Why 'Superman's' Rotten Tomatoes Score Dropped 8 Points After Debut

Without question, the new Superman is a hit. Not only is the film on track to make $120 million domestically, but it will also probably make $210 million globally, following early screenings on July 9. In terms of big summer openings, this puts it slightly behind Jurassic World Rebirth, which earned a staggering $318 million worldwide during the long Fourth of July weekend, and is now at $378 million after its second week. Superman may yet surpass Jurassic World Rebirth, and it has one thing going for it that those cloned dinosaurs don't: More positive reviews than negative.

Currently, as of Saturday, July 12, Superman is sitting with an 82 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes from critics. If that seems lower than you heard initially, don't worry, you're not under some kind of kryptonite spell; Superman's critical rating has dropped a full eight points since the initial "official" reveal of the movie's RT score. So, how could a movie with a score of 90 suddenly, in just a few days, drop down to 82?

Related: Early 'Superman' Reviews Turn Heads as Rotten Tomatoes Score Is Revealed

The short answer is twofold: More critics have reviewed the movie, and the movie has been out longer. Something casual moviegoers should never forget is that Rotten Tomatoes generally does their big score reveals before the majority of audiences have even seen a movie. This also means that some critics haven't posted their reviews yet, as there's a good amount of serious movies, folks who like to post their reviews around the time the average moviegoer can see the film, too.

So, Superman dipped 8 points because there was a significant number of reviewers who broke with the crowd and gave the film a lukewarm or negative review. (Here at Men's Journal, we felt very mixed about it.)  Writing for The Ringer, in a review posted on July 11, Adam Nayman probably summed up the negative Superman reviews best when he wrote: "Gunn is trying to tear something down and build it up at the same time." 

Most negative reviews of Superman come from critics who wanted to love the movie, but who felt that the movie was simply too overstuffed and rushed to be considered perfect. 

And so, while the audience score is soaring at 93 percent, the critical score is now a more modest 82. Whether or not this movie deserves all the hype is probably a healthy debate, and one that Superman would almost certainly approve.

Superman is in theaters now.

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