Red is Netflix’s take on the classic holiday genre, following a group of Santa’s closest associates as they team up with a professional tracker to hunt down Santa Claus himself after he goes missing. It has everything audiences expect from this type of Netflix original film: an extremely recognizable cast, very stylish editing choices, and an adventure that is constantly raising the stakes and increasing the scope. Red is full of fun characters, many of which are played by very famous faces.
Red is led by Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans, the latter of whom has had a pretty disappointing run of films lately. Although its appearance in Deadpool and Wolverine it was a fun return to form, her leading roles failed to live up to the same expectations. Films like Ghost and The Gray Man have proven how difficult it has been to continue their career after the MCU – so there’s a lot at stake Red to meet expectations. Luckily, The Rock and Chris Evans teamed up on Red It is a good sign of your business success.
Red One Continues Chris Evans’ Disappointing Form on Rotten Tomatoes
The film is not as strong as those at the beginning of his career
Unfortunately, Red isn’t the saving grace for Evans’ post-MCU career that the actor was surely hoping for. The film received just 32% in Rotten tomatoesranking among the star’s least popular films to date. As with many Netflix original films, Red spends much of its extensive budget hiring the biggest names, collecting the most stunning visual effects and producing the most detailed sets, then often forget to spend so much time refining the script. It’s pure entertainment, and while it works in certain areas, it leaves the film feeling somewhat empty.
And none of this is Chris Evans’ fault: his performance in Red is actually one of the strongest in recent years, leaning into the character’s mischievous side and letting himself disappear completely into the role. It’s a comedic performance, something the actor only made his trademark recently, but it works very well. While RedCritical reception was divided, most can agree that it’s not the actors who are causing the film’s problems.
Red One Breaks Chris Evans’ Gold Trend
Until now, there was one thing Chris Evans could trust
Excluding the years he spent confined to the MCU, there is a rule that essentially determines whether new Chris Evans films will be successful or not – and although it may be partly a coincidence, it has worked out quite well so far. When Evans plays a comedic villain role, the film is usually a success. The two main contributors to this theory are Knives out and Scott Pilgrim vs the Worldtwo excellent comedies where Evans steps out of his comfort zone and plays a comically villainous character.
Red appears to adhere to this rule, with Evans’ character displaying a rather tilted moral compass – in one scene he literally steals candy from a baby. By this metric, that means Red should have been a smashing success. However, the film ultimately doesn’t take advantage of Evans’ comedic ability in the same way as Knives out and Scott Peregrino do, and the script just isn’t that funny. Chris Evans’ best non-MCU films are the ones where he shines as the villain, but Red often pushes him to the side of Johnson’s more stoic protagonist.
What Red One’s Rotten Tomatoes Score Means for Chris Evans
The future seems uncertain for the actor post-MCU
Previously, it seemed like Evans playing eccentric bad guys was a tendency to buck form and a recipe for success, but Red proves that even this mini-rule cannot be trusted. The actor simply struggled to find his niche after spending so much time playing the same character, and while Knives out made it seem like he would continue making excellent films after his exit from Captain America, now it seems like it was a one-off, lightning in a bottle scenario.
While his performances have never been the problem, the actor seems to be favoring bigger, big-budget productions with renowned studios like Netflix and banking on their success rather than taking some risks with more auteur filmmakers.
Unless Chris Evans decides to return to the MCU, the future trajectory of his film career seems very uncertain. Red it was a significant misfire that proved many viewers’ concerns that their rough patch is far from over. While his performances have never been the problem, the actor seems to be favoring bigger, big-budget productions with renowned studios like Netflix and banking on their success rather than taking some risks with more auteur filmmakers. This is the path his MCU co-stars Robert Downey Jr. and Mark Ruffalo took, finding more success with films like Oppenheimer and Poor things.