2026 sees some of the most iconic modern movies celebrating their tenth anniversary. La La Land and Moonlight are still both beloved movies and are constantly celebrated for their achievements and impact. Family movies such as Zootopia and Moana are already modern classics for children everywhere today, and they’re marked by a sequel and a live-action film, respectively. Some movies even picked up steam and became cult classics after a decade. However, some movies have grown more frustrating with time.
Here, we take a look at some of the worst movies that turn 10 this 2026. Many suffered from incoherent plotting, misguided creative choices, or performances that felt disconnected from the material. Others were victims of larger industry issues, like YA adaptation fatigue and overreliance on IP rather than creative, original stories. Whatever the case, these movies are proof that budgets and recognizable stars cannot save a movie that forgets its basics.
10
‘Alice Through the Looking Glass’ (2016)
Alice Through the Looking Glass follows Alice (Mia Wasikowska) as she returns to Underland and uses a time-traveling device called the Chronosphere to save the Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp), who becomes even madder and seeks his family. Using the Chronosphere, Alice goes through time and meets the Red Queen (Helena Bonham Carter) and the White Queen (Anne Hathaway) again, as well as Time (Sacha Baron Cohen) himself.
After the billion-dollar success of Alice in Wonderland, it was natural to have a sequel. However, only drawing from the source material by name and without Tim Burton in the director’s chair, the film does not have an interesting story to tell. The plot is cluttered and hollow, and the performances are mostly a collection of surface-level quirkiness. Critics and audiences largely agreed the film lacked the imagination and heart of its predecessor, and its visual spectacle couldn’t compensate for a story that felt both overstuffed and strangely empty.
9
‘The Divergent Series: Allegiant’ (2016)
Allegiant, the third entry in the young adult adaptation of the Divergent Series, sees Tris (Shailene Woodley) and Four (Theo James) leaving the confines of Chicago to discover the truth about the world beyond the wall. They find an advanced society manipulating genetic purity and social order named the Bureau of Genetic Welfare, led by the secretive David (Jeff Daniels).
Unlike its YA counterpart, The Hunger Games, Divergent has always been a more modest hit. Its decision to split the final book, following the trend at the time started by the Harry Potter films, becomes its own undoing. The film’s story is convoluted and dull, filled with a narrative that leads nowhere because it has to be saved for the proposed second part, Ascendant. The performances are just routine, with most of the actors fulfilling their contractual obligations. The critics were, of course, unimpressed, and audiences disengaged. The fact that there are no significant fan-driven campaigns for the fourth film is more miserable than the film’s cancellation.
8
‘The 5th Wave’ (2016)
Based on the YA novel, The 5th Wave depicts an alien invasion told through successive waves that dismantle human civilization. After the Fourth Wave enables the aliens to control humans, an impending fifth wave is near. The film follows Cassie (Chloë Grace Moretz), a teenage girl trying to survive while searching for her younger brother in the midst of all the chaos.
By 2016, YA adaptations were nearing their end, and this film represents the most generic one of them all. The plot is riddled with clichés, exposition dumps, and illogical twists that undermine any sense of tension. The performances, which include actors like Maria Bello and Liev Schreiber, are serviceable but unremarkable, with Chloë Grace Moretz doing her best with thin material. Critics criticized the film for lacking originality, and audiences quickly lost interest. For consolation, The Fifth Wave didn’t crash and burn at the box office, but no sequels followed.
7
‘Keeping Up with the Joneses’ (2016)
Keeping Up with the Joneses follows the Gaffneys (Zach Galifianakis and Isla Fisher), a mild-mannered couple who discover their impossibly cool new neighbors are actually secret agents. As the Gaffneys try to figure out their mission, Tim (Jon Hamm) and Natalie Jones (Gal Gadot) have no choice but to include them in the international espionage plot, putting the Gaffneys ordinary lives into a spiral.
Despite the fun premise, Keeping Up with the Joneses never finds its rhythm. The plot feels like a recycled sketch episode stretched to feature length, with predictable twists and low stakes. Performances are uneven, as Hamm and Gal Gadot look the part but aren’t given much to work with, while the comedy often falls flat and the action is unimpressive. Critics and audiences agreed it was forgettable, a film that should have been sharper and funnier but instead settled for mediocrity. In today’s landscape, it would’ve gone straight to streaming.
6
‘Mother’s Day’ (2016)
Mother’s Day weaves together multiple storylines centered around mothers and families in the days leading up to the titular holiday. Similar to Valentine’s Day and New Year’s Eve that came before, this film features an all-star cast that includes Jennifer Aniston, Julia Roberts, Kate Hudson, and Jason Sudeikis.
