Red One is the latest film starring The Rock to hit theaters, and the film’s poor critical reception and underwhelming box office performance raise questions about who the movie was actually targeted at. Red One’s $32 million opening weekend on a $250 million budget is a disappointment, especially since it’s being followed up this week with Gladiator II and Wicked, both of which will surely surpass it. Given the film’s Amazon Prime Video release, a box office bust isn’t a complete failure, but it raises important questions about the film industry, movie star appeal, and the interest in non-franchise titles.

Red One’s cast is filled with all-stars that should equate to box office appeal. The Rock is one of the highest-grossing actors of all time. Chris Evans is also up there, though most of his numbers can be attributed to massive Marvel Cinematic Universe team-up movies. J.K. Simmons, Lucy Liu, and Kiernan Shipka also make for a recognizable supporting ensemble. The movie has big CGI action, humor for kids and adults, and subject material that’s easily accessible: Christmas! But Red One’s reviews and financial results don’t reflect its elements, and that’s worth exploring.

Red One Has An Identity Crisis

Red One’s Reviews Highlight Poor Fusion Between Its Genres

To start the conversation about Red One, genre is important to examine. It’s a Christmas movie with cheerful holiday themes; it’s an action movie with chase sequences and monster fights; it’s a comedy with one-liners and wisecracks. While one could say it is all those things, it doesn’t really excel in any one category. Red One isn’t as heartfelt a Christmas movie as Elf, as visceral of an action movie as Fast Five, or as funny as Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. Ultimately, it fluctuates between its three genres in a manner that never quite allows them to mesh.

The Rock plays his usual straight-man, but Chris Evans isn’t as laugh-inducing of a comedy partner as Kevin Hart or Jack Black. As a duo, their chemistry should be the foundation of the movie’s success, but they don’t clash in the way that the buddy cop action-comedy subgenre requires. That might, in part, be because Chris Evans is trying to fulfill the comedic half of the duo when Captain America is proof that he’s better as the serious one. It’s why he worked so well opposite Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man.

As a Christmas movie, the story between Chris Evans’ character and his son is the emotional core. He starts the film as a man who’s willing to steal candy from a baby but ends the movie satisfied that he’s saved Christmas, holding his son in his arms. Meanwhile, The Rock’s character was devastated by the state of the world but feels satisfied by the end that he’s helped one man improve his life. They’re very idealistic, tangible arcs, but they don’t feel authentic when combined with world-building that seems primarily intent on kicking off a new franchise.

Is Red One For Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson Fans?

Is The Rock Still A Box Office Draw?

It’s hard to say what the future of The Rock’s career looks like right now. He was a consistent box office draw throughout the 2010s, with Furious 7’s $1.5 billion run in 2015 as his highest-grossing film. Films he’s led, like 2017’s Jumanji reboot or Rampage, were also massive commercial hits. However, The Rock hasn’t starred in a box office success since 2019’s Jumanji sequel, meaning he’s on a five-year dry spell at the box office. Red One could have been made with the intent of bringing Dwayne Johnson movies back to their quintessential elements.

Despite his lapse at the box office, The Rock is still undoubtedly an A-list movie star. 2021’s Red Notice is the most-viewed movie ever on Netflix. In an age of streaming, being the top-viewed movie on the most popular streaming service is an enormous accomplishment, and it’s worth noting that the movie has similarly poor reviews. Red One similarly pairs The Rock with a superhero movie star and incorporates many of the same elements, so it could have been aiming for a similar success. Perhaps that suggests that those types of movies are better suited to streaming in the 2020s.

What About Chris Evans Fans?

Can Chris Evan Succeed Outside Of The MCU?

Chris Evans has had a tough road following Avengers: Endgame in 2019. Notably, he’s struggled to find footing in movies where he doesn’t play Captain America, be it due to poor reviews or below-average commercial success. Even Quentin Tarantino said, “But they’re not movie stars. Captain America is the star. Thor is the star,” on the 2 Bears, 1 Cave podcast, referring to Marvel actors not being movie stars themselves. Chris Evans has put that theory to the test and, as of now, has yet to carve out his own place as a movie lead.

That’s not to say Chris Evans doesn’t deserve to be a movie star. Loads of people love Chris Evans and want him to succeed, but that’s unfortunately not the reality of how the movie industry works. When his name is on the marquee, movies haven’t performed. Lightyear, Ghosted, and Pain Hustlers all flew under the radar. The Gray Man received tons of views on Netflix but was critically shunned. Maybe Red One was banking on his success when paired with The Rock, but Hollywood has yet to find a way to appeal to Chris Evans’ fans.

And What About Christmas Movie Fans?

Red One Could Be A Christmas Streaming Hit

Just as people want to see horror movies to enjoy the aesthetic of October and the Halloween season, there’s a notable appeal for film around Christmas time. The holiday season has demonstrated time and time again that audiences will go see movies at the cinema when they’re off work. It’s why so many huge movies are being released between now and the end of the year and why Gladiator II and Wicked will be facing off over Thanksgiving.

Red One
might find success as a streaming movie for families to watch on Christmas day.

The issue with Red One appealing to Christmas movie fans was that it came out in theaters in mid-November. There might be a decent pool of audience that wants to get jolly in advance, but others might groan seeing Santa Claus in TV commercials before putting their turkey in the oven. This is typical for Christmas movies, though. Films like Elf and The Grinch (2018) are among the highest-grossing Christmas movies, and they were released in early November. Red One might find success as a streaming movie for families to watch on Christmas day.

So Who Is Red One Really For, Then?

Red One Is A Streaming Movie That Came Out In Theaters

With all of that really in mind, the question about Red One’s target audience still stands, and the answer still isn’t particularly clear. After breaking down a few potential options, it’s fair to say it could be all of the above. A movie could appeal to multiple crowds, but there needs to be some cohesion between them. Theoretically, it’s not impossible that The Rock, Chris Evans, Christmas movies, and buddy cop action films would have a commonality in their audience pool, but there’s just one thing that’s missing, which proves to be a factor time and again: a franchise title.

Movies have struggled since the 2010s to achieve profit without a major franchise title attached. Gladiator II and Wicked are projected to have monster performances, and in both cases, it’s because audiences are familiar with the IP. Gladiator II hasn’t earned outstanding reviews, but it’s already grossed over $100 million before its release date because people love the first movie. Red One combines many elements that should, by all accounts, work, but the interest to go out and see it isn’t there.

Now, tying back to Red Notice, it seems apparent that these action movies that allow the viewer to turn off their brains for two hours and enjoy a few laughs are perfectly suited for streaming. Red One may not have succeeded at the box office, but that’s because it’s a movie made for streaming audiences. If it’s available on Prime Video on Christmas day, it could certainly obtain the viewership Amazon spent $250 million hoping for.