The sci-fi film Sunshine was released in 2007. The cast included today’s Hollywood stars such as Chris Evans and Cillian Murphy – yet it did not become a big hit, and hardly anyone watched the film in theaters. It could have significantly changed the career of the Captain America actor, as he noted in an interview in 2011.
Sunshine was directed by Danny Boyle (Babylon, Slumdog Millionaire). Among the cast members are names that are much more well-known today than they were then, such as Cillian Murphy (Oppenheimer) and Chris Evans (Captain America).
The sci-fi film had its premiere on the big screen on April 19, 2007, but it failed at the box office:
- The film was reported to have cost 40 million dollars (via web.archive.com).
- However, it only grossed around 34.8 million dollars worldwide (via boxofficemojo.com)
Here you can see the trailer for Sunshine:
“Everyone goes and watches ‘Fantastic Four’, but no one watches ‘Sunshine'”
In an interview with Moviefone in 2011, Chris Evans spoke about Sunshine (via joblo.com). He said he ‘loves’ the film. However, hardly anyone seemed to have seen the blockbuster in theaters:
About ten people saw it. All my good films no one sees. Everyone goes and watches ‘Fantastic Four’, but no one watches ‘Sunshine’.
I would have a different career if people would watch it. I love this film, man. I love Danny Boyle. I love this experience and I love this cast. It was one of those films I was in love with from start to finish.
Chris Evans via joblo.com
Screenwriter Alex Garland also expressed frustration about the film’s failure at the box office: “[…] Look at the box office results for ‘Sunshine’, it was just a disaster at the box office and didn’t make any money at all. We made this film, we put our whole heart and soul into it, it got pretty good reviews, and nobody really cared […].” (via joblo.com)
How is Sunshine rated by viewers? Even though Sunshine flopped at the box office back then, it is celebrated by many viewers today.
On IMDb, the sci-fi film scores 7.2 stars based on 262,237 ratings (as of November 15, 2023)
The film also performs well on Rotten Tomatoes:
- 76% Tomatometer
- 73% Audience Score
Among genre fans, Sunshine is even considered one of the best space thrillers ever, praised for its genre mix of sci-fi and horror elements as well as its gripping story. You can read more about it here from our colleagues at Moviepilot.
What is Sunshine about? The film is set in 2057. The sun is dying, and Earth is on the brink of freezing.
A space crew consisting of 8 people is sent to reignite the sun. However, they are not the first to be sent on the dangerous mission. The crew before them has mysteriously vanished.
In another film, a lot of time and effort was invested in the set, yet it also did not succeed at the box office:
