It’s become a common refrain with movies over the last few years that films that struggle in theaters frequently become big hits once they arrive on streaming platforms. The latest example of this trend has arrived on Prime Video as the heist drama Crime 101, which failed at the box office despite a strong critical reception, is now killing it at home.
Crime 101 Is The Number One Movie In the World On Prime Video
Crime 101 only debuted on Prime Video on April 1st, but the film, which stars Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, and Halle Berry, is already the top streaming movie globally on the platform and the number two movie in the United States. It’s just the latest case of audiences clearly “waiting for streaming” when it comes to theatrical releases that people clearly want to see, but not quite enough to go to the theater.
Crime 101 stars Chris Hemsworth as a thief who teams up with an insurance investigator, played by Halle Berry, to work a major job. Mark Ruffalo is the police detective trying to stop them. Over the course of the film, the cast of characters travels through LA trying to pull off their respective plans, and it turns into one intense crime thriller.
Overall, it seems that those who are watching Crime 101 are likely enjoying themselves. The movie was well reviewed by critics, many of whom compared it favorably to Heat. The film has an 89% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes alongside an equally impressive 85% audince score, indicating that while a lot of people didn’t go to theaters to see it, those who did liked it.
Crime 101’s Road To Success Is Only Becoming More Common
Not every movie that flops in theaters becomes a success on streaming, but a lot of the films that are successful on streaming struggled theatrically first.
It’s clear that audiences still want to see these movies, but many are simply unwilling, for whatever reason, to go see every movie in a theater. Whether it’s a general dissatisfaction with the theatrical experience or a feeling that only certain types of movies are “worth it,” it’s far from uncommon to see character dramas like Crime 101 have a hard time at the box office. Seeing those sorts of films succeed in theaters has become the exception, not the rule.
At the end of the day, there’s certainly some value in the movie finding a way to get in front of eyeballs. People make movies to be seen, and as long as they get seen somehow, that’s worthwhile. At the same time, the continued failure of these sorts of movies in theaters is only going to lead to fewer of them being released in theaters, and potentially fewer of them being made at all, which would be tragic.
However, thankfully, Crime 101 seems to have found its audience, and you can stream it now on Prime Video.
