TAGGED AS: blockbusters, movies, popular
(Photo by Paramount / Courtesy Everett Collection. GLADIATOR II.)
30 Most Popular Movies Right Now: What to Watch In Theaters and Streaming
Discover the top, most popular movies available now, along with what’s stoking early buzz and hype! Across theaters, streaming, and on-demand, these are the movies Rotten Tomatoes users are checking out at this very moment, including Gladiator II & Wicked on their way to the dueling debut, new horror Heretic & The Substance starring screen veterans Hugh Grant and Demi Moore, respectively. Plus, Xmas action/comedy Red One, latest film to be Verified Hot.
Check back for latest updates to the charts, and also take a look at the most popular TV shows out right now!)
#1
Adjusted Score: 90490%
Critics Consensus: Echoing its predecessor while upping the bloodsport and camp, Gladiator II is an action extravaganza that derives much of its strength and honor from Denzel Washington's scene-stealing performance.
Synopsis: Years after witnessing the death of Maximus at the hands of his uncle, Lucius must enter the Colosseum after the...
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#2
Adjusted Score: 40554%
Critics Consensus: Wrapped in slick packaging but wholly lacking in holiday magic, Red One is a ho-ho-hum action-adventure.
Synopsis: After Santa Claus -- Code Name: RED ONE -- is kidnapped, the North Pole's Head of Security (Dwayne Johnson) must...
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#3
Adjusted Score: 106114%
Critics Consensus: Hugh Grant has infectious fun playing against type in Heretic, a religious horror that preaches the gospel of cerebral chills over cheap shocks.
Synopsis: Two young missionaries are forced to prove their faith when they knock on the wrong door and are greeted by...
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#4
Adjusted Score: 105240%
Critics Consensus: Defying gravity with its magical pairing of Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, Wicked's sheer bravura and charm make for an irresistible invitation to Oz.
Synopsis: Wicked, the untold story of the witches of Oz, stars Emmy, Grammy and Tony winning powerhouse Cynthia Erivo (Harriet, Broadway's...
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#5
Adjusted Score: 111869%
Critics Consensus: Audaciously gross, wickedly clever, and possibly Demi Moore's finest hour, The Substance is a gasp-inducing feat from writer-director Coralie Fargeat.
Synopsis: Have you ever dreamt of a better version of yourself? You, only better in every way. You should try this...
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#6
Adjusted Score: 101947%
Critics Consensus: A humorous cocktail with a twist of coming-of-age drama, My Old Ass doesn't throw out the wisdom with the reckless abandon of youth and the effects are hallucinogenic.
Synopsis: In this fresh coming-of-age story, an 18th birthday mushroom trip brings free-spirited Elliott (Maisy Stella) face-to-face with her wisecracking 39-year-old...
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#7
Adjusted Score: 113576%
Critics Consensus: Another marvelous chronicle of America's strivers by writer-director Sean Baker given some extra pizzazz by Mikey Madison's brassy performance, Anora is a romantic drama on the bleeding edge.
Synopsis: Sean Baker's Palme d'Or winner ANORA is an audacious, thrilling, and comedic variation on a modern day Cinderella story. Mikey...
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#8
Adjusted Score: 106621%
Critics Consensus: Carrying off papal pulp with immaculate execution and career-highlight work from Ralph Fiennes, Conclave is a godsend for audiences who crave intelligent entertainment.
Synopsis: CONCLAVE follows one of the world’s most secretive and ancient events -- selecting the new Pope. Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes)...
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#9
Adjusted Score: 93940%
Critics Consensus: Decking the halls with unflappable charm and sincere spiritual conviction, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever is winningly wholesome family entertainment.
Synopsis: The Herdmans are absolutely the worst kids in the history of the world. They lie, they steal, they bully... and...
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#10
Adjusted Score: 112184%
Critics Consensus: A simple tale told with great sophistication, The Wild Robot is wondrous entertainment that dazzles the eye while filling your heart to the brim.
Synopsis: The epic adventure follows the journey of a robot--ROZZUM unit 7134, "Roz" for short -- that is shipwrecked on an...
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#11
Adjusted Score: 107032%
Critics Consensus: Led by a scene-stealing turn from Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain is a powerfully funny, emotionally resonant dramedy that finds writer-director-star Jesse Eisenberg playing to his strengths on either side of the camera.
Synopsis: Mismatched cousins David (Jesse Eisenberg) and Benji (Kieran Culkin) reunite for a tour through Poland to honor their beloved grandmother....
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#12
Adjusted Score: 91369%
Critics Consensus: Karla Sofía Gascón is Emilia Perez in a swaggering musical crime thriller of genre-bending fascination that is also an unapologetically trans story.
Synopsis: From renegade auteur Jacques Audiard comes Emilia Pérez, an audacious fever dream that defies genres and expectations. Through liberating song...
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#13
Adjusted Score: 90966%
Critics Consensus: While not everyone will be entertained by Gladiator's glum revenge story, Russell Crowe thunderously wins the crowd with a star-making turn that provides Ridley Scott's opulent resurrection of Rome its bruised heart.
Synopsis: Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix) takes power and strips rank from Maximus (Russell Crowe), one of the favored generals of his predecessor...
