There was a time when Carolco Pictures could do no wrong. They were the studio that brought us 'Field of Dreams,' 'Terminator 2,' and every single 'Rambo' movie. With all that success in their history - and more importantly, in their bank accounts - they ought to have been bulletproof against the cost of at least one commercial failure. Perhaps assuming that they couldn't sink was the reason they spent so much money on 'Cutthroat Island' in 1995.
Carolco spent $90m on what they thought would be the ultimate pirate adventure, and decided that stunt-casting Geena Davis as a pirate captain would seal the deal, apparently not bothering to check whether Davis could actually play the part convincingly. Spoiler: she couldn't. 'Generic' was one of the kinder words used to describe the film, which took barely $10m for an $80m loss. Carolco, which was simultaneously suffering further losses from the failure of 'Showgirls,' simply couldn't soak it all up. They were ruined.