Take-Two Concedes Borderlands Movie Flopped

Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick acknowledged the 2024 Borderlands film underperformed at the box office, while Netflix develops a BioShock adaptation.

Updated on Nov. 6, 2026 in Gaming

Take-Two Concedes Borderlands Movie Flopped

Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick acknowledged that the 2024 Borderlands movie was a box office flop. He noted that Take-Two did not lose money on the film because Lionsgate funded it.

Why it matters

The admission highlights the risks of adapting video game franchises to film and comes as Netflix moves forward with a BioShock movie. Take-Two says it is selective about which franchises it brings to other media.

The Borderlands movie earned $15.5 million in the US and $17.5 million internationally, about $33 million worldwide. The extraction does not include production budget figures, so the film's net financial outcome for Lionsgate cannot be assessed from these numbers.

The players

Strauss Zelnick

Strauss Zelnick is the chief executive of Take-Two Interactive, the parent company of the Borderlands and BioShock game franchises, and a longtime figure in the video game and entertainment industries.

Francis Lawrence

Francis Lawrence is a film director known for the Hunger Games series, and he is set to direct the BioShock movie if the Netflix project proceeds.

The details

Zelnick made the remarks at Business Insider Live in response to a question about franchise adaptation. The Borderlands movie was directed by Eli Roth, with Tim Miller handling reshoots, and starred Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, Ariana Greenblatt, and Jamie Lee Curtis.

2024: Borderlands movie released and underperformed at the box office.
November 6, 2026: Zelnick's acknowledgment of the failure published.

Franchise Adaptation Track Record

The 2024 Borderlands movie's roughly $33 million worldwide gross is now the reference point for Take-Two's franchise adaptation strategy. Zelnick's comments suggest the company will be more selective about which properties move into film, TV, theme parks, and live events.

Viewers interested in the BioShock adaptation will need to follow Netflix announcements, since the extraction does not give a release window. The Borderlands film is the only one of these projects with confirmed box office results for audiences to assess.

The takeaway

Video game adaptations carry financial risk even for well-known franchises, and publishers are becoming more selective about which titles they bring to other media. Readers following gaming news should watch how studios balance film deals against their core game releases.