After weeks of domination,The Accountant 2surrendered the top spot on Prime Video’s global viewership rankings toHeads of State. The action-comedy, starringJohn Cena,Idris Elba, andPriyanka Chopra Jonas, had a solid run, retaining the viewership crown for around a month. But this past weekend,the film was unseated from the number one spot by a rather unlikely competitor, a screenlife adaptation ofWar of the Worlds, starringIce Cubein the lead role. What makes this situation all the more interesting is thatWar of the Worldshas been roundly rejected by critics, and is currently sitting ata rare 0% score on the aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes.
Directed byRich Lee, the movie features Ice Cube as a surveillance expert who works for the Department of Homeland Security, alongsideEva Longoria,Clark Gregg, and others.War of the Worldsis based on theH.G. Wellsnovel of the same name, which was famously adapted into a radio play performed byOrson Welles, and also into a big-budget Hollywood movie directed bySteven Spielbergand starringTom Cruise. The movie made over $600 million globally, and earned mostly positive reviews. The screenlife film, on the other hand, has beenwidely panned.
It’s produced byPatrick Aiello, whose prior work includesStreet Fighter: The Legend of Chun-LiandRisen, as well asTimur Bekmambetov, who, after directing major Hollywood films such asWantedandAbraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, hasbecome something of an expert in the screenlife format; these are movies that unfold entirely on computer screens and devices. ThinkSearching, the mystery movie headlined byJohn Cho, which grossed over $80 million worldwide. Bekmambetov is all set to make a big return to Hollywood filmmaking withMercy, starringChris PrattandRebecca Ferguson. The film is also co-written byKenneth Golde(The Job) andMarc Hyman(Osmosis Jones).
‘Heads of State’ Earned Mostly Positive Reviews
Incidentally,Heads of Statewas directed by Bekmambetov’s fellow Russian,Ilya Naishuller. The movie follows the President of the United States, played by Cena, and the British Prime Minister, played by Elba, who must evade capture after crash-landing in the middle of Europe. Chopra Jonas plays a secret agent assigned to escort them to safety. Themovie opened tomostly positive reviews, and is currently sitting at a 70% score on the aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, where the critics' consensus reads, “Heads of State’s lighthearted handling of geopolitics may be too cute by half, but the comedic alliance between Idris Elba and John Cena remains strong in this slick action flick.” You can watch both movies on Prime Video, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
War of the Worlds
