ever heard about the first African-American princess, Tiana? She was the only princess of Disney with dimples, or Mulan. The famous princess based on an ancient Chinese legend of Hua Mulan. She was a female warrior, famously described in the poem, “The Ballad of Mulan”. The stories of most of the bravest women from history or mythology have been adapted in the comic’s universe, to tell those sagas in a colorful way to the children, or even to the adult readers. Even the gaming industry adopted some of the famous female characters with historical importance. These tales are about the historical significance of those princesses in colored comics’ pages; princesses who are attached mythically, historically or socially with real life scenarios, but, long forgotten. Here is the list of Top 10 Forgotten Princesses adapted in comics.

10. Corn Maiden

Corn Maiden, also called Corn Mother, is a mythological figure believed to be responsible for the origin of corn or maize among indigenous agricultural tribes in North America. Local legend tells about the overflowing corn storehouse when she was around. In the Arapaho tradition, to get rid of her, they tied her up and drowned her in the river, while, in the Zuni’s culture, she was frightened by the erotic gyrations of the male dancers. In the Tepecano version of this tale, when she spends her first night after marriage in a private room in her husband’s family house, it’s full of corn in the morning. According to other local legends, she was supposed to secretly produce grains of corn by rubbing her body, or by literally popping corns out and filling bucket after bucket.

9. Shajar Al-Durr

Shajar al-Durr, meaning Tree of Pearls. Actually played a crucial role after Sultan As-Salih Ayyub’s death during the Seventh Crusade against Egypt where the Battle of Fariskur took place and King Louis IX was captured. Shajar, described by historians as a beauty with the brain, started her life as a Turkish servant, purchased for the Sultan of Egypt. While being in a relationship with Aybak, Shajar al-Durr firmly established the Mamluk dynasty.

After she fought and captured King Louis IX, Shajar al-Durr negotiated a treaty to return the captured king to his country for ransom amount of 400,000 in the currency used in France during the middle age which was roughly about 30% of France’s total annual revenue. She was later caught in the act of killing Aybek and imprisoned by Aybek’s first wife who executed her by beating to death by servants with wooden clogs, and later her naked corpse was dumped over the wall of the city.

8. Pasiphaë

According to Greek mythology, Pasiphaë was the Greek queen and the daughter of Helios, the Sun. She married King Minos of Crete and was known for giving birth to Asterion aka Ruler of the Stars, also called the Minotaur by the Greeks. She was famous for having irresistible sexual drive towards a bull that Poseidon gave to King Minos. King Minos, also ironically the son of Zeus, took the form of a bull and mated with his mother Europa. Being a Bull Goddess, when Pasiphaë got to know that her husband was cheating on her, she made a charm such that if he slept with anyone he would ejaculate serpents and insects. But, Procris, the daughter of the ruler of Athens, laid with Minos with a protective herb.

7. Nzinga

Queen Anna Nzinga was a 17th-century queen of the Ndongo and Matamba Kingdoms of the Mbundu people in Angola. Being the daughter of King Kiluanji, she was named Njinga, derived from the Kimbundu verb, Kujinga, which means, to twist or turn, because her umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck. When her brother was captured by Portuguese, she visited and demanded her brother’s return with a promise to leave Ndongo. At their meeting, the Portuguese offered her no chair but a floor mat to sit on, as a sign of disrespect.

In response, Nzinga ordered for one of her servants and sat on the servant as a chair. After she moved south, she started a new country by conquering the cannibal tribe known as the Jaga. According to local legend, Nzinga obtained a large group of 60 male harems at her disposal. Her men fought to death in order to spend the night with her, while, after a single night, they were put to death. It is also said that Nzinga made her male servants dress as women.

6. Hatshepsut

Hatshepsut, which means, The Foremost of Noble Ladies, was the fifth Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Ancient Egypt, whose mother gave birth to her in a lion’s den. She was one of the greatest pharaohs from Egypt, besides King Tut or Nefertiti. The New York Metropolitan Museum of Art has an entire room devoted to her. Fifteen hundred years before the birth of Jesus, she ruled her land for twenty-two years. She ruled Egypt wearing men’s clothing, including the pharaoh’s false beard. According to Egyptologist James Henry Breasted, she is the first great woman in history of whom we are informed. She constructed the Temple of Karnak and restored the original Precinct of Mut. Nine golden cartouches bearing the names of both Hatshepsut and Thutmose III were found in Karnak.

