A box office flop that wasted two A-list comedians finds new life on streaming

Back when Jim Carrey was still regarded as one of the biggest movie stars on the planet, he almost had his thunder stolen from right under him by relative unknown Steve Carell as the two did battle to see who could chew on the most scenery in Bruce Almighty.

Fast forward ten years, and Carell had arguably usurped Carrey as Hollywood’s premiere rubber-faced funnyman, so fans were understandably hyped at seeing them do battle once again. Throw in a brilliant premise that positioned them as a pair of egotistical warring magicians, and it sounded like a match made in comedy heaven.

Sadly, The Incredible Burt Wonderstone was all sizzle and no steak, and it was ironically Steve Buscemi who wound up winning most of the plaudits for another hilariously deadpan turn. Carell’s title character and Buscemi’s Anton Marvelton find themselves at loggerheads, a situation that’s exacerbated when Carrey’s eccentric street magician Steve Gray explodes onto the Las Vegas scene.

It sounds like an easy way to mine hilarity given the insanity of the plot and the talent on display, but somehow The Incredible Burt Wonderstone was a disappointment. It flopped at the box office, was greeted tepidly by critics and faded from memory in an instant. That being said, it’s been rebounding spectacularly on HBO Max, having risen 44 places on the most-watched list since yesterday, as per FlixPatrol.