Not every superhero movie is guaranteed to lift off at the box office regardless of how recognizable or obscure its source material is, something Shazam! Fury of the Gods very recently learned the hard way. That was infinitely more true decades ago when only Batman and Superman had really conquered the world of cinema, leaving The Rocketeer to wither and die on the vine.
Director Joe Johnson took the reins on the anachronistic adventure, which carried a fairly substantial (for the standards of the time) production budget of around $40 million. Boasting a high concept premise, an old-fashioned sense of derring-do, and some stellar effects, the pieces were all in place for The Rocketeer to make like is title hero and blast off into the atmosphere.
Instead, though, it was a colossal flop. The film could only cobble together a shade under $47 million in ticket sales, and nobody seems to understand why given that it was warmly-received, and even to this day ranks as one of the genre’s most underrated efforts ever. Suffice to say, debating the reasons behind The Rocketeer sinking without a trace continues to incite debate, as evidenced by a recent Twitter thread trying to pick through the bones.
A cocky stunt pilot falling head over heels for an actress and utilizing a hidden jet pack to become a costumed crimefighter in an effort to aid his chances of winning her heart is as propulsively endearing as it sounds, with Nazi bad guys thrown into the mix for good measure. The Rocketeer should have been a superheroic spin on Indiana Jones, and it’s one of the biggest tragedies in the medium’s history that it fell flat on its face, because the in-development reboot seems unlikely to recapture the magic.