One of the good and bad things about your favorite movie becoming popular is that it gets an influx of fans. As someone who is a fan of the movie, it feels great for your favorite movie to get the recognition you think it deserves. However, as more of the population becomes fans, it is more likely that some toxic people will also get involved. Some movies have become so synonymous with their toxic fandoms that it can leave a sour taste in your mouth if you consider watching the movie now. Here are 10 movies that have made toxic fans less fun through their presence or antics.
10 Twilight (2008)
First on the list, we have the romantic vampire movie Dusk. The film was distributed by Summit Entertainment and released in 2008. This film is based on the book series of the same name written by Stephanie Meyer. The story follows Belle, a high school transfer student, as she adjusts to life in a small town. She meets a vampire named Edward and through him is introduced to the underworld of supernatural beings hiding just below the surface. Dusk received an explosion in popularity, grossing over $407 millionbecoming the most purchased DVD of 2009.
With this explosion in popularity came an influx of new fans, and unfortunately many of these new fans reinforced the toxic elements of the fanbase. Dusk became a huge fandom online, with many fans taking the details of the story extremely seriously. There were groups of fans who divided other fans based on the characters they wanted the main character Belle to fall in love with. Fans always vehemently rejected criticism from viewers of the film who found some of the relationships portrayed in the film offensive, stalkerish or creepy. Obsessed fans in particular became known as “Twihards”, who took discussions of the film very seriously, creating divisions among fans of the film online.
The passionate fans of the series caused resentment towards the series to grow. An incident at a Comic-Con in 2008 caused a huge number Dusk fans take over the event in a desperate attempt to face the panel of actors. These fans so outnumbered the average Comic-con attendees that they stated that “Dusk had ruined Comic-Con.”
9 Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace (1999)
Stars Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace is the first film in a trilogy of prequel films released in 1999. It was distributed by 20th Century Fox and starred Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor and Natalie Portman. The movie had huge fan expectations because it was the first Star Wars movie released since 1983. With these huge fan expectations came the inevitable disappointment when the movie failed to live up to them. This movie was the turning point when the Star Wars fandom began to become divided on how to feel about the series. Many divisive decisions in filmmaking, such as relying on CGI and incorporating more kid-friendly elements, rubbed fans the wrong way. These fans took it upon themselves to cross against the new Star Wars and where possible defame the movies online. While many of these fan points may be legitimate, the fact remains that this fan influence has cast a shadow over this film and often finds its way into Star Wars lists as the worst in the series.
8 Fight Club (1999)
Fight club is an action-drama film directed by David Fincher that was released in 1999. It was distributed by 20th Century Fox and starred Brad Pitt, Edward Norton and Helena Bonham Carter. The film follows a depressed office worker who forms a fight club with his colleagues to feel some excitement in his life. After a while, many of the film’s events are revealed to have only occurred in the protagonist’s head, causing the film to delve into surreal territory.
The film gained mainstream popularity upon release, and despite its dark comedic nature and intoxicating themes, many fans missed the film’s main themes and embraced the film’s hypermasculine parody elements. This film originally underperformed in theaters, but thanks to DVD sales, the film quickly gained popularity through word of mouth. Many of these new fans resonated with men’s primal urge to fight that the film was mocking, leading a large portion of the fans to embrace the opposite of the film’s message. These fans often recited lines from the film and tarnished the perception of the film among others in popular culture.
7 Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (2001)
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone is the first movie based on the Harry Potter franchise, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures and directed by Chris Columbus. The film follows a young boy named Harry as he discovers the magical world of Wizards and his greater calling to destiny. The film became a huge commercial success and revolutionized pop culture around the world. With such an influx of new fans, there were bound to be problems. Some fans of this movie went out of their way to spoil the movie for people who hadn’t seen it yet, especially in the case of the sequels. There were popular videos of people going to Barnes and Noble stores across the United States shouting spoilers at people waiting in line.
6 The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is an adventure film released in 2013 and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film acts as a prequel to Under the spell of the Ring trilogy of films and is based on a novel by JRR Tolkien. This movie in particular brought out the toxic side of many Lord of the Rings fans due to the controversial inclusion of 3D elements and the film’s ending. Lord of the Rings fans has a reputation for being purists when it comes to narrative issues and filmmaking. These critiques made it more difficult to enjoy the film upon rewatching.
5 The Godfather: Part III (1990)
The Godfather: Part III was the last part of The godfather trilogy films and was released in 1990. The film was distributed by Paramount Pictures and followed the ending of Michael Corleone’s story. When the film was released, it failed to live up to fans’ expectations Godfather fans to develop a negative opinion of the film. For some fans, this negativity manifested itself in the form of toxicity, causing the film’s reputation to suffer for years to come. Fans complained about the inclusion of the character played by Sofia Coppola and her performance, as well as the different time period in which the film is set.
4 Captain Marvel (2019)
Captain Marvel is a superhero movie starring the wonder character Carol Danvers. The film was distributed by Walt Disney Studios and released in 2019. It tells the story of Carol, who becomes a superhero after realizing the powers she gained from an experience as a child. She finds herself entangled in an intergalactic war between two alien civilizations, who hold the fate of Earth in the balance. Marvel fans have a notorious reputation for being toxic, and Captain Marvel has become a target due to their toxicity. This toxicity wasn’t helped by the fact that Brie Larson, who played the main character, mocked the kind of fans in a series of interviews promoting the film.
3 prankster (2019)
joker is a superhero drama film distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures which was released in 2019. The movie is a character study of a popular villain in the Batman series of stories. Fans of the film resonated with the villain, whom the film takes great pains to show empathy despite some of his terrible actions. He then inspires a counter-culture revolution against the wealthy people in the city where he lives. Fan perceptions of the film dominated other perceptions, leading many people to view the film as a political statement in support of violence. This perception has made the movie less enjoyable for many who don’t really give it a chance.
2 John Wick (2014)
John Wick is the first film in a series that follows a hitman who is forced into retirement and seeks revenge. The film was distributed by Summit Entertainment and released in 2014. It received critical acclaim and became a commercial success. It received high ratings from both critics and her audience on Rotten Tomatoes. Some fans of the film began to glorify the violence portrayed in the film. This caused the film to be dragged into a similar situation prankster, where fans made the violence portrayed in the film into a bigger issue that overshadowed the film’s perception.
1 Justice League (2017)
Last on the list is the superhero movie Justice League. This movie was released in 2017 and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. This movie is about a team of DC Comics superheroes who encountered a toxic fanbase due to the changes the studio made to the movie. Many fans believed that original director Zack Snyder’s work had been discounted and demanded a director’s cut of the film that restored Snyder’s original vision. This crusade quickly turned toxic online, diminishing the fun for many other DC fans.