Robert De Niro’s Netflix Thriller Is Dominating Streaming Charts Despite a Rough Rotten Tomatoes Score

Star power has always been one of Netflix’s most reliable weapons for driving instant viewership, regardless of what critics ultimately decide about the finished product. Time and again, a big enough cast has proven capable of overriding lukewarm reviews entirely, at least when it comes to raw viewing numbers.

That pattern is playing out once again this week, as one of the platform’s newest releases climbs straight to the top of the charts despite a critical response that’s landed anywhere but glowing.

Netflix’s latest movie, ‘The Whisper Man,’ has quickly climbed to the top of the streamer’s charts, becoming its number one movie worldwide despite mixed reviews. Starring Robert De Niro, Adam Scott, and Michelle Monaghan, the psychological thriller currently sits at a 42% score on Rotten Tomatoes. The film has overtaken holdover hits like “Don’t Say Good Luck” and “The Last House” atop the platform’s global viewership charts.

According to FlixPatrol data, “The Whisper Man” has also beaten out “Facing El Chapo,” the word-of-mouth Mexican crime thriller that had been generating significant buzz of its own in recent weeks. Directed by James Ashcroft and based on Alex North’s bestselling novel, the film follows Tom Kennedy, a widowed crime writer whose eight-year-old son goes missing after the family relocates to a small town, drawing him into a chilling connection to a decades-old serial killer case.

The film’s Rotten Tomatoes score has fluctuated considerably since its August 28 release, initially debuting around 57% to 62% based on early reviews before settling lower as more critics weighed in. According to Forbes, the film’s current 41% critic score is paired with a similarly lukewarm 45% audience score and a 6.3 rating on IMDb, painting a picture of a movie that’s failed to win over either professional reviewers or general viewers despite its starry cast.

Reviews themselves have varied widely in tone. CBR reported that Movies Thru the Spectrum’s Al Alexander called the film “a colossal mess” and “a tremendous waste of talent,” while The Guardian’s Benjamin Lee expressed disappointment that the story didn’t lead somewhere more surprising. On the more favorable end, Collider’s David Caballero compared the film to 1990s serial killer thrillers like “Copycat” and “The Bone Collector,” writing that while it “doesn’t exactly reinvent the formula,” it remains “a solid and extremely eerie watch nonetheless.”

Forbes also noted that this marks something of a mixed stretch for several cast members, pointing out that Adam Scott is now “1-for-2” on 2026 horror releases following a stronger reception for “Hokum” earlier this year, while De Niro’s recent filmography has swung wildly between acclaimed work like “Killers of the Flower Moon” and considerably less successful outings like last year’s “Tin Soldier.” Michael Keaton also appears in the film in a limited but memorable role, marking his first on-screen reunion with De Niro since 1997’s “Jackie Brown.”

Despite the divided critical reception, “The Whisper Man’s” chart dominance underscores just how much raw star power and genre appeal can drive viewership independent of review scores. Given how quickly the film has climbed to the top spot worldwide, Netflix’s bet on prestige casting over critical consensus appears to be paying off, at least in terms of pure engagement.