10 Superhero Movies With Bafflingly Low Rotten Tomatoes Scores

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The superhero movies of the MCU, the DCU, and beyond are occasionally given a Rotten Tomatoes score that doesn"t seem to reflect their quality or popularity. While some entries into the superhero genre - such as the movies of the MCU - have proven hugely successful, there are still those that do not achieve the same heights of popularity. One measure of quality is critical reception, of which aggregators, such as Rotten Tomatoes, offer an insightful average score to help audiences surmise how good a film may or may not be.
However, there are Rotten Tomatoes scores for some superhero movies that seem confusingly low. For example, multiple movies in the DCEU have critical scores that simply don’t reflect their pop culture significance or popularity, and other superhero movies have audience scores that are much higher than those of the critics. With that in mind, here are 10 superhero movies with bafflingly low Rotten Tomatoes scores.
10 Watchmen (2009) Rotten Tomatoes Score: 65% Close Zack Snyder’s 2009 movie Watchmen might not belong to the movie timeline of the MCU or the DCEU, but it still boasts an important place within the history of the superhero genre. Watchmen has a Rotten Tomatoes score of 65%, although its audience score sits a little high at 71%. Even so, the movie’s critical score is surprisingly low, all things considered.
Watchmen was once considered impossible to adapt into live-action, and Snyder’s vision turned the story into a sprawling noir epic that was able to faithfully capture the essence of the comic book series. It was also relatively groundbreaking, not just in its use of CGI, but also in its approach to the superhero genre. Considering the narrative and visual craftsmanship on display, it would seem that Watchmen’s Rotten Tomatoes score is lower than it deserves, even if 65% is still more respectable than many other superhero movies’ scores.
9 Mystery Men (1999) Rotten Tomatoes Score: 60% Close Though it was loosely based on a comic strip, 1999’s Mystery Men did not have the built-in popularity of a Marvel or DC adaptation. Even so, it has gone on to achieve cult classic status, continuing to find an audience even decades after its release. Mystery Men has a Rotten Tomatoes score of 60%, seemingly marking it as a relatively mediocre entry into the superhero genre.
Released as it was in 1999, Mystery Men was subject to the considerable technological limitations of its day. However, its cast is packed with comedic brilliance and a few well-respected actors, and its subversive nature and excellent world-building have helped it achieve cult status. The movie’s ability to hold up well even decades later speaks to its overall quality, making its 60% score on Rotten Tomatoes seem more than a little unfair considering its comedic and narrative value.
8 Ghost Rider (2007) Rotten Tomatoes Score: 28% Close 2007’s Ghost Rider is certainly not one of the best non-MCU Marvel movies ever made, and has faded into obscurity since the rise of Marvel’s flagship franchise. Even so, the Nicolas Cage-led movie adapted a long-standing Marvel hero into live-action, and, in hindsight, was a hugely ambitious project in many senses. With a score of just 28% on Rotten Tomatoes, it would seem that Ghost Rider is one of the worst superhero movies out there.
That score does the movie little justice, however. Though Ghost Rider is hardly a masterpiece, its reliance on the unimpressive CGI capabilities of the era held it back. It’s undeniably a movie with several issues, but it’s still an entertaining cinematic spectacle that offers a relatively faithful adaptation of the titular hero’s story. As such, its 28% score on Rotten Tomatoes actually seems unfairly low.
7 Judge Dredd (1995) Rotten Tomatoes Score: 22% Close 1995’s Judge Dredd holds a strange place in the history of comic book movies. Released in an era where comic book adaptations were rarely well-received, the Sylvester Stallone movie failed to capitalize on its protagonist’s pop culture prevalence. Judge Dredd has an aggregated score of just 22% on Rotten Tomatoes, which at a glance seems to be a relatively accurate indication of the maligned movie’s quality.
Rewatching Judge Dredd from a modern perspective highlights strengths that are rarely mentioned. It’s an accessible entry into the world of its characters, and brings the setting of Mega-City One to life in a way that remains somewhat impressive considering the era of its release. Though its handling of the source material leaves a considerable amount to be desired, the overall quality of the movie as a comic book adaptation is far better than its Rotten Tomatoes score suggests.
6 Man of Steel (2013) Rotten Tomatoes Score: 57% Close As the beginning of the DCEU’s movie timeline, 2013’s Man of Steel was always set to be an important movie. With Zack Snyder at the helm, expectations were high for the film, but the Superman origin story earned relatively mixed reviews upon release. Man of Steel’s 57% Rotten Tomatoes score certainly belies its divisive nature, but it still seems an unfairly low score for the movie.
