Mel Gibson’s latest movie,Flight Risk, grossedonly $40 million at the box office, only narrowly avoiding breaking a bad record in his filmmaking career.Mel Gibson’s best-directed moviesinclude titles likeBraveheartandHacksaw Ridge, some of the most outstanding in their respective genres, as well as major box office hits. EvenThe Passion of the Christ, his most controversial movie to date, grossed $612 million, warranting a sequel being developed over two decades later.
With Mark Wahlberg leadingFlight Risk’scast,the combination of a famous director and a movie star actor seemed like a surefire January hit, especially after the previous successes ofPlaneandThe Beekeeper, which targeted a similar demographic.Flight Riskhad a damning 29% score on Rotten Tomatoes and a 5.3/10 score on IMDb. The RT Audience Score, which is generally more favorable to action movies, wasn’t much better, with only a 63% score. Altogether, the results weren’t ideal, but poor reviews don’t always equate to a low box office, especially when Mark Wahlberg is the lead.
Flight Risk Is Mel Gibson’s Second-Lowest Movie At The Box Office He’s Directed
The Man Without A Face Still Holds The Record
Flight Riskgrossed only $40 millionat the box office on its $25 million budget, falling short of almost every movie he’s made. However, the 2025 thriller stopped just short of being the lowest grossing movie Mel Gibson has directed. Thatrecord is still held byThe Man Without a Face, Gibson’s directorial debut from 1993, which only made $37 million. His directorial debut wasn’t well received either, with only a 68% score on Rotten Tomatoes, though the film still arguably had the benefit of Gibson starring when he was in his prime, which was surely a box office draw.
Braveheart, his second film, grossed over $200 million and managed to win Best Picture, making it arguably the most astounding accomplishment of Gibson’s career, only rivaled by theMad Maxmovies.Everything he’s directed since then has succeeded in some capacity, either at the box office or award acclaim, makingFlight Riska standout, even if it didn’t beat the record for being his lowest-grossing film. When considering inflation, one could even make the case thatThe Man Without a Faceperformed better.
Mark Wahlberg’s Next Film Can Make Up For His Disappointing Flight Risk Villain - By Remaking A 1990s Mel Gibson Thriller
Mark Wahlberg’s first villain role in 30 years in Flight Risk didn’t work, but his upcoming remake of a dark Mel Gibson thriller could redeem it.
Flight Risk Is Still A Box Office Disappointment Based On Mel Gibson’s Track Record
Flight Risk Should Have Been A Bigger Hit For Mel Gibson
Flight Risk’stime at the box office isn’t done yet, but it’s hard to imagine it progressing much higher. Overall, this is a disappointment based on Mel Gibson’s directorial track record, as it’s the first movie he’s made sinceBraveheartin 1995to not gross over $100 million. This marks the end of an impressive streak for Gibson, which he’ll hope to rekindle withThe Passion of the Christ 2, which is finally in development. Still, it’s not impossible thatFlight Riskcould eventually become a streaming hit.
