Kevin Costner’s Lowest-Rated Movie Confirms A Surprising Career Trend

Kevin Costner has been a Hollywood stalwart for over four decades. In that time, he has featured in some of the industry’s biggest hits, including fan favorites like Field of Dreams and award winners such as Dances With Wolves. However, while these movies and others like them constitute some high-profile successes for Costner, his involvement hasn’t always guaranteed a good return.

While Kevin Costner’s career has had multiple highs, there have also been lows. Prominent examples include notorious bombs like Waterworld and The Postman, but even more recent projects have fluctuated between box office and critical acclaim and mediocrity. Examples like Horizon prove how fickle fortunes can be in the filmmaking business. However, while almost every actor has their share of failures, something about Costner’s disappointments stands out. As demonstrated by the actor’s worst-reviewed film of all time, the 2002 thriller Dragonfly, even when his movies underwhelm, they often prove surprisingly popular with viewers.

Almost All Kevin Costner’s Worst-Reviewed Movies Are Way More Popular With Audiences

The Difference Is Stark

Although it’s not unusual for poorly-reviewed films to be more favorably received by audiences, Costner’s career takes this to absolute extremes – typified by Dragonfly. The paranormal thriller, in which Costner plays a bereaved doctor, holds just 7% on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. However, the movie’s audience score on the same site is a comparatively stellar 62% – a discrepancy of 55% between the two. Closer inspection reveals that this is far from an anomaly.

The fact that Costner’s films have proven to be considerably more popular with audiences than critics throughout his career means that it’s impossible to dismiss the trend as mere coincidence. The pattern even extends to movies that didn’t quite do well enough to be considered “Fresh” on the audience Tomatometer. The Postman, for example, scored 14% with critics and 51% with audiences – despite being widely acknowledged as one of Costner’s most disappointing films to date. All this suggests that there is something unique to Costner that makes his movies appeal to a particular audience – whatever their critical performance.

Why Kevin Costner Films Score Better With Movie-Goers

He Makes A Particular Kind Of Movie

While many “Rotten” Kevin Costner movies might seem disconnected from one another, it is possible to identify a trend that unites them. It’s telling, for example, that some of his critically underwhelming projects have become his most influential in wider pop culture. Examples include Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and The Bodyguard – two movies that were contemporary box office triumphs and have achieved subsequent cult status. A key reason for this could be the two films’ deliberately emotive and highly traditional, broadly appealing storytelling style – an approach that may not be revolutionary, but has proved consistently popular with audiences.

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This suggests that more than many other performers, Costner’s worst-reviewed films often fail critically because they conform too closely to the status quo. It’s a trend that is reflected in releases like The Guardian, Wyatt Earp, and The War. In all three cases, critics highlighted formulaic storytelling. However, while formula might not appeal to more high-minded professional reviewers, audiences looking to be entertained may be more sympathetic. As such, it’s not too much of a stretch to characterize Costner as a populist film star, whose movies are more likely to resonate with the public – even if critics remain skeptical.

Not Every Kevin Costner Flop Is Loved By Audiences

There Have Been Exceptions To The Rule

As the difference between his critical and audience scores shows, Costner’s aptitude for conventionally appealing storytelling has been a significant factor in building his reputation with the public. However, even with this strength, he is not immune from audience criticism. Movies like Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, The New Daughter, and Waterworld are all examples of “Rotten” Costner movies that performed worse with audiences than critics. This proves definitively that his films aren’t guaranteed to be well-received by the public.

…the sheer number of ”
Rotten
” Costner movies that have been genuine hits with viewers highlights that there is something unique about Costner’s particular appeal as a filmmaker.

However, while he can clearly fail to satisfy both audiences and critics, the sheer number of “Rotten” Costner movies that have been genuine hits with viewers highlights that there is something unique about Costner’s particular appeal as a filmmaker. It also suggests that there will always be an appetite for his brand of storytelling. While the financial folly of releases like Horizon has been well-documented, the fact that the movie-going public continues to show their affection for Kevin Costner‘s films shows why he has had such a storied career.

Release Date

February 22, 2002

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