''The Worst Movie Ever!'' (stylized as ''THE WORST MOVIE EVER!!!!'') is a 2011 American

action comedy The action comedy is a film genre that applies to action films where humor plays a much more central role. While early films feature stuntwork and humor, academic Cynthia King wrote that the genre only came into its own as a mainstay of the America ...

film. The film had its festival premiere at the Van Wert Independent Film Festival in Van Wert,

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

on July 8, 2011. The film was written, produced, directed by, and starred Glenn Berggoetz. IFC wrote that the film lives up to its title and that it holds the possibility of becoming a

cult hit A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The latter is often called a cult classic. A film, boo ...

, by writing that it is "quickly becoming the stuff of Internet legend as the worst grossing film ever, a sales hook that plays nicely with that title. The film's director has stated that the low gross was not intended as a publicity stunt, and resulted from both the film being scheduled to screen as part of the theater's monthly "midnight screenings", and through problems in stirring interest in the theatrical release.

Plot

A suburban neighborhood is invaded by stereotypes of common horror film characters.

Cast

* Glenn Berggoetz as Johnny, Petey, Dr. Lars Coolman * Eileen Barker as Laduelia * Stuart Goldstein as Bobby * Haidyn Harvey as Erica * Bryce Foster as Brent * Christopher Irvin as Dr. Dirk Ramrod * Christine Mascolo as Angela * Kasha Fauscett as Kristin * Jeff Johnson as The Dark Overlord * Jonathan Jorgensen as

Santa Claus Santa Claus (also known as Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle or Santa) is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring gifts during the late evening and overnight hours on Chris ...

* Carla Cannalte as Debbie * Giovanna Leah as Running Woman * Jeff McBride as Grocery Boy,

Abe Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War, defeating the Confederate State ...

* Diane Henry as Petey's Girlfriend

Release

The film had its festival premiere at the Van Wert Independent Film Festival in Van Wert,

on July 8, 2011, where director Glenn Berggoetz spoke at a breakfast symposium and hosted a midnight screening of the film. The film had its theatrical premiere on August 19, 2011 in a single cinema, the Laemmle Sunset 5 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, which resulted in the worst box office performance ever recorded: just one paid admission and grossed just $11. After its release, the film gained notoriety for its extremely low viewership. This figure makes it the lowest opening film in history, beating the 2006 film ''

Zyzzyx Road ''Zyzzyx Road'' ( ), also called ''Zyzzyx Rd.'', is a 2006 American thriller film written, produced and directed by John Penney and starring Katherine Heigl, Leo Grillo, and Tom Sizemore. The film gained notoriety from its gross ticket sales ...

'', which attracted six patrons and $30 in revenue during its opening week. According to the websites

Box Office Mojo Box Office Mojo is an American website that tracks box-office revenue in a systematic, algorithmic way. The site was founded in 1998 by Brandon Gray, and was bought in 2008 by IMDb, which itself is owned by Amazon. History Brandon Gray ...

and The Numbers, the film has now grossed over $25,000 in box office revenue. According to director Glenn Berggoetz, the film sold just one ticket over the weekend (for the sole Saturday screening) and nobody attended the Friday screening. Attempts by the theater owner and filmmaker to locate the individual who paid to see the film over its opening weekend have so far failed.

Critical response

IFC wrote that the film lives up to its title and that it holds the possibility of becoming a

, by writing that it is "quickly becoming the stuff of Internet legend as the worst grossing movie ever, a sales hook that plays nicely with that title. In the week of August 26, 2011, almost 70,000 people watched the film's trailer on

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

. If even a fraction of those folks become curious enough to seek the film out, we could have a new cult hit on our hands." Since reporting of the film's lackluster premiere, the film's trailer has become a "mini-hit on YouTube" and initiated "something of a cult following on Facebook." The film's director has stated that the low gross was not intended as a publicity stunt, and resulted from both the film being scheduled to screen as part of the theater's monthly "midnight screenings," and through problems in stirring interest in the theatrical release.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Worst Movie Ever, The 2011 films 2011 action comedy films 2010s musical comedy films American action comedy films American musical comedy films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films English-language action comedy films English-language musical comedy films 2011 musical films Cultural depictions of Abraham Lincoln