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#14
Adjusted Score: 53495%
Critics Consensus: The always watchable Tom Hardy injects ample charisma into Venom: The Last Dance, but the offering buckles under its convoluted tonal ambitions.
Synopsis: In Venom: The Last Dance, Tom Hardy returns as Venom, one of Marvel's greatest and most complex characters, for the...
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#15
Adjusted Score: 55839%
Critics Consensus: Joaquin Phoenix's eponymous Joker takes the stand in a sequel that dances around while the story remains still, although Lady Gaga's wildcard energy gives Folie á Deux some verve.
Synopsis: "Joker: Folie à Deux" finds Arthur Fleck institutionalized at Arkham awaiting trial for his crimes as Joker. While struggling with...
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#16
Adjusted Score: 105779%
Critics Consensus: Ryan Reynolds makes himself at home in the MCU with acerbic wit while Hugh Jackman provides an Adamantium backbone to proceedings in Deadpool & Wolverine, an irreverent romp with a surprising soft spot for a bygone era of superhero movies.
Synopsis: Deadpool's peaceful existence comes crashing down when the Time Variance Authority recruits him to help safeguard the multiverse. He soon...
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#17
Adjusted Score: 91636%
Critics Consensus: Jazzed up by an excellent ensemble that captures the essence if not the exact likeness of SNL's original cast and crew, Saturday Night is a frenetic and nostalgic celebration of one of showbiz's most auspicious debuts.
Synopsis: At 11:30pm on October 11, 1975, a ferocious troupe of young comedians and writers changed television -- and culture --...
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#18
Adjusted Score: 43288%
Critics Consensus: While it's heartening to see director Robert Zemeckis return to humanistic storytelling, Here's stagey conceit and overabundance of spectacle rob it of emotional resonance.
Synopsis: Reuniting the director, writer and stars of Forrest Gump, Here is an original film about multiple families and a special...
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#19
Adjusted Score: 65195%
Critics Consensus: More of a creative manifesto than a cogent narrative feature, Francis Ford Coppola's Megalopolis is an overstuffed opus that's equal parts stimulating and slapdash.
Synopsis: MEGALOPOLIS is a Roman Epic set in an imagined Modern America. The City of New Rome must change, causing conflict...
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#20
Adjusted Score: 97544%
Critics Consensus: Cillian Murphy's outstanding acting anchors Small Things Like These, elevating an occasionally enervating historical drama.
Synopsis: Small Things Like These takes place over Christmas in 1985, when devoted father and coal merchant Bill Furlong (Cillian Murphy)...
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#21
Adjusted Score: 82552%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Two years after losing her husband, Kathy magically brings a handsome snowman to life! Through his naïveté, the snowman helps...
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#22
Adjusted Score: 100725%
Critics Consensus: A legal thriller with a heavy conscience, Juror #2 is less a summation of Clint Eastwood's storied directorial career than another terrific reminder of his knack for plain-spoken drama.
Synopsis: "Juror #2" follows family man Justin Kemp (Nicholas Hoult) who, while serving as a juror in a high profile murder...
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#23
Adjusted Score: 100053%
Critics Consensus: Deftly directed by star Anna Kendrick, Woman of the Hour uses an incredible true story as the foundation for a powerful examination of the intersection between systemic misogyny and violence.
Synopsis: An aspiring actress crosses paths with a prolific serial killer in '70s LA when they're cast on an episode of...
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#24
Adjusted Score: 101907%
Critics Consensus: Surreal and unsettling, A Different Man overcomes an occasionally tenuous narrative grasp by virtue of its bold, provocative approach to serious themes.
Synopsis: Aspiring actor Edward undergoes a radical medical procedure to drastically transform his appearance. But his new dream face quickly turns...
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#25
Adjusted Score: 98651%
Critics Consensus: Blessed with a nerve-jangling star turn by Naomi Scott, writer-director Parker Finn broadens Smile's conceit into a pop stardom nightmare that'll leave a rictus grin on horror fans' faces.
Synopsis: About to embark on a new world tour, global pop sensation Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) begins experiencing increasingly terrifying and...
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#26
Adjusted Score: 98536%
Critics Consensus: Instead of cross-examining its subject, The Apprentice gives Sebastian Stan the chance to shine in a simplistic yet entertaining foray into the world of a young Trump.
Synopsis: A young Donald Trump (Sebastian Stan), eager to make his name as a hungry second son of a wealthy family...
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#27
Adjusted Score: 82518%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Andy Goodrich's (Michael Keaton) life is upended when his wife and mother of their nine-year-old twins enters a 90-day rehab...
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#28
Adjusted Score: -1%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: A strange disease has spread across the planet, turning people into violent creatures. Manel, who lives in isolation after the...
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#29
Adjusted Score: 89032%
Critics Consensus: Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh's palpable chemistry will snatch audiences' hearts before breaking them in We Live in Time, a powerful melodrama that uses its nonlinear structure to thoughtfully explore grief.
Synopsis: Almut (Florence Pugh) and Tobias (Andrew Garfield) are brought together in a surprise encounter that changes their lives. Through snapshots...
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#30
Adjusted Score: 75096%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: When a killer injects her with a paralytic agent, a woman must run, fight and hide before her body completely...
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72%
31%
91%
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