This year has seen a couple of major studio bombs that were produced primarily because the industry overestimated the cultural impact of their predecessors. The film M3GAN 2.0 grossed a fraction of the first film’s $180 million global haul, while I Know What You Did Last Summer fell drastically short of the original, which was released over two decades ago. But there was a third 2025 film that failed to live up to box office expectations, despite the surprise success of its predecessor, Gerard Butler‘s Den of Thieves 2: Pantera. The first Den of Thieves wasn’t just a hit in theaters, it was also quite popular on home video, with the action film’s sustained success is probably what prompted a sequel to be produced in the first place.
But the original Den of Thieves will soon leave Netflix, which means that action movie aficionados who still haven’t checked it out are running out of time. Released in 2018, Den of Thieves grossed $80 million worldwide against a reported budget of $30 million. The movie earned mostly mixed reviews, and is currently sitting at a 42% score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, where the critics’ consensus reads, “Den of Thieves pays energetic homage to classic heist thrillers of the past; unfortunately, it never comes close to living up to its obvious inspirations.”
However, it was clear that the movie had struck a chord with its target audience. It holds a superior 63% audience score on RT, with many drawing comparisons to Michael Mann‘s celebrated action epic, Heat. Released earlier this year, Den of Thieves 2 received slightly better reviews, but underperformed at the box office. Produced on a reported budget of $40 million, the action sequel grossed a little more than $55 million worldwide. However, like its predecessor, it has been popular on streaming and PVOD platforms.
Butler Delivered the Biggest Hit of His Career This Year
Butler recently starred in the biggest live-action hit of his career, How to Train Your Dragon, which made over $630 million worldwide. He has a few more sequels lined up, including Greenland 2: Migration, and a new installment in his Has Fallen series. Also starring O’Shea Jackson Jr., Pablo Schreiber, 50 Cent and others, Den of Thieves was directed by Christian Gudegast, who also returned to helm the sequel. You can watch the film on Netflix before it leaves the platform in November. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
Release Date
January 19, 2018
Runtime
140 minutes
Director
Christian Gudegast
Writers
Christian Gudegast, Paul Scheuring
Producers
Gerard Butler, Mark Canton, Tony Grazia, Tucker Tooley, Alan Siegel
