The reviews are in for A Minecraft Movie, and so far, they're pretty mixed. In fact, it's debuted on Rotten Tomatoes with 52%, a "Rotten" score that could lead to it being the latest big budget 2025 release to underperform after negative reviews.
If that happens, it's bad news for Warner Bros. Pictures and, more specifically, current studio chiefs Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy. David Zaslav is already said to be exploring alternatives after the likes of Joker: Folie à Deux and Mickey 17 bombed, so another flop will seal their fate.
52% puts A Minecraft Movie in the same ballpark as Rampage, Tomb Raider, and Mortal Kombat. However, it's also not too far behind The Super Mario Bros. Movie's 59%, and that managed to gross over $1.3 billion worldwide in 2023 (so don't count A Minecraft Movie out quite yet).
The Hollywood Reporter's review concludes, "We live in a world of low-effort reboots, unnecessary remakes and movies operating as extensions of corporate brands. Another one of these gluttonous projects is hardly surprising. What makes A Minecraft Movie so dispiriting is how it fails to spark the imagination, betraying a core tenet of the game on which it’s based."
Variety adds, "Some of this is amusing, but like the rest of 'A Minecraft Movie' it never feels like it matters. Yet it’s no insult to say that, in this case, that may be more true than not to the spirit of a video game that turns life into a blockhead version of itself."
Jack Black is praised by Total Film, as are filmmaker Jared Hess' "indie sensibilities." The review notes, "The special effects could be better, as could the female roles. But this remains an entertaining fantasy adventure that makes light work of what might appear to be unpromising source material."
The Guardian, meanwhile, was disappointed to see it fail to reach the same heights as Dungeons and Dragons but called it "an enjoyable if hectic experience nonetheless." Screen Rant says it's "far too empty to be given a second thought, which is unfortunate considering it had some potential."
IGN explains, "Thematically, A Minecraft Movie offers a pat world-is-what-you-make-it lesson, but Jack Black and Jason Momoa in particular sell it with a lot of comic enthusiasm."
So, it's a mixed bag in terms of reviews. Only time will tell how critic-proof a property like Minecraft is and whether this big screen adaptation is a big enough draw this coming weekend, particularly after Captain America: Brave New World and Snow White both underperformed (theaters remain in desperate need of a hit).
Will you be watching A Minecraft Movie this weekend?
Welcome to the world of Minecraft, where creativity doesn’t just help you craft, it’s essential to one’s survival! Four misfits - Garrett "The Garbage Man" Garrison, Henry, Natalie, and Dawn - find themselves struggling with ordinary problems when they are suddenly pulled through a mysterious portal into the Overworld: a bizarre, cubic wonderland that thrives on imagination.
To get back home, they’ll have to master this world (and protect it from evil things like Piglins and Zombies, too) while embarking on a magical quest with an unexpected, expert crafter, Steve. Together, their adventure will challenge all five to be bold and to reconnect with the qualities that make each of them uniquely creative...the very skills they need to thrive back in the real world.
With a cast led by Black (The Super Mario Bros. Movie) and Jason Momoa (Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom), A Minecraft Movie also stars Emma Myers (Wednesday), Danielle Brooks (Peacemaker), Sebastian Eugene Hansen (Just Mercy), and Jennifer Coolidge (The White Lotus).
A Minecraft Movie will be released in theaters on April 4, 2025.