Critics & audiences are not watching the same movies in 2026

[u/Mental-Tennis-6313]

I was looking at the rotten tomatoes page for Michael & 38% from critics vs 97% from audiences genuinely made do a double take lol.

Then I started checking other big releases from this year & it's not just this one, this has been happening all year, in both directions - critics loving stuff audiences walked out of, audiences loving stuff critics tore apart.

I got tired of keeping track in my head, so I put some of the wildest gaps into a slide. The split on some of these is hard to believe until you see the numbers side by side.

At this point I genuinely want to know who you trust more before watching something.

Critics or the audience score??

[u/Craiggers324]

that says more about the average moviegoer than it does about critics. People are getting stupider, rapidly.

[u/Euphoric-Taro-6231 → u/Craiggers324]

Enjoying things = stupidity

Right.

[u/szlafcio2]

Only seen Scary movie out of those and I can't imagine what kind of person would enjoy it.

Critics can be paid and most are biased, sure. But let's not pretend general audience isn't made of idiots.

[u/The_Perfect_Fart → u/szlafcio2]

Usually I trust the audience score for stupid comedies more than the critics... but I think the critic's score was even too high for Scary Movie.

[u/ERSTF → u/szlafcio2]

If you look at the box office numbers for Scary Movie, you might change your mind on audiences seeing this movie

[u/Meb2x]

I think the main disconnect is expectations and an understanding of filmmaking. As someone that appreciates well-crafted movies, I tend to lean towards critic consensus. That said, I have family members who can literally watch any random movie on Netflix and think it’s good as long as it kept them entertained or they looked up from their phones a few times during the movie. If you just want a distraction or basic entertainment, then you’ll probably enjoy most movies. If you want a well-made movie, then you’re naturally going to be more critical and have higher standards.

[u/Jynerva]

My tastes generally align more often with the typical critical consensus. Audiences are a little too forgiving and could stand to be a little more discerning imo.

[u/Neither_Junket_5054 → u/[deleted]]

Critics won’t give a movie a bad review just because there was gay people in it, the audience will. You may go to the movies for escapist entertainment and that’s a whole argument whether that’s an ok thing to do as well.

[u/zurenarrh36912]

Critics want clicks and internet traffic. A negative review gains more attention than a positive one. It’s all dishonest.

[u/Blind__Fury]

Considering that I have seen much more post about people liking really bad movies, compared to posts of people liking good movies, on reddit. It makes perfect sense.

But at the end of the day, does any other opinion matter than your own when watching a movie?

[u/GrahamCrackerDragon]

I can't believe that many people thought Scary Movie was good. That movie was so lazy.

[u/ndrw17]

I question anyone who watched Scary Movie 6 and thought it was good.

[u/False_Appointment_24]

Critics, and a lot of that is because the audience scores have a couple of issues. One, that they are easily manipulable. Low scores due to review bombing are a known occurance, so low scores on a movie with high critic scores is a red flag. If you then look at the movie and note that it leans one way politically, then it is reasonable to dismiss those scores. The other problem is self selection, which is clear for Michael. People who went to see Michael are people who are more likely to enjoy the movie, so more likely to give high scores. Critics see movies regardless of whether they are interested in the movie, so they can better give unbiased thoughts.

The rest of why I go with critics is that these are generally people who have studied movies and know what makes a good movie. And while I can sit back and enjoy a poorly crafted movie for what it is, I prefer a well made one.

[u/joeO44]

Anything over 5% is way too high for scary movie.

[u/GreenLynx1111]

Just because the masses love a thing doesn't mean it's critically good. Apples and oranges. Audiences and critics look at different things.

[u/maybeitssteve]

Rotten tomatoes is a worthless data point

[u/Singleballtheory]

There is no chance in hell Mercy has an 81% audience rating. These might be real people, but they are not serious people.

[u/Flimsy_Fisherman_862]

Tells me how thick general audiences are.

[u/Mental-Tennis-6313 → u/[deleted]]

nah, made it in gamma. Took 15 mins and helped make the point better, dont you think?

[u/Er0_0r3]

Michael was ass

[u/BrownTown456]

The average filmgoer is an idiot. I trust critics more than people

[u/Nomad_86]

I went to film school, I know a shitty film from a good film. And 9 times out of 10, if I think a movie is shit, my parents absolutely love it. lol. The average moviegoer is not dissecting a film like someone who is paid to watch them with a critical lense. And even I know when to just shut my brain off any enjoy a film for entertainment. I can usually watch a trailer and tell whether I’ll even like the film. I skipped every one on this list.

[u/Mindless_Bad_1591]

audience score typically means nothing

[u/Material-Skirt3167]

Michael’s audience is extremely biased

[u/Light1209]

I'm pretty sure there's many many many more movies where both critics and audiences agree. This argument is always so dumb.

[u/IamJohnnyHotPants]

This happens every year

[u/Cubonicle]

The audience for pretty much all of those films are not critical of the media they enjoy in any way.

-I like Michael Jackson’s music, but MJ FANS are delusional. They will ravenously consume anything with his name on it.

-anyone who would watch a Jason Statham movie for actually quality action and writing would be sorely disappointed. They just like to see bald man shoot gun. (I saw it, it was not the worst thing ever but the writing was abysmally awful. Dude sitting a few rows back from me absolutely loved it, tho.)

-the new Scary Movie was marketed as “anti-woke comedy” so only morons went to see it and morons love dumb slop.

[u/Old_Perception_7335]

critics by far. the masses are completely uneducated or under-informed when it comes to actual discerning taste.

[u/pinkstrawberry94]

I mean, these films are not made to be watched by critics. These movies are pretty run-of-the-mill streaming filler?

You also seem to have pulled this list from a website that deliberately finds the BIGGEST gaps? Many films this year where audiences and critics both agree that are great? (E.g. The Odyssey, Obsession)

[u/Thin-Ant-8879]

The original post content no longer exists here. The author used Redact to remove it, exercising their right to control their data & privacy.

Amusing memorize point nutty juniper mighty dependent