One movie that faced a decidedly lackluster reception in 2025 despite prior hype for it has the chance to be born anew in the coming days. While the past few years have seen some staggering theatrical successes for a selection of films, it’s also been relatively common for movies to face substantially less lucrative or lofty results.

This is true even for many releases that had substantial interest or hype around them before their release, as this scenario can often build higher expectations for the story and execution of a movie in the long run. Indeed, the higher audience hopes can be for a movie or show, the easier it is for the reality of the finished release to crush their expectations, resulting in a more negative overall perception of the project in question.

The kind of scenario in question here appears to have played a role in the reception that was visible for one 2025 horror movie, particularly since the year was a fruitful one for the genre otherwise, with releases like Sinners, Weapons, and 28 Years Later setting a decidedly high bar for horror films in this time period. That said, 2026 offers new chances for redemption for this less well-received film alongside many others.

Him’s Netflix Release Gives The 2025 A Second Chance In 2026

While Him was one of the most anticipated horror movies of 2025, the reception to the film’s actual release was decidedly less positive. The movie received middling to negative review scores, netting a 56% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes alongside an even less promising 31% critic score.

These two groups had shared criticisms of the movie when it came to Him‘s reviews, with some repeated issues being the film’s final act and how it handles tying up its story, and its more heavy-handed approach to some of the imagery and religious subtext within it. Interestingly, though, even many critical reviews do cite the story’s clear narrative potential, and simply express a lack of connection with the final result.

Though this all translated into a lower box office for Him – coming in at around $27 million – this doesn’t spell the end strictly speaking for the horror movie, thanks to the trajectory movies can take in the modern era.

Indeed, with Him set to arrive on Netflix on April 19, it’s entirely possible the movie is about to become more popular than ever – particularly because it already has several traits also demonstrated by other films that did less well in cinemas, but that became streaming hits.

Why Him’s Box Office & Review Scores Could Actually Help Its Streaming Success

Historically, it’s been commonplace for movies that generate audience interest but don’t do well in terms of their review score or box office during their theatrical release to have considerable success when they hit platforms like Netflix.

This is both because some prospective viewers will choose to delay watching said movie until it debuts on streaming if reviews skew more negative overall, and because these reviews can encourage some to give a certain film a watch when it becomes available from the comfort of their own home, to see if their own perception of it is as negative as the general consensus proved to be.

As such, it seems very possible that Him will gain a new audience in just a few days, which could well transform the overarching perception of the film, and potentially even change how the film is percieved overall, though what happens in this regard will only become clear with time.

Him

4/10

Release Date

September 19, 2025