Though Snyder’s choice of tone and the creative license taken with Superman’s story might not be for everyone, Man of Steel is far from a bad – or even an average – movie. The gentle reworking of Superman’s story is thought-provoking, even for those to whom it may not have appealed, and the scope of Snyder’s movie is impressive. Considering the visual quality and the narrative risks taken, Man of Steel is a movie that simply deserves a far better score than a middling 57%.
5 The Punisher (2004) Rotten Tomatoes Score: 29% Close 2004’s The Punisher was not the character’s first live-action outing, and it was far from his most acclaimed. Starring Thomas Jane as the titular Punisher, Frank Castle, the movie also featured the likes of John Travolta, Rebecca Romijn, and Kevin Nash. Earning a Rotten Tomatoes score of just 29%, The Punisher was not appreciated at all by critics, who panned the film for various reasons.
29% isn’t a fair representation of the 2004 movie, though. The film took a slightly different approach than many expected, opting to evoke the action movies of the 1970s rather than the Michael Bay or John Woo contemporaries of the time. Though this didn’t impress critics, it lent an air of originality to the movie which has actually aged surprisingly well, making its Rotten Tomatoes score seem unfairly low as a result.
4 Venom: The Last Dance (2024) Rotten Tomatoes Score: 41% Close Released as one of the final movies in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe, Venom: The Last Dance rounded off the titular antihero’s trilogy in what was promised to be an emotional and powerful end to his journey. Following on from the franchise’s two most successful movies, The Last Dance may once have seemed destined for reasonable success. However, it earned a Rotten Tomatoes score of just 41%, marking it as a critical failure.
Interestingly, Venom: The Last Dance’s audience score is much higher, coming in at a respectable 80%. It’s rare to see such huge disparity between the two scores, indicating that the average audience member actually enjoyed The Last Dance considerably more than critics would have expected. Considering the movie’s general popularity, it’s clear that the 41% score is bafflingly low, especially as audiences rated it almost twice as high as the critics.
3 Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) Rotten Tomatoes Score: 29% Close 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice continued the DCEU’s story with an epic showdown between two of DC’s most iconic characters. However, the movie proved to be hugely divisive, and it earned an abysmal Rotten Tomatoes score of just 29%. Judging by that score, the big-budget sequel should be one of the most disappointing comic book movies ever made, but this really isn’t the case.
There’s no denying that Batman v Superman was not unanimously popular, but it was far better than its Rotten Tomatoes score suggested. Its audience score is a far more respectable 63%, which is arguably a better indicator of its overall quality. The movie’s creative risks may not all have paid off, but the DCEU’s introduction of another actor to the role of Batman in live-action is far better than its critical score on Rotten Tomatoes makes it seem.
2 Constantine (2005) Rotten Tomatoes Score: 46% Close 2005’s Constantine, which followed a cynical exorcist capable of communicating with angels and demons, was released shortly before comic book movies began delving into more realistic territory. As such, the supernatural DC adaptation wasn’t immediately successful, and also failed to earn the respect of critics. Its 46% score on Rotten Tomatoes matches up with this, although it hardly seems a fair assessment of the movie as a whole.
The Keanu Reeves-led movie boasts an audience score of 72%, and continues to enjoy a vocal cult following. Even two decades after its release, excitement for the announced sequel belies Constantine’s continued popularity, with many citing the alternative approach to a superhero story as particularly refreshing. Considering its longevity and general success with audiences, Constantine’s 46% Rotten Tomatoes score does not appear to be a fair indicator of its quality.
1 Fantastic Four (2005) Rotten Tomatoes Score: 27% Close Another superhero movie release in 2005 was Fantastic Four, which adapted the heroes of the same name in an ambitious live-action blockbuster. The movie was not a hit with critics, earning it a Rotten Tomatoes score of just 27%. On balance, however, Fantastic Four deserved to have been considered far better than it was, even if time hasn’t been particularly kind to the movie.
For all its missteps, the 2005 movie had many positive points. The chemistry between its central cast was largely good, and it served as a solid entry point into the world of Marvel for the uninitiated. It also boasted cutting-edge visual effects that continue to hold up reasonably well, and helped to establish the genre as a consistent box office presence. Despite its incredibly low Rotten Tomatoes score, Fantastic Four is one of those superhero movies from the MCU, the DCU, and beyond that isn’t entirely reflected well by the aggregator.
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