It Was Considered A Box Office Flop

While The Shawshank Redemption may be considered a classic today, the film didn't do well at the box office upon its original release. In fact, it only initially grossed $18 million, which didn't even cover the cost of the film's production. However, after earning numerous Oscar nominations, the film made another $10 million but was still labeled as a box office flop.

Even though the film wasn't successful in theaters, Warner Home Video shipped 320,000 rental copies across the United States. This aided the film in becoming one of the top-rented films of the year even though its distribution was considered to be risky.