Why’d it Bomb? Hot Tub Time Machine 2
https://lebeauleblog.com/2017/11/09/whyd-it-bomb-hot-tub-time-machine-2/
Kevthewriter wonders why no one wanted a second dip in the Hot Tub Time Machine.share
Y’know, I liked the first Hot Tub Time Machine. It was a pretty funny movie. That being said, I have no idea what convinced MGM to do a sequel. Not only were reviews mixed but the box office results were modest at best and DVD sales were only okay. And they decided to release the sequel 5 years after the original when the average Joe probably forgot the first movie existed. I hate to say it but this was a box office flop in the making.
And I was right as it opened at #7 and couldn’t even make back its $14 million dollar budget as it made $13 million dollars worldwide! $13 million dollars! That’s pathetic!
Of course the reasons I listed above aren’t the only reasons it bombed.
In addition to being a sequel to a movie that wasn’t even that successful in the first place, it also suffered from two things. While the first one got mixed reviews, the second one got terrible reviews, which probably convinced audience members to stay away.
But there was another thing missing: John Cusack.
Many were upset that John Cusack didn’t return, especially considering he hadn’t starred in a mainstream film since The Raven in 2012 (his last mainstream film to date was playing Richard Nixon in The Butler, but that was just a cameo). It didn’t help that their were different answers: Cusack said he wasn’t asked to return, some said that he couldn’t fit it into his schedule, and others said he wasn’t asked to return because he took over the editing room and tried to edit the first movie to his liking. It didn’t help that Cusack tweeted this:
John Cusack ✔@johncusack
Your welcome - but wasn’t asked - “@bortonian: thank you for not starring in Hot Tub Time Machine 2 😉”
5:56 PM - Jan 18, 2015
58 58 Replies 42 42 Retweets 103 103 likes
Twitter Ads info and privacy
This probably turned off many people who missed Cusack’s presence and they stayed away. Granted, MGM tried to fix this by having him film a last-minute cameo but it ended up being cut from the final product therefore he wasn’t in the final movie anyway:
That being said, even if this scene had made the final cut, it probably wouldn’t have made people see it because, just by looking at the trailers, they wouldn’t know he was in the film.
But Cusack’s absence, along with the factors I mentioned above, were most likely the reasons Hot Tub Time Machine 2 bombed at the box office. Honestly, it probably should’ve just been a stand alone film to begin with. Though Cusack kinda had the last laugh when he made Love & Mercy. Sure it wasn’t a box office hit but it was a way better film.