5. Wu Zelian

Wu Zelian, also known as Wu Zhao; China’s only female emperor in more than 4,000 years of ancient history who lived during the Tang dynasty. Wu was married to the Emperor Taizong and after his death, she married his successor and ninth son, Emperor Gaozong. After Gaozong’s died due to cardiac disease in 690, she ruled China until 705 AD. She had an enormous network of her secret police intelligence posted all over China and also famous for her “human pig” torture where all limbs and tongue were removed. Besides marrying twice, she also carried on an affair with a Buddhist monk, Huaiyi, in around 685. Her period of political and military leadership includes the major expansion of the Chinese empire beyond its previous territory, deep into Central Asia, and the upper Korean Peninsula.

4. Khutulun

Khutulun was the most famous daughter of Kaidu, the most powerful ruler of Central Asia, and the niece of Kublai Khan. Her name was founded in Marco Polo’s and Rashid al-Din’s writings. According to Marco Polo, Khutulun was described as being a superb warrior who fought beside her father in many battles.

When Emperor Kaidu desperately wanted to see his daughter, Khutulun’s marriage, she refused to do so unless she got the appropriate man who could defeat her in wrestling. With the consent from his father, she set up an offer for all the men in the dynasty to beat her in wrestling and marry her. But, the condition on the other side was, if someone lost the battle with her, he should present her 100 horses. But, no one was able to beat her, and she gain 10,000 horses. Khutulun is considered one of the last great nomadic warrior princesses.

3. La Maupin

Julie d’Aubigny, better known as Mademoiselle Maupin or La Maupin, born in 1673, was an amazing swordswoman and opera singer from 17th-century. She used to dress as a man from her early ages while learning dancing and fencing. This bisexual celebrity attended a royal ball while dressed as a man, thrown either by Louis XIV or his brother. She was famous for her Opera voice and debuted as Pallas Athena in Cadmus et Hermione by Jean-Baptiste Lully. But, when she kissed a young woman at a society ball and was challenged to duels by three different noblemen, she had to interrupt her career and leave Paris. Théophile Gautier in his novel Mademoiselle de Maupin (1835) based the title character, Madeleine de Maupin, on her.

2. Mai Bhago

She was taken from the real historical character, Mai Bhago, whose name, after converting to Khalsa, was Mai Bhag Kaur as Kaur was a surname all female Khalsas took. This 18th century Sikh warrior-saint was the only survivor of the Battle of Khidrana to save Gobind Singh Ji, who founded the Khalsa. Mai Bhago was born at her ancestral village of Jhabal Kalan, presently Amritsar. She was a Sikh by birth and later married to Nidhan Singh Waraich. At that time, India was ruled by the Mughals and Aurangzeb was the emperor when he sent imperial army in pursuit of Guru Gobind Singh. Mai Bhago stopped and challenged them near the pool of Khidrana with her forty Sikh warriors who attained martyrdom in this battle. Guru Gobind Singh Ji took Mai Bhago into his care and later, she was known for being one of his bodyguards, in male attire.

1. Noor Inayat Khan

Noor-un-Nisa Inayat Khan was an Allied Special Operation agent during the Second World War, and was later awarded the George Cross, the highest civilian award of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth nations. Belonging to an Indian origin, she was born in Moscow and began working as the only radio operator in occupied Paris. Where the average life span of that job was around a month due to heavy World War II chaos and continuous Nazi attack, she, with her amazing skills and bravery, lasted for almost 5 months. Her father, Hazrat Inayat Khan, was a noble Muslim Sufi who was a personal friend of Mahatma Gandhi. She was also the 2nd Class Aircraftwoman in Women’s Auxiliary Air Force. She was eventually caught, when a double agent betrayed her to the Nazis, and was moved to the Dachau Concentration Camp and shot dead.

There are many more females throughout the history and mythology whose tales deserve to get adapted in recent movies or comics. We always hope to see them in those mediums so that we can know about their significance in our history. Local legends are always fascinating and sometimes, more thrilling than fairy tales, and they also consist of many female characters who were brave, beautiful and absolute worthy to become the central characters of any productive media. With this dream, we end this list here and take a bow to all those brave warrior-princesses who were famous in their own ways.

Here are some other related lists, you may also like; Top 10 Iranian Queens in History, Top 10 Legendary Worriers in History, Top 10 Less-Known Folklore Creatures.