The Bad Guys 2
A dazzling disappointment
ESTIMATED domestic box office revenue
$51 – 74MM
Mythosis universal quests used
5
Audience appeal
1.38% – 1.69%
Hidden potential
$466 – 514MM
Released in 2025 The Bad Guys 2 serves up hyperkinetic animation zipping from visual gag to the next. Every heist and chase scene is vivid and has a comic-book sheen. Voice performances remain a highlight, and the new all-female crew brings a welcome burst of attitude.
However, the script juggles multiple villainous agendas to put a spanner in the reformation process of the Bad Guys. The result is an overstuffed narrative that leaps from one subplot to the next leaving the character quests feeling abrupt instead of earned. The Bad Guys 2 is undeniably fun in short bursts but beneath the furious pace there’s a thin emotional core.
1. The invisible plot structure of The Bad Guys 2
1A. Script of The Bad Guys 2 borrows 94% of its events from 5 mythological tales
The desire for acceptance drives Wolf’s quest. The quest borrows events from the tale of Theseus in Greek mythology. Both Theseus and Wolf overcome challenges to get recognized by those who rejected them.
Wolf’s quest also borrows few events from the universal quest of Tranquillity. His quest digresses from Acceptance into Tranquillity as he tries to survive in a hostile environment.
Kitty’s underdeveloped quest is driven by self-centeredness. The quest borrows events from the tale of Valmiki in Hindu mythology. Both Valmiki & Kitty accumulate unscrupulously without caring about the interest of others.
The desire for honour drives Diane’s underdeveloped quest. The quest borrows events from the tale of Hanuman in Hindu mythology. Both Hanuman & Diane demonstrate unquestioned loyalty even showing a willingness to sacrifice themselves to protect their friends.
The desire to dominate others drives Doom’s non-existent quest of Power. The quest borrows events from the tale of Circe in Greek mythology. Both Circe and Doom create a façade of godliness and treachery to seize control.
Mythosis plot structure
1,091
Tales interweaved
Theseus, Valmiki & Hanuman
I. How does interweaving mythological tales lead to infinite story plots?
II. Can the pursuit of a Desire have more than one quest?
2. Potential of The Bad Guys 2's plot structure: $51 – 74MM
The interweaving of 32 mythological tales can generate a billion unique stories. By using these 32 tales, we can extract the plot structure of any story across various genres. Our study of blockbuster, hit, and flop plot structures led to the discovery of the Mythosis Code. The Code is a set of principles for creating compelling stories. These storytelling principles reveal the strength of a story’s plot structure.
2A. Plot structure evaluation of The Bad Guys 2
- All Blockbusters have at least 3 universal quests. The Bad Guys 2 uses the universal quest of Acceptance. The quests of Accumulation & Honour are sparingly used.
- In Blockbusters, every character mirrors ONLY ONE universal quest. Wolf mirrors the universal quests of Acceptance & Tranquillity. Kitty mirrors Accumulation whereas the quest of Honour is mirrored by Diane
- Every Blockbuster character borrows at least 35% of the universal quest. Wolf borrows 22% events from the universal quest of Acceptance. Kitty & Diane borrow 12% from their respective quests.
- Blockbusters have a quest interweaving threshold of 0.5. Interweaving occurs when events of 2 quests occur simultaneously in the story. The Bad Guys 2 quest interweaving score of 0.67 is above par.
2B. Box office revenue estimation of The Bad Guys 2
The Bad Guys 2 achieves narrative richness by interweaving the quest of Kitty with both Wolf & Diane.
The script uses multiple quests and teases with compelling character journeys. However, due to under-borrowing from each quest, the characters don’t resonate fully.
Wolf’s conflicting motivations result in narrative dissonance, making his choices feel erratic and his character inconsistent.
The Script Score measures the potency of a plot structure. Higher its adherence to the principles of Mythosis Code, greater is the potency. The Script Score helps estimate a movie’s audience appeal & revenues. Blockbuster plot structures have a score of at least 0.64 and appeal to 20% of the audiences.
Script Score
0.05
Audience appeal
1.38% – 1.69%
I. How is Mythosis Code used to estimate revenues?
II. Aren’t box-office revenues influenced by several factors beyond just the story plot?
3. Ideal plot structure of The Bad Guys 2
We have identified 32 mythological tales. These are the superset of all tales across cultures. The quests of these tales have recurred over time periods. They represent human behaviours embedded in our shared memories. Each tale is the richest expression of the pursuit of a human desire. The tales have a unique pattern of events spread over 5 major arcs.
32 mythological tales strengthen the story and unlock its hidden potential. First, we map a character’s quest to the relevant mythological tale. This exercise reveals the gaps in their quest, if any. Second, identify missing events to plug the gaps. Plugging gaps deepens the character quest. Third, use missing events to strengthen the interweaving between various quests.
3A. Gaps in the current plot structure
Shallow Emotional Payoffs: Due to the under-borrowing of quests every character journey has missed out on pivotal events which has resulted in the characters lacking resonance.
Inconsistent Motivations: Wolf oscillates between approval from others and seeking a secure environment, creating narrative dissonance.
Overstuffed Plot: Doom’s quest isn’t adequately developed. As a result, her journey seems incidental and unnecessarily crowds the script.
3B. Unlocking the hidden potential
The untapped potential of The Bad Guys 2 is realized through Mythosis Plot Structure #1,932. The plot deepens the film’s narrative by weaving together three timeless quests of Acceptance, Vengeance, and Honour. In this reimagined plot:
- Wolf and his crew have a focussed quest of Acceptance akin to Theseus, stripped of any digressions into the quest of tranquillity.
- Kitty channels Duryodhan’s ruthless drive for unscrupulous acquisition and venegeance. Importantly, this quest draws Doom’s ambitions into Kitty’s pursuit rather than splitting them into separate arcs.
- Diane mirrors Hanuman’s loyalty, willing to sacrifice herself for those whom she initially suspected.
By integrating key events from these mythic tales, each character’s motivations sharpen and their paths interlock with greater cohesion. A shallow, inconsistent and crowded script becomes a tapestry of harmonized quests rich in emotional stakes. This mythological backbone elevates the story’s thematic resonance thereby dramatically uplifting the audience engagement and box-office returns. Mythosis plot structure #1,932 is predicted to generate a lifetime domestic revenue of $466 – 514MM.
Explore Mythosis Plot structure # 1,932 to enhance current revenues by 7X!
Tags: Hanuman, Honour, Theseus, Acceptance, Valmiki, Accumulation, Pierre Perifel, Yoni Brenner, Etan Cohen, DreamWorks Animation, Universal Pictures, 2025