Superhero films may be one of the most popular genres at the moment, but even film franchises centering on comic book characters can fall from grace. Of course, given the built-in appeal and vast source material many titles carry with them, it’s inevitable that a studio will take a chance and start from scratch on a given franchise, bringing a new cast, fresh approach or both. Here are five such superhero reboots that failed to reinvigorate their main characters.

Superman Returns (2006)

With this film, director Bryan Singer hoped to recapture the magic of the first two Superman films, which memorably starred Christopher Reeve as the last son of Krypton. Although star Brandon Routh bears a striking resemblance to Reeve and models his performance after him, the film’s plot leans too heavily on nostalgia to generate much new interest from fans. Many moments and character dynamics are simply riffs on the earlier releases, and Kate Bosworth is woefully miscast as peppy reporter Lois Lane. The film’s attempt to resurrect Kal-El’s movie career "“ which had remained dormant for nearly 20 years "“ ultimately ended up earning $200 million domestically against a $270 million production budget. Thankfully, Man of Steel brought the character back to the forefront in 2013, setting the stage for his showdown with the Dark Knight in next year’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

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