Ever heard of this violent antihero flick called Deadpool (2016)? 20th Century Fox had no interest in it and was forced to fund it when the opening scene‘s test footage was leaked anonymously by Ryan Reynolds resulting in Deadpool fans demanding a movie.
The studio wanted it to be PG-13 for maximum slots in the cinemas but Ryan Reynolds objected because Deadpool’s story could never work in a family friendly rating. The budget was slashed to $58 million before it got into the production so the team revised the script and action scenes to fit in.
In the third act, Deadpool packs all of his guns in a duffle bag to save his girlfriend. However, he forgets taking the bag out of his friend’s taxi when they reach the villain’s hideout resulting in a hilarious situation where he has to rely on his swords to fight a horde of henchmen. The team had planned an extensive shootout scene before the budget was reduced.
The marketing resources provided by the studio were paltry as well. So the team did a successful marketing campaign via the internet, double entendres and pop humor. As a result, Deadpool earned more than $780 million and became the highest grossing R-rated film at the time.
You might say that the budget wasn’t that low. Actually it was less when you compare it with nearly every other superhero movie of the 2010s.