Eternals’ Rotten Tomatoes Score Drops Below Fresh | Screen Rant

Eternals has officially given the MCU its first rotten score on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes. Directed by Academy Award winner Chloé Zhao, Eternals features an all-star ensemble cast featuring the likes of Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Gemma Chan, Richard Madden, Kumail Nanjiani, Lia McHugh, Brian Tyree Henry, Lauren Ridloff, Barry Keoghan, Don Lee, Harish Patel, and Kit Harington. Based on the comic series created by Marvel legend Jack Kirby, the film follows an immortal race of beings who re-emerge from hiding to protect humanity from their evil counterparts, the Deviants.

Since its premiere in Los Angeles in October, the film has received a collection of mixed reviews from critics as the theatrical release date looms ever closer. Last week, the film dipped below Thor: The Dark World’s official Rotten Tomatoes score of 66%, and as more reviews came through, the film struggled to keep above the 60% rating required to be rated “Fresh.” Additionally, the film also saw itself having to deal with review bombers on IMDb mainly due to the film’s LGBTQ+ representation, though the film’s star Nanjiani, who plays the Eternal Kingo, took to Twitter to suggest this was just a sign that they were “upsetting the right people.”

Related: Eternals’ Most Likely Avengers Leader Is Being Hidden By Marvel

Most recently, however, Eternals finally dipped below the all-important 60% threshold on Rotten Tomatoes to lose its “Fresh” rating altogether. Currently sitting at 58% against a total of 141 professional reviews, the site’s critical consensus suggests that the film “soars as often as it strains” and that it “takes the MCU in intriguing – and occasionally confounding – new directions.” This also puts the film on the same critical footing as the much maligned Wonder Woman 1984, which also holds a 58% rating. The film is yet to receive an audience score, with its public release scheduled for the end of the week.

Of course, there is still a chance for the film to redeem itself in the eyes of audiences, and many moviegoers are all too aware that aggregated critical and audience scores on Rotten Tomatoes can often suggest two very different things. With the first 24 hours of advanced ticket sales already surpassing that seen for both Black Widow and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, it is unlikely that Marvel boss Kevin Feige and the rest of the folks at Marvel Studios will be too concerned about what this might mean for the film’s box office. Besides, with 25 other films all officially rated “fresh” in the MCU, the franchise is still faring far better than the rival DCEU, which currently has 5 films with critical scores lower than 60%, including 2016’s Suicide Squad which sits at only 26%.

Ultimately, however, the real indicator will be what fans think when they get to see the film at the end of the week. While this news may be potentially disappointing for hardcore MCU fans, there is no doubt they will prefer to go and see Eternals for themselves and make up their own minds about how successful the latest franchise entry is. Audiences will finally get this chance when Eternals officially hits theaters on November 5.

Next: Eternals: How Powerful Are The MCU’s Deviants Compared To Thanos?

Source: Rotten Tomatoes

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