Carry-On's Divided Rotten Tomatoes Scores Explained: Why It's Fresh With Critics But Rotten With Audiences

Netflix's Carry-On has been shockingly divisive in the days following its premiere, as most critics seemingly enjoyed the movie, while audiences have (ironically) been more critical of it. The action thriller, directed by Jaume Collet-Serra and written by T.J. Fixman, follows Taron Egerton's Ethan Kopek, a TSA officer working on Christmas Eve at LAX. When he pushes for a promotion (aka supervising a baggage-scanning lane), Ethan is unwillingly thrust into a terrorist plot. Jason Bateman plays the villain in Carry-On, who blackmails Ethan into letting a mysterious bag go through the scanner without raising any red flags.

After the release of Carry-On, rumblings about a potential sequel began spreading, and Taron Edgerton told TODAY that he would be on board for a second movie, as long as it has a "really innovative, creative idea."

As Carry-On continues, Ethan unravels more details about Bateman's character's plans and attempts to be the hero. Based on its premise (one man in charge of stopping a terrorist threat on Christmas Eve), many have compared Carry-On to Die Hard, which is regarded as one of the best action movies of all time. Nevertheless, the 2024 Netflix film has caused much more debate concerning its quality than Die Hard ever did

What Critics Like About Carry-On

Netflix's Action Thriller Has An 85% Score On Rotten Tomatoes

Carry-On is considered "Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes. The Netflix action thriller's Tomatometer score (which is based on critics) is 85 percent, averaged from 52 reviews, as of the writing of this article. Its critics' consensus reads:

"Taron Egerton and an against-type Jason Bateman make for great adversaries in Carry-On, a throwback thriller that clears all checkpoints of plot logic with its confident execution."

Specific reviews praise the 2024 movie Carry-On for its well-executed fight scene in a car, focus on humanity and ethics, self-awareness, engrossing suspense and action, and satisfying ending. David Ehrlich of indieWire wrote, "Carry-On doesn’t aspire to be too much more than good, trashy, yuletide fun, but it consistently over-delivers on that front." Meanwhile, critics like John Anderson from the Wall Street Journal commended Edgerton and Bateman for their performances. Anderson explained, "... with Taron Egerton as its hero and Jason Bateman as its villain, it is a perfectly serviceable two hours of action and angst."

Carry-On Cast Role Taron Egerton Ethan Kopek Jason Bateman The Mysterious Traveler Logan Marshall-Green Agent Alcott Sofia Carson Nora Parisi Danielle Deadwyler Elena Cole Theo Rossi The Mysterious Watcher Dean Norris Phil Sarkowski Sinqua Walls Jason Noble Josh Brener Herschel Curtiss Cook Lionel Williams

Based on Carry-On's reviews, critics seemingly appreciated that the movie knew exactly what it was (a dumb but fun action flick) and executed it to the best of its ability. It's not supposed to be an Academy Award-winning film, and that's okay. Instead, Carry-On is just an entertaining movie from beginning to end, meant to be thrilling and full of suspenseful moments that please viewers.

Why Carry-On Only Has 59% With Audiences On Rotten Tomatoes

Many Are Upset About The Movie's Plot Holes

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Netflix's Carry-On shot to the top of the streaming service's charts after its release. However, just because it's popular doesn't mean that the majority of viewers love the movie. Instead, Carry-On's Popcornmeter (based on audiences' reviews) on Rotten Tomatoes sits at 59 percent, falling just short of being considered "Fresh." The general public evidently didn't enjoy the action thriller as much as critics did.

Related Netflix's New Jason Bateman Thriller Movie Remakes This 69% Die Hard Sequel - But Does It Even Better An intense new Jason Bateman action thriller borrows a setting from one of the best Die Hard sequels and then manages to improve on the conept.

Based on the comments on the review-aggregated website, many viewers gave Carry-On a bad score because of its plot holes and unrealistic story. The film lacked logic for some, which frustrated them, ruining the watching experience. Others condemned Carry-On for the cast's performances, writing, directing, and more. Most of the negative entries revolve around its implausibility, though. Of course, many still found Carry-On entertaining and had thoughts similar to critics' concerning the action thriller flick.

Critics & Audiences Are Both Right About Carry-On

Carry-On Is Entertaining Regardless Of Its Negatives

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Viewers are right when they state that Carry-On has various plot holes and is implausible. However, that doesn't inherently make it a bad movie. As many critics pointed out, the 2024 Netflix (Christmas) action thriller is self-aware. Carry-On knows that not everything about the story makes sense, which explains why the movie often highlights its characters and their unimaginable choices instead of all the technicalities that push the plot forward. Ultimately, the positives outweigh the negatives by the end of Carry-On, a silly film meant to be entertaining rather than having a script that is 100 percent accurate.

Your Rating close 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 star 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star 0/10 Leave a Review Your changes have been saved My List My Favorite Movies My Watchlist Success! 5/10 15 8/10 Carry-On Carry On is a film directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, focusing on a young TSA agent who is coerced by a mysterious traveler into allowing a dangerous package onto a Christmas Eve flight. As events unfold, he must use his wits to resolve the perilous situation. Where to Watch stream

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buy Not available Not available Not available *Availability in US Release Date December 13, 2024 Runtime 119 Minutes Cast Taron Egerton , Jason Bateman , Sofia Carson , Danielle Deadwyler , Tonatiuh , Theo Rossi , Logan Marshall-Green , Dean Norris , Sinqua Walls , Curtiss Cook , Joe Williamson , Gil Perez-Abraham , Josh Brener , Benito Martinez , Edwin Kho , Reisha Reynolds , Adam Stephenson , Michael Scott , Jeff Pope , Raymond Rehage Director Jaume Collet-Serra Expand

Sources: TODAY, Rotten Tomatoes, indieWire, Wall Street Journal