It’s hard creating new sci-fi universes that resonate well with both critics and audiences alike. But if anyone can, Gareth Edwards has the knack to do it. The English writer and director behind 2010’s under-the-radar sci-fi gem Monsters, who also helmed 2014’s acclaimed Godzilla reboot and — most notably — the best modern Star Wars movie of all time, aka Rogue One (don’t @ me), it’s safe to say that the 48-year-old has the chops to build science fiction universes that can both drop jaws and put bums on seats. While his 2016 anthology movie set in that galaxy far, far away moved the needle with critics and fans, his 2023 follow-up on the other hand, landed with a resounding thud. Yes, we’re talking about Edwards’ latest foray into the genre with The Creator, which is picking up steam on streaming platforms right now despite its tepid box office performance.
Gareth Edwards’ The Creator Is Doing Great on Disney+
Judging by its original theatrical run, The Creator failed to take the world by storm reaping in a paltry $104 million box office off an $80 million production budget. As a general rule of thumb, a feature needs to make at least twice of its budget back just to break even. With that in mind, it’s fair to say that 2023’s most ambitious sci-fi flick was sadly a financial flop. Still, that doesn’t mean that it’s one to avoid. In fact, the silver lining is that this is a top-notch pic you’ve probably never seen, and it’s now available on streaming. As a result, viewers are beginning to cotton onto this fact and are watching The Creator in droves.
Specifically, Gareth Edwards’ science fiction epic has managed to penetrate Disney+’s worldwide Top 10, nabbing today’s ninth spot, according to streaming aggregator FlixPatrol. Furthermore, The Creator has seized today’s number one spots in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden. Plus, critics and fans thoroughly enjoyed the film reflected by its 67 percent ‘Fresh’ Critical Rating and 76 percent Audience Rating over on Rotten Tomatoes. No small feat, indeed!
Narratively, the 2023 movie centers on a futuristic alternative universe where AI detonates a nuclear bomb in Los Angeles kicking off a global conflict between man and machine. Frankly, its AI vs mankind plot is pretty timely, especially with everything going on in the world at the moment. With shades of Blade Runner, Terminator, and Star Wars, it’s more of a hodgepodge of great ideas than a truly cohesive whole, but it’s unquestionably one of the more memorable films from last year. In short, while it may not be a super original idea, its execution, acting, and visual effects are top-tier. Heck, even the award-winning composer Hans Zimmer steps up to score the feature with some suitably grand and atmospheric audio. And finally, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention its Academy Award nominations for Best Sound and Best Visual Effects. Not too shabby, eh?
