Summary

  • Despite initial mixed reviews, Shooter is now climbing the Paramount+ charts, showcasing a resurgence in popularity 17 years after its release.
  • With an 80% audience approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the movie's success on DVD doubled its production budget when combined with its box office numbers, proving its lasting appeal.
  • Now may be the perfect time for a Shooter sequel, as the rise of "Dad Shows" and plentiful source material offer a compelling argument for Wahlberg to reprise his role.

With nearly 20 years gone since it first hit theaters, Mark Wahlberg-led movie served as an adaptation of Stephen Hunter's Point of Impact, centered on former USMC Force Recon sniper Bobby Lee Swagger as he's initially tasked with plotting a presidential assassination in order to prevent a real one, only to subsequently be framed for the murder of the President's guest. Also starring Michael Peña, Kate Mara and Danny Glover, Shooter was only a modest success in its initial release, garnering generally mixed reviews from critics and grossing just shy of $96 million against its $61 million production budget.

Collider is now reporting that, 17 years after its release, Shooter is quickly climbing the streaming charts on Paramount+. As of the time of writing, the 2007 military action thriller has secured the No. 8 spot on the platform's Top 10 list of movies available in their library, a slight dip from its recent No. 5 spot. The movie is sharing the Top 10 with John Krasinski's IF, PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie, Tom Cruise's Jack Reacher, South Park: The End of Obesity, PAW Patrol: The Movie, Jack Reacher: Never Go Back and Top Gun: Maverick.

Now Is The Perfect Time For A Sequel To Wahlberg's Shooter

Though it may not have been a smash hit in theaters on its release, the streaming climb of Wahlberg's Shooter may not come as much of a surprise when looking back at its home media figures. Within a year of hitting shelves on DVD, the action-thriller grossed an additional $56 million which, when combined with its box office gross, doubled its production budget. The movie also remains a fan-favorite among Wahlberg fans alongside his other major military action movie, Lone Survivor, with Shooter still maintaining an 80% approval rating from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes.

With this renewed streaming resurgence, and success on home media, now seems like the perfect time for a Shooter sequel to be considered with Wahlberg reprising his role. Point of Impact was only the first of six novels focused on the character of Bobby Lee Swagger, two of which were later adapted for the Ryan Phillippe-led USA Network show of the same name. Given there's a wealth of source material still to pull from, Wahlberg's sequel can capitalize on some of the unadapted novels in Hunter's series.

Alan Ritchson as Jack Reacher from Reacher and John Krasinski as Jack Ryan from Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan
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The other major reason why now is a great time for a Shooter sequel is the recent rise in popularity of the subgenre informally known as "Dad Shows". Reacher and Jack Ryan are two of the most notable recent examples, and also share a history with Wahlberg's action-thriller as novels being adapted for movies before becoming hit TV shows. While this could make a better argument for a Shooter TV reboot, the fact that Wahlberg's movie continues to be a hit 17 years later might be better proof a sequel could work.

A Shooter Follow-Up Could Also Redeem Wahlberg's Sequel Curse

If a follow-up were to get off the ground for Shooter, it could also provide Wahlberg the opportunity to break his sequel curse. At the time of writing, the two-time Oscar nominee has starred in four proper sequels, two of which were in the Transformers franchise, as the narrative shifted away from the Witwicky family, and the others being the family comedy Daddy's Home and Seth MacFarlane's Ted. Despite the success of their original movies, the sequels all saw poor reviews from critics, and varying returns at the box office. See how Wahlberg's prior sequels have performed on Rotten Tomatoes and at the box office below:

Title

RT Critics Score

RT Audience Score

Box Office

Transformers: Age of Extinction

18%

50%

$1.104 Billion

Ted 2

44%

50%

$215.9 Million

Transformers: The Last Knight

16%

43%

$605.4 Million

Daddy's Home 2

21%

51%

$180.6 Million

Even beyond the titles listed above, Wahlberg has had a variety of sequels either languish in development hell or find themselves shelved completely after their original movies underperformed. 2008's Max Payne was memorably meant to kick off a franchise with its post-credits scene, while 2018's Mile 22 had plans for both a potential trilogy and TV spinoff. Though the former video game adaptation was a box office success, it was met with near-universal disdain from critics and audiences, while the latter also ended up scoring negative reviews and barely recouping its production budget.

To Wahlberg's credit, he does have a few sequels in development for some recent successes, including Netflix's Spenser Confidential, which was a streaming hit, and the Uncharted video game adaptation, whose sequel is still in the works. While either film could help the star break this sequel curse by improving on their predecessors, the strong fanbase already behind Shooter and its continued streaming popularity proves that a follow-up to it may be the ultimate way for Wahlberg to prove himself a worthy sequel star.

Source: Collider

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Shooter
pg-13
Action
Thriller
6/10
7.0/10
Release Date
March 22, 2007
Runtime
124 Minutes
Director
Antoine Fuqua

Cast

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WHERE TO WATCH

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Shooter is an action thriller directed by Antoine Fuqua. Mark Wahlberg stars as Bob Lee Swagger, a retired Marine sniper who is wrongfully accused of attempting to assassinate the President. Forced to flee, Swagger must use his skills to uncover the real culprits and clear his name. Michael Peña, Danny Glover, and Kate Mara the cast in this intense narrative of betrayal and survival.

Writers
Stephen Hunter, Jonathan Lemkin
Studio(s)
Paramount Pictures
Distributor(s)
Paramount Pictures
Budget
$61 Million