After two movies with similar setups — neither of which was particularly a hit with critics, by the way — the formula had worn thin. The plot is disjointed, with underdeveloped characters and emotional beats that feel manufactured rather than earned. Performances vary wildly, but even strong actors struggle with shallow material, and Julia Roberts and Kate Hudson were nominated for the Razzies because of this movie. With 8% on Rotten Tomatoes, critics were largely dismissive, and audiences showed diminishing interest, marking it as the weakest entry in the late Garry Marshall’s holiday movies.
5
‘Yoga Hosers’ (2016)
Yoga Hosers centers on two teenage girls, both named Colleen (Lily Rose-Depp and Harley Quinn Smith), who do yoga, play in a rock band, and work at a convenience store. When they’re invited to a party by a popular boy, they also stumble into a mad scientist’s plan to unleash supernatural villains from under the ground. The film also stars Justin Long and Johnny Depp.
Kevin Smith‘s Yoga Hosers is designed as a playful genre mashup of comedy and horror, but the problem is that none of them land. The performances from the newcomers are stiff and inexperienced, making the film hard to get through. What was intended as a cult oddity instead came across as a passion project to launch Smith and Depp’s daughters with little concern for basic storytelling or accessibility. The film was planned to be part of an unofficial trilogy, following Tusk, but with this film failing, the third film remains in development hell.
4
‘Max Steel’ (2016)
Max Steel follows teenager Max McGrath (Ben Winchell), who discovers he can generate immense energy and teams up with an alien named Steel (voiced by Silicon Valley‘s Josh Brener) to control his powers. As an alien race called UltraLink is threatening Earth, Max and Steel team up as a new superpowered being to save the planet.
Based on an action figure line by Mattel, the film holds the distinction of joining the unenviable group of movies that received 0% on Rotten Tomatoes. For a film about an alien lifeform, Max Steel is pretty much lifeless. The origin story plot is bland and predictable, offering nothing new to the superhero genre. The film did not even debut in the top 10 of the box office charts, and by the second week, it had disappeared completely, effectively killing any franchise ambitions. However, with the success of Barbie, Mattel might have another go at this property.
3
‘The Brothers Grimsby’ (2016)
The Brothers Grimsby pairs a mild-mannered football hooligan, Nobby (Sacha Baron Cohen) with his long-lost brother, Sebastian (Mark Strong) a refined MI6 agent. After an unplanned reunion, they must work together to prevent a global plot involving a biological weapon disguised as a cure to the world’s diseases.
Sacha Baron Cohen’s antics in Borat or The Dictator might have been received rather well, but his trademark brand of shock comedy and crude gags went over the line this time, making Grimsby unsettling and unfunny for some. Overall, the film is an exhausting experience that makes its audience check how much time is left. Logically, it failed at the American box office, probably due to its Britishness, but it was also not a hit in its home country either. It’s yet another example of excess without any balance or compelling value and how divisive Cohen’s humor can be.
2
‘The Disappointments Room’ (2016)
The Disappointments Room follows the Barrow family that moves into an old mansion, where the mother, Dana (Kate Beckinsale), uncovers a hidden room tied to disturbing events from the house’s past. It turns out that the room was used to hide deformed family members who were unfit to show themselves to society at the time.
The film is said to be based on an HGTV program, and perhaps that’s why it wore thin once it established its premise. Throughout the film, it’s always confusing instead of intriguing. For the horror film fans, there were no notable scares that were worth the movie ticket. To make things worse, the original distributor, Relativity Media, filed for bankruptcy before its release, pushing the film’s release date and ruining the film’s marketing efforts. When it was released with no fanfare, critics were largely negative; indeed, The Disappointments Room is yet another on this list that is a member of the 0% Rotten Tomatoes club.
1
‘Nine Lives’ (2016)
Nine Lives follows Tom Brand (Kevin Spacey), a wealthy, work-obsessed businessman who never spends time with his family. When he wants to buy a cat for his daughter, the pet shop owner (Christopher Walken) traps him in the body of a cat and gives him one week to reconnect with his family or stay a cat forever.
Directed by Barry Sonnenfield, who was behind classics like Men in Black, Nine Lives would’ve certainly hit if it had been released in the late 1990s, when talking animals were the trend. The plot is generic, and the humor relies heavily on tired animal gags. The visual effects for the animals really do belong in ’90s films for how inconsistent they are. The now-disgraced Spacey dials in a flat performance that undermines the film’s emotional arc, making the cat sound like his character from House of Cards instead of a loving father. At least Christopher Walken seemed to be having fun.
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