Ryan Gosling's Action Comedy With 82% On Rotten Tomatoes Finds Success On Streaming

Ryan Gosling occupies a unique space in Hollywood, as he's about as equally well known for his work in major blockbusters as he is for smaller movies. He was best known to many viewers for a long time as one of the stars of The Notebook (2004), but he would go on to become known for titles across a variety of genres, including movies like Drive (2011), Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011), and The Place Beyond the Pines (2012).

The mid-2010s saw Gosling star in a number of notable movies that, even if they were always box office successes, they showed his range as a performer. La La Land (2016) remains one of his biggest hits from the era, but he also appeared in cult classic The Nice Guys (2016), Blade Runner 2049 (2017), and First Man (2018). Gosling ascended to a new level of stardom with the release of the acclaimed Barbie in 2023, in which he played Ken, but that wasn't enough to save his 2024 action comedy, which ultimately underperformed at the box office.

The Fall Guy Has Become A Prime Video Hit

Ryan Gosling's Action Comedy Is Finding Its Audiences

The Fall Guy has become a major viewership hit on Prime Video after a disappointing box office run. Hitting theaters in May 2024, the film is directed by David Leitch (Bullet Train), with Gosling starring as Colt Seavers, a stuntman who attempts to save the production of the woman he loves, Jody (Emily Blunt), by tracking down her missing lead actor. The Fall Guy reviews were positive right from the jump, but the film ultimately didn't succeed at the box office, grossing $181 million on a $125 million budget.

After first becoming available on streaming in September, The Fall Guy set a record for Prime Video, and Flix Patrol now reveals that the movie is once again connecting with viewers. According to the site, the Gosling action comedy ranks, as of January 9, 2025, as the number one most popular movie on the Amazon streaming service, beating movies like In the Land of Saints and Sinners (2023), The Creator (2023), and Red One (2024). Check out a full one-day snapshot of the Prime Video top 10 below:

Prime Video Top 10 (Jan. 9, 2025)
1	The Fall Guy
2	In the Land of Saints and Sinners
3	The Creatori
4	Red One
5	The Equalizer 2
6	A Quiet Place: Day One
7	The Equalizer
8	Tag
9	Culpa Tuya
10	The Beekeeper

What The Fall Guy's Streaming Success Means For The Movie

Will The Fall Guy 2 Happen?

Boasting a critics' score of 82% and an audience score of 85% on Rotten Tomatoes, it's clear that The Fall Guy's cast, action, and story generally went over well with the people who watched the film. The movie's downfall can arguably be attributed to its $125 million budget, which is a massive sum for what is essentially a romantic comedy with plenty of action. If The Fall Guy had instead been made at around $80 million, the narrative surrounding the movie could be totally different.

A movie generally has to gross around two or two-and-a-half times its budget to break even at the box office.

Unfortunately, it's not likely that success on streaming will be enough to move the needle on The Fall Guy 2, which Gosling has expressed in making. Unless the film has been a very strong performer on VOD and continues to be a hit on streaming for months and years to come, it doesn't look like Colt and Jody will be returning in a sequel. That being said, it's certainly worth something that The Fall Guy is experiencing a resurgence in popularity on streaming, and it speaks to just how much of a crowd-pleaser the Gosling action comedy is.

Source: FlixPatrol