Let’s face it: an Oscar for Best Picture doesn’t automatically translate to a film being universally loved. Over the years, the Academy has awarded the top prize to movies that left many viewers scratching their heads, mildly entertained at best, or confused about how they ever took home the gold. Thanks to Rotten Tomatoes audience scores, we can see which so-called “winners” failed to win over the people. So, get cozy, and perhaps keep that stress pillow handy, as we count down the 10 least popular Best Picture winners, ranging from the mildly underwhelming to the ones audiences really couldn’t stand.
10. The Shape of Water (2017) – 72% Audience Score
Guillermo del Toro’s elegant love story between a woman and an amphibious creature won over critics, but plenty of moviegoers weren’t quite on board with the fish-man romance. Coming in at a 72% audience score, it squeaks onto this list as the least disliked of the bunch. Visually striking? You betcha. A crowd favorite? Not so much.
9. Rocky (1976) – 69% Audience Score
Surprise, huh? Stallone’s underdog boxing film is pop culture’s BFF, but Rotten Tomatoes viewers weren’t nearly as excited. A 69% Audience Score suggests some viewers found the pace to be sluggish and training montages mawkish. It looks like not everyone was up for going the distance.
8. Titanic (1997) – 69% Audience Score
It was the largest box office success of its day, but Titanic still left many fans cold. Its over-the-top romance and infamous door scene have fans swooning one moment and rolling their eyes the next. A 69% Audience Score indicates the melodrama was just too much for others.
7. Tom Jones (1963) – 58% Audience Score
This saucy British period farce has not stood the test of time. What was so naughty and raunchy then now comes across as awkward and dull. Its 58% audience score is among the lowest of the most forgettable Best Picture winners.
6. Around the World in 80 Days (1956) – 57% Audience Score
On paper, a globe-trotting epic is great fun. In real life? Three hours of wooden spectacle that’s as much trouble as homework and not a thrill ride. At 57%, audiences made it clear: the journey was more of a chore than a thrill ride.
5. The Greatest Show on Earth (1952) – 53% Audience Score
Cecil B. DeMille’s circus spectacle was big, flashy, and. kind of hollow. With a bungling script and over-the-top tone, it tallied a meh 53% rating. Jimmy Stewart in makeup as a clown couldn’t even rescue it.
4. The Great Ziegfeld (1936) – 50% Audience Score
A three-hour musical about a Broadway impresario is a glamorous concept, but this one’s overblown and historically questionable. At 50%, it’s on the edge of “rotten,” and it’s one of the worst-loved musicals to have ever taken Best Picture.
3. Cavalcade (1933) – 26% Audience Score
This grand family saga was intended to capture the essence of an age, but it proves to be stuffy and manipulative. With a dismal 26% rating, audiences decidedly weren’t. More endurance test than a movie.
2. Cimarron (1931) – 25% Audience Score
It’s a chore to watch today with its slow pace, dated storytelling, and offensive stereotypes. Its 25% audience score indicates just how much it has fallen short of standing the test of time. Historical piece or otherwise, it’s hard to watch.
1. The Broadway Melody (1929) – 20% Audience Score
The second to claim Best Picture and most reviled, it features wooden performances, wobbly pacing, and scant contemporary interest, so much so that it’s more artifact than film. Only the most devoted completionists trudge through at a dismal 20%.
So what is that list telling us? To begin with, general audiences and the Academy have scarcely ever agreed on what a truly great movie is. Best Pictures have become more “prestige” and have moved away from mass audiences over the decades. With the days of independent films and streaming re-shaping Hollywood, the Oscars are certainly awarding artistic victories, but fewer are necessarily responding to them.
Even recent nominees highlight the divide: some, like Dune: Part Two and Wicked, have broad fan appeal, while others (Emilia Pérez, sitting at just 17% with audiences) leave viewers baffled. An Oscar doesn’t guarantee you’ll love the movie. Sometimes, the Academy crowns a masterpiece. Other times…It’s a film that audiences would rather forget.