Amazon‘s remake of the 1980s classic Road House might have proven divisive among fans and critics alike, but there’s no denying it’s been incredibly popular.
The Jake Gyllenhaal and Conor McGregor-fronted film reboot, which made its Prime Video on March 21, has not only fought its way to the top of the streamer’s movie charts, but also into its record books. Indeed, as revealed on Prime Video’s various social media channels yesterday (April 1), Road House has amassed 50 million views in its first two weeks on the service. That’s enough to make it the most-watched Amazon Original movie in the e-commerce giant’s streaming-based history.
Road House has become Amazon MGM Studios’ most-watched produced film debut ever on a worldwide basis. pic.twitter.com/TXeBObt8MyApril 1, 2024
In a statement (per Deadline), Amazon MGM Studios chief Jennifer Salke was gushing in her praise for Road House‘s record-breaking performance. Salke didn’t, however, mention director Doug Liman as part of her appreciation-laden response – a decision that might have something to do with the Road House remake’s director lashing out at Amazon after the company apparently walked back on a promise to release it in theaters first.
“The ground-breaking, successful debut of Road House is a testament to the hard work and commitment from the entire Road House filmmaking team and the film’s cast led by the phenomenal Jake Gyllenhaal,” Salke said.
“The world is absolutely loving this entertaining, action-packed ride anchored by the performances of Jake, Conor McGregor, Daniela Melchior, Darren Barnet, Billy Magnussen, Jessica Williams, Lukas Gage, Arturo Castro, JD Pardo and the rest of our stellar cast. It’s great to see the film taking off with both fans of the iconic original as well as a huge turnout from new audiences. This incredible film is really giving everyone something to talk about, and we couldn’t be more proud!”
All roads lead to success, apparently
Road House‘s success is all the more impressive when you take its reviews into account. One of March’s new Prime Video movies has, at the time of writing, racked up some of the most average scores we’ve seen on famed review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes in a long time. Indeed, a cursory glance at the R-rated action film’s critics and audience ratings – which sit at 59% and 54% respectively – serve as proof of how middling it is. Based on those scores alone, you shouldn’t expect to see Road House‘s remake secure a spot on our best Prime Video movies list.
Of course, those Rotten Tomatoes ratings shouldn’t be viewed as the be-all and end-all. With just 184 reviews from critics and 2,500-plus opinions from general viewers, that contingent is but a tiny fraction of the tens of millions of people who have watched the flick – many of whom probably enjoyed what they saw. A quick glance at threads on other prominent online communities, such as Reddit and ResetEra, reveals that people were entertained by it, with Redditor Reload86 labeling it “an entertaining dumb-fun action flick” and ResetEra user Amagon calling it a “solid popcorn movie, surprisingly enough”.
Rotten Tomatoes, then, should only be used a gauge to see whether a movie is worth watching. My advice? You’re best checking it out on one of the world’s best streaming services to see if it deserves its mixed reception it’s been met with or not.
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