Summary
- Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom gets off to a rocky start with a disappointing score of just 36% on Rotten Tomatoes.
- The movie's poor reviews add to the challenge of dwindling interest in the DCEU after the DCU reboot announcement.
- The debut score places Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom below Justice League and all other DC movies released in 2023.
It is a rocky start for announcement of the DCU reboot. The sting of a disappointing box office performance, however, will now be intensified by the poor reviews.
According to every DCEU movie released this year, including "rotten" DCEU movie Shazam! Fury of the Gods, which sits at 49% on the website.
Aquaman 2's score also places the DCEU's final film behind Justice League, which garnered a score of 39%. While it is not the worst-rated DCEU movie on Rotten Tomatoes, it certainly isn't a welcome state of affairs for the studio that will now be looking to put the cinematic franchise behind it for good.
DCEU Movie |
Release Date |
Rotten Tomatoes Score |
|---|---|---|
Shazam! Fury of the Gods |
March 3, 2023 |
49% |
The Flash |
June 16, 2023 |
63% |
Blue Beetle |
August 18, 2023 |
78% |
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom |
December 22, 2023 |
36% |
Why Aquaman 2's Reviews Are So Negative
The early reviews cite poor editing, a tedious story, and messy writing as being the low points of Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, though the action sequences have garnered praise. Generally, the fears surrounding the movie's performance with regard to it being inconsequential to a wider narrative now that the DCEU has drawn to a close have been well-founded. Just as superhero fatigue seems to be plaguing audiences right now, it feels as though the movie has also suffered from a similar lack of interest on the part of the producers.
It isn't entirely unsurprising that Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom has underperformed critically. The writing was on the wall as stories about the movie's messy production emerged over the last several months. While there is no doubt that Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will offer spectacle in spades, it seems that the worries of the DCEU fizzling out with its final offering unfortunately bore fruit. Now, at least, the DCU can possibly pick up the slack when Superman: Legacy releases in 2025.
Source: Rotten Tomatoes
