Black Adam might have been a hit with fans, but critics were less enthused about the Dwayne Johnson-starring DC Extended Universe movie, and it sits at a Rotten Tomatoes score of just 40%. Now, of the 12 DCEU movies, six of them a "rotten" and six are "fresh," and that means that one more movie below 60% will leave the franchise with more "rotten" movies than "fresh."
But the DCEU wouldn't be the first franchise to suffer the rotten tomato, as tons of series have more movies that are rated "rotten," but what's more impressive is that some series have several 30%-scoring films but still remain strong at the box office. Between a long-running slasher franchise, some billion-dollar swashbuckling adventures, and a beloved/hated Christmas series, no amount of rotten tomatoes can stop these franchises.
Fast & Furious
Interestingly, the Fast and Furious franchise is one of the few that has its best movies sandwiched in the middle of the worst of the series. The Fast and Furious sweet spot is Fast and Furious 5 - 8, which are all rated "fresh."
Fast Five and Furious 7 are the highest-rated films in the series, which could be due to the fact that the fifth movie was a refreshing heist popcorn flick, and the seventh installment had the touching final montage dedicated to Paul Walker. All the street racing-oriented movies and F9 are rated "rotten," and while the first few movies have been reevaluated by many as aesthetically pleasing action movies, F9 will unlikely be reevaluated any time soon.
Jurassic Park/World
Unfortunately, the bad Jurassic movies outweighed the good ones before the critically scathed Jurassic World Dominion was even released, as there are only two "fresh" films in the franchise, which are Jurassic Park and Jurassic World. However, there are still fun, engaging, and suspenseful moments peppered throughout all of the movies.
The Lost World still has Steven Spielberg's magic touch, and Jurassic Park III's Pteranodon cage scene is as terrifying as any sequence in the original film. But the films aren't greater than the sum of their parts, and only the 2015 soft reboot comes as close to an essential watch as the first movie.
Halloween
For a franchise that is so iconic, has one of the most famous movie villains ever, and has been going for over 40 years, it comes as a huge shock that Halloween only has two "fresh" movies. The two fresh movies are the 1978 original (which has an outstanding 96%) and the 2018 reboot, but even that took a turn for the worse, as its two sequels couldn't keep the positive momentum going.
The other 11 movies in the series all have below 52% on the website. But the Halloween franchise has had a huge comeback in recent years despite the vast critical disapproval. Last year's Halloween Kills made $131 million worldwide (via Box Office Mojo), and Halloween Ends performed well too.
Sony's Spider-Man Universe
Sony is in full swing of building its own Spider-Man universe outside of the MCU, which is called Sony's Spider-Man Universe, and it's currently made up of three movies based around the web-slinger's villains. However, Venom, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, and Morbius, are all rated "rotten," and while the movies about Eddie Brock were still successful, Morbius suffered because of it. What's worse is that the "Morbin' Time" memes are more popular than the movie.
The franchise is yet to see its first "fresh" score, but with two upcoming movies due for release, which are the Aaron Taylor-Johnson-starring Kraven the Hunter and the Dakota Johnson-starring Madame Web, Sony could quickly catch up. However, high-profile and talented stars don't always guarantee a great movie. After all, the Venom films star the beloved Tom Hardy, and Morbius was led by the Academy Award-winning Jared Leto.
Pirates of the Caribbean
Though The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise is iconic and has grossed billions of dollars, every Pirates movie following the original, The Curse of the Black Pearl, is rated "rotten." It's a case of indulging a little too much, as the movies could be a lot better if they were a bit tighter, especially Dead Men's Chest. There's so much greatness in the sequel that it had the potential to be a just-as-good follow-up.
However, though future plans still remain up in the air, there have been reports that two new Pirates movies are in development, and one has Margot Robbie in the lead role (thought it appears that one isn't happening). So there's a chance that Disney could even out the scorecard quickly, especially if Depp returns as Captain Jack Sparrow, which is the only way Disney could repeat the original's success at this point.
Transformers
If it weren't for Bumblebee, the franchise based on a range of toys would still be without a single "fresh" movie. Not only is the 2018 spin-off rated "fresh," but it has an incredible 91% on the website too. Most would think that the studio would learn from this and continue to make more character-driven personal stories with toned-down but still exciting action, but Paramount has quickly reverted back to developing over-the-top CGI fests.
The next movie in the series, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, is shaping up to be another huge blockbuster, but it might have learned something from Bumblebee. Either way, it's still one of the most exciting upcoming 2023 action movies.
Home Alone
Few other franchises are in as much of a miserable state as the Home Alone franchise, as it slumps further into obscurity with each consecutive release, and the movies' Rotten Tomatoes scores accurately reflect that. Home Alone 3 tried turning the series into a spy thriller, which resulted in even child audiences discarding it. Then a string of direct-to-DVD movies followed, and the latest, Home Sweet Home Alone, which was dubbed as a return to form, has the worst score of the lot with 16%.
Interestingly, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York has a "rotten" score too, which is surprising given that many think it's as great as the original, and some even think it's better than the first Home Alone. However, it may have been that, at the time, it simply repeated the original's formula beat for beat and so quickly after Home Alone's initial release.
Saw
Of all the franchises that have more "rotten" scores than "fresh," the Saw series could be looked at as either the worst or the most impressive. The torture porn series doesn't contain a single "fresh" movie, not even the original, which is actually a serviceable thriller with a great twist. All nine movies have a score of 49% or less, so none of them are even close to being fresh.
However, despite that unprecedented failure, the franchise has grossed over a billion dollars (via Box Office Mojo), and that's even more impressive given that they cost so little to make. So while some might consider a streak of nine consecutive movies being rated "rotten" a failure, the studio surely sees it as an achievement."
Resident Evil
Like the Saw franchise, Resident Evil doesn't have a single fresh movie, but that fact hasn't once slowed the series down from making fistfuls of cash. The original horror movie series, which is based on the video game franchise of the same name, is comprised of six movies, and the highest scoring of them all is the original with 35%. Even the 2021 reboot failed to surpass it.
If the studio simply straight-up adapted the video games one by one, it'd have an epic and "fresh" string of movies on its hands. The series could easily be an anthology, with each release following a different video game, and they don't have to be in order, either. Resident Evil 4 would make an amazing standalone horror movie set in and around villages and castles.
Underworld
The Underworld franchise has enough of a cult following that Sony Pictures released five successful movies in the series, but they didn't exactly win the critics over. The gothic movies, which follow a centuries-long war between vampires and Lycans, have worse Rotten Tomatoes scores with each consecutive release.
Ironically, an Underworld and Resident Evil crossover was considered. According to Comingsoon.net, Underworld director Len Wiseman mentioned, "I as a fan would love to see it, but it would have to make sense within both worlds." However, two wrongs don't make a right, and it would likely have been another "rotten" entry for both franchises.