The new science fiction movie from Prime Video is performing even worse on Rotten Tomatoes than a Tom Cruise version of the same story. The Amazon-run streaming service has debuted a variety of original movies, including the comedy legacy sequels Borat Subsequent Moviefilm and Coming 2 America, as well as the Chris Pratt-led sci-fi thriller The Tomorrow War.
While The Tomorrow War is most likely their biggest sci-fi title, they have dabbled in the sci-fi genre a number of other times, as has Tom Cruise. Although the four-time Oscar nominee may be best known for the Mission: Impossible movies in the modern era, he has starred in quite a few sci-fi projects.
His outings in the genre include the time loop movie Edge of Tomorrow, Steven Spielberg’s Philip K. Dick adaptation Minority Report, the 2013 Joseph Kosinski movie Oblivion (which set the stage for the star and director’s reunion in the 2022 smash Top Gun: Maverick), and a movie with a story that has recently been re-adapted.
War Of The Worlds Is Not Performing Well On The Popcornmeter
The movie in question is 2005’s War of the Worlds, which saw Tom Cruise reunite with Steven Spielberg for an epic adaptation of the H. G. Wells alien invasion novel of the same name. While the movie has a Certified Fresh 76% Rotten Tomatoes score and grossed a whopping $603.9 million, it earned a dismal 42% from audiences on the Popcornmeter.
War of the Worlds has been brought to the screen once more with a new Prime Video movie starring Ice Cube, Eva Longoria, and Clark Gregg. The screenlife movie, which has the invading aliens consuming humanity’s data, was directed by Rich Lee from a screenplay by Kenneth A. Golde and Marc Hyman.
Although 2025’s War of the Worlds is currently Prime Video’s most-watched movie globally, it has not fared quite so well critically. While it does not yet have enough reviews from critics to earn a Tomatometer score, more than 100 viewers have rated it on Rotten Tomatoes, giving it a dismal 10% Popcornmeter score that sinks far below the 2005 movie.
What This Means For War Of The Worlds
As the Tom Cruise movie revealed, War of the Worlds doesn’t have to win over Rotten Tomatoes audiences in order to succeed commercially. However, the fact that the Prime Video movie has earned such a perilously low score could damage its prospects, because it seems highly unlikely to earn the word of mouth necessary to become a long-term streaming hit.
Source: Rotten Tomatoes
- Release Date
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July 30, 2025
- Runtime
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145 Minutes
- Director
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Rich Lee
- Writers
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Marc Hyman, Kenny Golde, H.G. Wells
- Producers
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Timur Bekmambetov