The original Cantonese horror was chilling, but the U.S. remake with Jessica Alba fell flat. Playing a violinist who sees ghosts after an eye transplant, she couldn’t save a film critics dismissed as lifeless. | © Lionsgate Films
The 1984 original was a Cold War fantasy about teens fighting back against a Soviet invasion – and it worked at the box office. The remake swapped in North Korea as the enemy, but couldn’t win over critics or audiences. | © MGM
Robin Williams and Billy Crystal couldn’t save this remake of the French comedy Les compères. Even with two comedy heavyweights, it bombed at the box office and left critics unimpressed. | © Warner Bros. Pictures
With so many Robin Hood adaptations, it takes a special kind of misfire to stand out as one of the worst. This Taron Egerton-led version was slammed by critics as slow, silly, and completely hollow. | © Lionsgate Films
Disney’s 1961 original was a charming hit, but the Robin Williams remake didn’t stick the landing. Despite box office success, it’s mostly remembered as a noisy, pointless update that lacked the original’s magic. | © Walt Disney Pictures
The Vincent Price version became a horror classic, but this loose remake turned into a teen slasher about friends trapped in a wax museum. Casting Paris Hilton grabbed headlines, but the movie itself melted under bad reviews. | © Warner Bros. Pictures
This remake of the French comedy Little Indian, Big City stars Tim Allen as a dad who discovers he has a son raised in the Amazon. The fish-out-of-water story barely worked the first time, and the U.S. version fared no better in New York. | © Walt Disney Pictures
Michael Caine’s 1971 original is considered one of the greatest gangster films ever made. The remake with Sylvester Stallone moved the story to Seattle, but despite Caine’s cameo, it tanked with both critics and audiences. | © MGM
Wes Craven’s 1984 classic turned Freddy Krueger into a horror icon and pop culture juggernaut. The 2010 reboot recast the role with Jackie Earle Haley, but the film was so lifeless that it quickly became one of the most hated horror remakes. | © New Line Cinema
Guillermo del Toro’s first two Hellboy films stood out with style and originality. The 2019 reboot, however, felt flat and uninspired, paling next to Marvel’s polished hits of the time. | © Lionsgate Films
The 1982 original made Arnold Schwarzenegger a star and launched a cult fantasy franchise. The remake with Jason Momoa never found its footing, flopping at the box office and ending any hopes of a revival. | © 20th Century Studios
Inspired by a Buster Keaton classic, this rom-com cast Chris O’Donnell as a man racing to marry for an inheritance. Critics weren’t kind – its Rotten Tomatoes score stalled at a miserable 9%. | © New Line Cinema
Shirley Jackson’s novel inspired some great adaptations, but this glossy 1999 remake wasn’t one of them. Despite a strong cast, its overdone CGI ghosts and lack of real scares left audiences unimpressed. | © DreamWorks Pictures
Jonathan Swift’s satire has been adapted many times, but this version turned it into a Jack Black comedy. The modern spin relied on slapstick and cheap gags, stripping away the wit of the original story. | © 20th Century Fox
The little-known 1977 film Death Game didn’t need a redo, but Eli Roth gave it one anyway. Keanu Reeves stars as a family man tormented by two strangers, though the remake mostly earned laughs instead of scares. | © Lionsgate Films
Ruben Östlund’s Force Majeure balanced dark humor and tension after a family faces an avalanche. The remake with Will Ferrell and Julia Louis-Dreyfus softened the edge, and its awkward tone left audiences cold. | © Searchlight Pictures
The Japanese original was praised for its eerie mood and unique style. The U.S. remake swapped that atmosphere for cheap scares, and critics tore it apart. | © NTV Network
This campus-set thriller tried to rehash Single White Female with Minka Kelly and Leighton Meester. Instead of suspense, it delivered a bland, predictable story that felt more like a CW drama than a chilling remake. | © Sony Pictures Releasing
Disney’s 1959 original was a goofy family hit about a teen who turns into a dog. The 2006 remake swapped in Tim Allen as a dad-turned-dog, but the magic was gone, and so were the laughs. | © Walt Disney Pictures
The French original was a breezy action-comedy about a cabbie teaming up with the cops. The U.S. remake with Queen Latifah and Jimmy Fallon lost the spark, and critics like Roger Ebert said it only got worse the longer it went on. | © 20th Century Fox
Nicolas Cage’s turn as a sheriff investigating a missing girl turned this remake into an unintentional comedy. What was chilling in the 1973 original became a campy mess that critics still mock today. | © Warner Bros. Pictures
This remake of the French teen rom-com cast Miley Cyrus as a high schooler tangled up in love and social media drama. Audiences didn’t connect, and the film flopped both critically and financially. | © Lionsgate
The 1975 original used a violent sport to make sharp points about corporate power. The 2002 remake kept the action but dropped the social commentary, leaving it hollow and forgettable. | © Atlas Entertainment
Lina Wertmüller’s 1974 film balanced sharp politics with an unlikely island romance. The 2002 remake starring Madonna stripped away the charm and bombed so hard it barely made a dent at the box office. | © Screen Gems
The 1974 original became a cult slasher that influenced “Halloween” and beyond. The 2019 reboot tried to rebrand itself as a feminist update, but ended up feeling forced and hollow instead. | © Universal Studios
Hollywood has a long history of digging up classics and trying to cash in with a shiny new version. But not every reboot hits the mark, these 25 remakes prove that some movies are better left untouched.
