What's The Worst That Could Happen?
| Budget: $45 million | Financed by: MGM; Hyde Park Entertainment |
|---|---|
| Domestic Gross: $32,269,834 | Domestic Distributor: MGM |
| Overseas Gross: $6,194,297 | Directed by: Sam Weisman |
Starring: Martin Lawrence Danny DeVito | Produced by: David Hoberman |
What’s The Worst That Could Happen? was co-financed by MGM and Hyde Park Entertainment for $45 million. MGM dated this stinker for June 1st, which Martin Lawrence’s “Big Momma’s House,” opened on the same weekend the previous summer. What’s The Worst That Could Happen? bowed against another critically reviled comedy “The Animal” and the pic pulled in a soft $13,049,114. It placed #5 for the weekend led by the holdovers Pearl Harbor and Shrek. What’s The Worst That Could Happen? sank 58% the following weekend to $5,476,007 and bombed out of theaters with $32,269,834. MGM would see returned about $17.7 million after theaters take their percentage of the gross, which would not cover P&A expenses or touch the budget.
MGM executives Gerry Rich, president of worldwide marketing, and Larry Gleason, president of worldwide theatrical distribution were replaced three weeks after this opened and both positions were filled by Robert Levin. MGM posted a quarter loss of $61.3 million and took an unspecified write-down on What’s The Worst That Could Happen? and Josie And The Pussycats — the combined loss of the two pics were expected to be north of $40 million.
The film saw a small release overseas, where it cumed just $6.1 million. Co-financier Hyde Park’s first slate of films were all MGM releases and all flops, with Antitrust being their first picture, followed by What’s the Worst That Could Happen?, Original Sin and then Bandits capped off their awful 2001. The Martin Lawrence vehicle “Black Knight” flopped five months later.