Rotten Tomatoes has been a significant go-to website for movie fans. It’s come to the point where critics scores can make or break certain films at the box-office. There’s an inordinate amount of people who now decide whether to buy a movie ticket purely based on a film’s “Tomatometer”.
Of course, there’s always been a disconnect between critics and audiences, and today Rotten Tomatoes announced a plan to address these discrepancies. They have unveiled a new “Verified Hot” badge, set to commence today, which will “reflect the views of average moviegoers”.
The “Verified Hot” designation will only be attributed to films that reach an audience score of 90% or more among user ratings. To prevent any voter fraud from happening, the aggregate website will only use audience reviews from people whom it has verified as having purchased a ticket to a film, via Fandango,
Summer 2024 movies to have qualified as “Verified Hot” include “Bad Boys: Ride or Die,” “Fly Me to the Moon,” “Deadpool & Wolverine,” “Twisters,” “It Ends With Us,” and more. Over 200 other older films, dating back to 2019, have also been given the tag. The full list of “Verified Hot” titles can be found here.
This news comes after a recent report indicated that a PR firm had been manipulating RT scores, for at least five years, by paying certain critics off for favorable reviews …
How important is Rotten Tomatoes in today’s movie climate? A recent THR report alleged that studio bosses were hiring directors solely based on their Rotten Tomatoes track record — this was meant to make them take notes on a director’s credibility. A rep, who spoke to THR, under anonymity, added that RT scores of a director’s past movies are the first and primary thing producers look at when directors are pitched to them.
Rotten Tomatoes narrowing movies down to a binary good/bad has no doubt been helpful for general audiences, and to keep track of what films are getting good notices, but it has also stopped people from actually reading reviews. Instead of finding a critic they trust, a lot of people notice a rotten rating and come to the conclusion that the movie isn't worth their time. This has no doubt played a part in the degradation of film criticism.
The trailer doesn’t exactly paint a sunny picture. In fact, things look pretty miserable in Marvel land. Sue Storm is seen in tears, while Doctor Doom appears to be on a revenge tour.