Critics v. Audience
It probably won't shock anyone to learn that movie critics and movie audiences don't always agree on what a good movie is. But, there's disagreeing and then there's really disagreeing. And it's the latter ones that we wanted to look at. Here are some films with large discrepancies between the movie's Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score and its Audience Score. Who got it right?
Tommy Boy
RT Critics Score: 40%
RT Audience Score: 90%
While it didn't do much at the box office upon its initial release, Tommy Boy has become a beloved film and a comedy classic. Look at that 90% audience score.
Grown Ups
RT Critics Score: 11%
RT Audience Score: 62%
A 62% audience score isn't outright "love," but it sure is a whole lot more "like" than the 11% the critics gave it.
Columbia Pictures, Grown Ups (2010)
Uncut Gems
RT Critics Score: 92%
RT Audience Score: 52%
Adam Sandler movies usually seem to go the other way when it comes to the critic/audience divide (as we just saw, and will see again later). But not this time. Critics called this movie a gem and often said the same thing about Sandler's performance. Audiences however, they used words like "boring" and "excessive".
Elara Pictures, Uncut Gems (2019)
Venom
RT Critics Score: 30%
RT Audience Score: 80%
Venom made over $850 million at the box office. A shocking number given that "30" number in the "critics score" column. But audiences didn't let bad reviews keep them away—and given the 80% score, they even liked it.
Columbia Pictures, Venom (2018)
King Kong
RT Critics Score: 84%
RT Audience Score: 50%
In his first film post-The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Peter Jackson took on King Kong. and while it had critics applauding the grandeur and storytelling—audiences felt it was too long.
Universal Pictures, King Kong (2005)
Twilight
RT Critics Score: 49%
RT Audience Score: 72%
Are you "Team Critic" or "Team Audience" on this one? (See what we did there?)
Summit Entertainment, Twilight (2008)
Black Adam
RT Critics Score: 38%
RT Audience Score: 88%
All we heard about Black Adam when it came out was how it was a big box office bomb. That may be true, but it looks like at least the people that did see it really liked it (the ones who weren't critics of course).
Warcraft
RT Critics Score: 28%
RT Audience Score: 76%
You'd think audiences who loved the video game would be harder on the movie. But they were able to just sit back and enjoy the CGI visual thrills, while the critics couldn't get over the lackluster script—among other issues.
Legendary Entertainment, Warcraft (2016)
Hotel Transylvania
RT Critics Score: 45%
RT Audience Score: 72%
Critics didn't see this one appealing to anyone who wasn't a child. However, to get a 72% audience score we assume enough grown ups had to like it also. Speaking of grown ups...
Columbia Pictures, Hotel Transylvania (2012)
Sausage Party
RT Critics Score: 82%
RT Audience Score: 50%
Normally critics deride this kind of offensive humor. But with Sausage Party they were laughing it up—while the majority of the audience couldn't find enough LOLs to make this one worth it.
Columbia Pictures, Sausage Party (2016)
But I'm A Cheerleader
RT Critics Score: 42%
RT Audience Score: 74%
Critics found it to be weak social satire, while audiences enjoyed this LGBTQ+ teen comedy.
The Kushner-Locke Company, But I'm a Cheerleader (1999)
National Treasure
RT Critics Score: 46%
RT Audience Score: 76%
Nic Cage is truly a national treasure, but as for the movie—critics weren't feeling it. The Audience, however, had fun with this one.
Walt Disney, National Treasure (2004)
Antz
RT Critics Score: 92%
RT Audience Score: 52%
While everyone agreed that A Bug's Life was great, Antz left critics and audiences quite divided.
Paramount Pictures, Antz (1998)
Big Daddy
RT Critics Score: 39%
RT Audience Score: 74%
As it often goes with Adam Sandler comedies.
Columbia Pictures, Big Daddy (1999)
The Witch
RT Critics Score: 90%
RT Audience Score: 59%
Critics called it brilliant, slow-building horror. Audiences just found it slow. And it isn't the only horror film to have such a divisive effect on critics and audiences.
Maiden Voyage Pictures, The Witch (2015)
It Comes at Night
RT Critics Score: 87%
RT Audience Score: 44%
Audiences were bored once again, and liked this one even quite a bit less than The Witch. Whereas critics came in close to the same number.
Animal Kingdom, It Comes at Night (2017)
Ad Astra
RT Critics Score: 83%
RT Audience Score: 40%
Critics found it compelling. Audiences didn't think it made much sense.
20th Century Studios, Ad Astra (2019)
Sweet Home Alabama
RT Critics Score: 38%
RT Audience Score: 78%
Critics felt that Reese Witherspoon was the only good thing about this otherwise standard and predictable rom-com.
Whether or not audiences agreed with that premise or not, Witherspoon earned 40% more goodwill from them.
Original Film, Sweet Home Alabama (2002)
Harlem Nights
RT Critics Score: 25%
RT Audience Score: 80%
This isn't the worst score critics ever gave to an Eddie Murphy movie, but it's still pretty bad. As opposed to audiences, who dug this period comedy-drama that Murphy also wrote and directed.
Paramount Pictures, Harlem Nights (1989)
Spy Kids
RT Critics Score: 93%
RT Audience Score: 46%
The critical consensus on Rotten Tomatoes said that Spy Kids was "sure to thrill children of all ages". Wrong! It looks like it only thrilled 46% of children of all ages.
Troublemaker Studios, Spy Kids (2001)
Transformers
RT Critics Score: 58%
RT Audience Score: 85%
Everyone liked the special effects and the action in this one, but it would appear that audiences were more willing to forgive a lame script than were their critic counterparts.
DreamWorks SKG, Transformers (2007)
Noah
RT Critics Score: 76%
RT Audience Score: 41%
Audiences flooded this movie with many fewer positive comments than did the critics.
Paramount Pictures, Noah (2014)
Hook
RT Critics Score: 29%
RT Audience Score: 76%
Hook has become a cult classic in the decades since its initial (and kind of disappointing) release.
Step Up
RT Critics Score: 21%
RT Audience Score: 83%
Critics said Step Up had bad acting, a bad script, and great dancing. Maybe great dancing was all audiences needed from this one.
Summit Entertainment, Step Up (2006)
The Informant!
RT Critics Score: 79%
RT Audience Score: 44%
Critics appreciated this smart satire from director Steven Soderbergh. Audiences however seemed to inform their friends not to see it—as it only made $41 million at the box office.
Warner Bros. , The Informant! (2009)
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water
RT Critics Score: 81%
RT Audience Score: 54%
Despite the 27% discrepancy in the scores, the film still made over $320 million at the box office.
Paramount Pictures, The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water (2015)
Playing With Fire
RT Critics Score: 23%
RT Audience Score: 77%
When it came to this John Cena movie, audiences said "we can't see you" to the critics low rating and gave it a solid 77% on their end.
Paramount Pictures, Playing With Fire (2015)
Drag Me to Hell
RT Critics Score: 92%
RT Audience Score: 62%
A 62% from audiences isn't bad, and it means they definitely kinda liked it, at least a little bit. But that's a far cry from the 92% love critics gave this Sam Raimi supernatural horror film.
Universal Pictures, Drag Me to Hell (2009)
Where the Crawdads Sing
RT Critics Score: 34%
RT Audience Score: 96%
Where the Crawdads Sing was a surprise hit in 2022, taking in over $144 million on a budget of just $24 million. And it did it despite the poor reviews from critics.
But with an audience score a whopping 62% higher, now you know why.
