Summary
The Rotten Tomatoes score for Russell Crowe’sThe Exorcismis bad news for another one of the actor’s upcoming titles.The Exorcismsees Crowe play an actor struggling with his sanity and relationship with his daughter. When a series of mysterious events start on the set of the horror film he is working on, his daughter begins to question whether her father is backsliding into his internal chaos or if something far more sinister is afoot.
With a renowned actor like Crowe in the lead,The Exorcismwas a highly-anticipated horror film. Unfortunately,The Exorcismis receiving negative reviewsamong critics, withRotten Tomatoes giving it a 33% among 45 reviewersat the time of writing. So far, audiences are not lovingThe Exorcismeither, as the film has a 46% approval rating ahead of its weekend release. WhileThe Exorcism’s reviews aren’t promising, they also spell trouble for an upcoming Crowe movie.
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The Exorcism Is Russell Crowe’s Second “Rotten” Rated Exorcist Movie
The Pope’s Exorcist Also Received a Negative Rotten Tomatoes Score
Before he was inThe Exorcism, Crowe acted in another exorcist-based movie last year:The Pope’s Exorcist. In the film, Crowe played prominent Vatican exorcist Gabriel Amorth, who finds out about a Vatican conspiracy while investigating the death of a child. Besides their shared exorcist plot element,The ExorcismandThe Pope’s Exorcistalso have the unfortunate similarity of both having rotten scores on Rotten Tomatoes.The Pope’s Exorcistscored a 50% on the aggregator site.
Unlike the earlyreviews forThe Exorcism, however,The Pope’s Exorcisthad a high approval rating among audiences. The film has an 81% approval among audiences, which would have put it in the fresh range if it had been a critical score. Likewise,The Exorcismcould also become an audience hit, as it has time to partially recover its Rotten Tomatoes score.
Russell Crowe’s Exorcism Movie Trend Doesn’t Bode Well For The Pope’s Exorcist 2
The Pope’s Exorcist 2 Has Been Confirmed
That said, the initial approval of 46% makes it unlikely thatThe Exorcism’s audience reception will come anywhere close to that ofThe Pope’s Exorcist. It would be virtually impossible forThe Exorcismto pivot into a positive Tomatometer among critics, because a 33% score with 45 reviews puts it too far below the threshold. Meanwhile, Crowe has another exorcist movie on the horizon inThe Pope’s Exorcist 2; While the audience reaction to the firstThe Pope’s Exorcistlooks good for the film,The Exorcism’s negativity might turn people off of horror films starring Crowe, especially those with similar premises.
The negative qualities ofThe Exorcismmay causeThe Pope’s Exorcist 2to lose some momentum.
Another point in the negative direction forThe Pope’s Exorcistis the fact thatone of the refrains among negative reviews forThe Exorcismis that Crowe’s performance is overdone and flawed. The actor is a selling point for both movies, but with his lackluster work inThe Exorcism, viewers may lose some trust in the actor. This is another harbinger of failure forThe Pope’s Exorcist 2, as the negative qualities ofThe Exorcismmay cause the horror sequel to lose some momentum.
The Pope’s Exorcist 2 May Still Be A Success, Regardless Of Its RT Score
The Pope’s Exorcist Did Well At The Box Office
Even withThe Exorcism’s negative Rotten Tomatoes score, the film could still go on to be an unexpected hit. Despite its 50% Rotten Tomatoes score,The Pope’s Exorcistwent on to make $76.9 million at the global box office. If this wasn’t impressive enough on an $18 million budget,The Pope’s Exorcistalso became a Netflix successonce it hit streaming, cementing the movie as a fan favorite.
The Pope’s Exorcistpeaked at no. 3 on the Netflix chart.
As such, the fate ofThe Exorcismis not sealed yet, as its box office run has yet to be revealed. Horror movies have struggled at the 2024 box office so far, soThe Exorcismwill have to overcome both the trends and its negative reviews to turn a significant profit. If it is successful in this endeavor, or even if it becomes a streaming hit later,The Exorcismcould still be a success.
Likewise,The Pope’s Exorcist 2team should not worry just yet. IfThe Exorcismsucceeds financially, or on streaming later, the future may be brighter forThe Pope’s Exorcist 2.The Pope’s Exorcistovercame the barrier of poor critical reception, so there is no reason to say thatThe Pope’s Exorcist 2cannot overcome that and more. How much stamina people have for seeing Crowe in yet another exorcist movie is still uncertain, butThe Pope’s Exorcist 2still has an outside chance of being another horror hit.
The Exorcism
Cast
A troubled actor, Anthony Miller, portrayed by Russell Crowe, begins to unravel while shooting a supernatural horror film. His daughter, Lee, played by Ryan Simpkins, suspects his erratic behavior might be due to his past addictions or something far more sinister. As the film progresses, the line between reality and the supernatural blurs, leading to a tense and chilling climax.
