There's just something about the fantasy genre in Hollywood that assures a higher rate of box office success. Take some great visuals effects, some good action and add a decent story in the mix - and you have a pretty decent film.
Some of the highest-grossing films of 2017 were set in other galaxies, fictional lands and parallel worlds, including Wonder Woman, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
But there are always exceptions. It's also very easy to go wrong with the sci-fi and fantasy genre - as was the case with some of the biggest disappointments of the year.
Let's take a look at 5 of the biggest let-downs of 2017 in the fantasy genre.
5.VALERIN AND THE CITY OF A THOUSAND PLANETS
Luc Besson’s $180 million passion project wasn’t exactly beloved by critics (it's still in line for an Oscar for visual effects though). The director clearly lost the plot and ended with a spectacular mess of a movie. For people expecting to see something on the lines of The Fifth Element, this was a huge disappointment.
Set in the 28th century, and featuring a story that hops between planets, spaceships and dimensions. The story is based on a 1970s graphic novel, Valerian and Laureline.
4.KONG SKULL ISLAND
King Kong has been a popular subject for movies for years now. But this fantasy/adventure failed starring Tom Hiddleston failed to cash in on Kong's popularity.
The eponymous setting of Kong: Skull Island is, John Goodman's character says at the beginning of the film, "a place where myth and science meet."
Surrounded by storms and fog in a previously unexplored part of the Pacific Ocean (at least, within the movie's mythos), Skull Island is home to massive lizards, spiders, squids and bats. Nobody really cared.
3.BLADE RUNNER 2049
A sequel to the 1982 film Blade Runner, the film stars Ryan Gosling and Harrison Ford, with Ana de Armas, Sylvia Hoeks, Robin Wright, Mackenzie Davis, Carla Juri, Lennie James, Dave Bautista, and Jared Leto in supporting roles.
Set thirty years after the first film, Gosling plays K, a Blade Runner, who hunts rogue replicants. In the original Blade Runner director's own words, this box office disappointment was "too f**king long". Enough said.
2.GHOST IN A SHELL
Based on the Japanese manga of the same name by Masamune Shirow, Ghost in the Shell stars Scarlett Johansson, Takeshi Kitano, Michael Pitt, Pilou Asbæk, Chin Han and Juliette Binoche.
Set in a near future when the line between humans and robots is blurring, the plot follows the Major (Johansson), a cyborg super-soldier who investigates her past.
The film received mixed reviews, with praise for its visual style, action sequences, cinematography and score, but criticism for its story and lack of character development. The casting of Caucasian actors, particularly Johansson, drew accusations of racism and whitewashing.
1.THE DARK TOWER
The Dark Tower, derived from King's series of the same name, envisions a parallel, post-apocalyptic world where magic has all but replaced technology and society as we know it has seemingly fallen apart, giving way to a world that looks like the American West. The film stars Idris Elba and Matthew McConaughey.
It received generally negative reviews, with critics calling it "a dull disappointment without any set audience: incomprehensible to newbies, and wildly unfaithful and simplistic to fans of King's books," though Elba, McConaughey and Taylor's performances earned some praise.