Marlon Wayans has spent years being associated with horror spoofs, so the muted theatrical response to Him made it easy to overlook what the movie was actually trying to do. Now that the 2025 sports-horror hybrid has landed on Netflix, that first impression is starting to shift. The film did not connect widely in theaters, but its streaming afterlife suggests audiences are more willing to meet it on its own strange wavelength, where celebrity worship, football mythology, and body horror collide.
Why Him looked like a flop in theaters
Him, directed by Justin Tipping and produced by Monkeypaw Productions, opened wide in theaters on September 19, 2025, according to Rotten Tomatoes. The same source lists its domestic box office at $24.9 million and its runtime at 1 hour and 36 minutes. On paper, that is not a disaster for every horror title, but it was enough to place the movie in the “underperformed” category once expectations around a Jordan Peele-produced release and Marlon Wayans’ against-type casting were factored in. Rotten Tomatoes also shows why the theatrical run stalled: the film holds a 31% Tomatometer from 229 reviews and a 56% audience score from more than 1,000 verified ratings. Those are not fatal numbers for cult horror, but they are weak enough to cool mainstream momentum.
The disconnect was visible from the start. Critics tended to praise the movie’s visual ambition and Wayans’ commitment while arguing that the story did not fully land. ScreenRant’s review called Wayans’ performance the strongest source of tension in an otherwise messy psychological sports horror film, while CBR similarly argued that his work could not fully rescue the plot. That split matters because it helps explain why Him was vulnerable in theaters but better positioned for a second life at home. A movie that is sold as a broad horror event can struggle when reviews are mixed. A movie discovered on streaming, with lower risk and fewer expectations, gets judged differently.
That is especially true for a film like Him, which has a deliberately odd pitch. Rotten Tomatoes describes the story as centering on a promising football player invited to train at the isolated compound of an aging star quarterback played by Wayans. What begins as a sports ascent story turns into a horror film about power, fame, and ritualized self-destruction. That blend is not easy to market in 30 seconds. In a theater campaign, it can look confused. On Netflix, it can look intriguing.
Netflix gives the movie the exact audience it needed
The clearest sign that Him is getting a reevaluation is simple: people are actually clicking on it now. ComicBook reported that the film arrived on Netflix on April 19, 2026, giving it a fresh chance to reach viewers who skipped it during its theatrical run. That timing matters because streaming audiences often reward movies that feel too niche, too divisive, or too expensive to gamble on in theaters. Horror fans, in particular, are used to discovering titles after the fact, and Netflix’s recommendation engine is built for exactly that kind of delayed adoption.
There is already precedent for this kind of turnaround. ComicBook previously noted that Him surged to the top of Peacock’s most-watched list in its first weekend there, citing FlixPatrol data in December 2025. FlixPatrol’s own page for the film shows that Him spent 7 days in a Top 10 ranking and lists an IMDb score of 5.1/10 alongside a Rotten Tomatoes critics score in the low 30s. Those are not prestige numbers. They are, however, exactly the kind of numbers that often attach themselves to cult streaming discoveries: divisive enough to keep casual moviegoers away, interesting enough to spark curiosity once the barrier to entry disappears.
Netflix is also a better fit for the movie’s rhythm. Him is not built like a conventional studio horror release with clean jump scares and an easy hook. It is moodier than that. Stranger, too. The football setting gives it a commercial shell, but the movie is really about obsession, masculinity, and the machinery that turns athletes into sacrificial icons. That kind of film often plays better in living rooms than multiplexes. Viewers can pause, rewind, argue about the ending, and recommend it to friends with a phrase like “you need to see how weird this gets.” That is how cult reputations are made now.
Marlon Wayans is the biggest reason people are revisiting it
The most interesting part of the Him conversation is that it is also becoming a Marlon Wayans conversation. For decades, Wayans has been linked in the public imagination to comedy and parody, especially through Scary Movie, Scary Movie 2, and A Haunted House. Him asks him to weaponize that familiarity. Instead of playing the joke, he plays the threat. Instead of puncturing horror, he embodies it.
That shift did not go unnoticed, even among critics who disliked the movie overall. ScreenRant argued that Him may contain one of Wayans’ best supporting performances and praised the unpredictability he brings to the role. CBR made a similar point, emphasizing that viewers can never quite get a stable read on his character. That is a major asset in a horror movie built around control and manipulation. Wayans understands how charm works on screen, and in Him he twists that charm into something unnerving.
There is also a broader career angle here. Wayans has always had more range than he gets credit for, but audiences often lock performers into the mode that made them famous. Streaming can break that pattern because discovery is less tied to opening-weekend branding. A viewer scrolling Netflix may not care whether a movie was sold unsuccessfully six months earlier. They just see Marlon Wayans in a sinister football horror movie and decide that is worth 96 minutes. Sometimes that is enough.
What audiences may be seeing now that critics missed
The strongest case for Him is not that it was secretly a masterpiece. It was not. The strongest case is that it is more interesting than its theatrical reputation suggested. The Rotten Tomatoes numbers still show a divided response, and nothing about its box office total has changed. What has changed is the context. Removed from the pressure of opening weekend, the film’s strengths stand out more clearly: its imagery, its performance style, and its willingness to fuse sports mythology with horror symbolism in a way most studio releases would never attempt.
That matters because streaming success is not always about proving critics wrong. Sometimes it is about finding the right conditions for a movie to be appreciated. Him seems to be benefiting from exactly that. It is easier to embrace a flawed but ambitious horror film when the cost is a Netflix subscription rather than a night at the theater. It is easier to recommend a movie for its ideas, atmosphere, or one standout performance when viewers can sample it instantly.
So yes, Him flopped by theatrical standards. The domestic gross stalled at $24.9 million, the critics score settled at 31%, and the audience score landed at 56%, according to Rotten Tomatoes. But those numbers no longer tell the whole story. The movie already showed it could attract streaming attention on Peacock, and its April 19, 2026 Netflix debut gives it a much larger stage. For a film this divisive, that may be the best outcome possible: not a comeback as a mainstream hit, but a second life as the kind of movie people discover, debate, and defend.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Marlon Wayans horror movie is finding new attention on Netflix?
The movie is Him, a 2025 horror thriller directed by Justin Tipping. It stars Marlon Wayans as an aging football icon who draws a younger player into a disturbing world built around fame, power, and sacrifice.
Was Him a box office flop?
By mainstream studio expectations, yes. Rotten Tomatoes lists the film’s domestic box office at $24.9 million after its September 19, 2025 theatrical release. That total was modest for a heavily discussed horror title with a high-profile producer and a recognizable lead.
When did Him arrive on Netflix?
ComicBook reported that Him began streaming on Netflix on April 19, 2026. That release gave the movie a fresh chance to reach viewers who skipped it in theaters or on Peacock.
How was the movie reviewed?
Reviews were mixed to negative. Rotten Tomatoes shows a 31% critics score based on 229 reviews and a 56% audience score from more than 1,000 verified ratings. Even so, several reviews singled out Marlon Wayans’ performance as one of the film’s strongest elements.
Why is the movie doing better on streaming than it did in theaters?
Streaming lowers the risk for viewers and helps unusual genre movies find the right audience. Him blends sports drama, psychological horror, and social satire, which may have been a tough sell theatrically but works better as a curiosity-driven home watch.
Is Him worth watching?
If you like ambitious, uneven horror movies with strong imagery and an against-type lead performance, it probably is. It is not universally loved, but its growing streaming audience suggests many viewers find it more compelling than its original box office run implied.
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