Samuel L. Jackson's New Thriller Officially Sets Brutal Rotten Tomatoes Record

Published Oct 11, 2026, 11:04 AM EDT

Abigail is an editor for ScreenRant, currently writing and editing movie news. You may also have seen her thoughts on animated television, musical theater, and fantasy literature in Paste Magazine, Fantasy Hive, or The Oxford Blue. She has also written SR lists and op-eds covering movies, TV, and books as well. She is an English major through and through, having graduated with a B.A. from UC Santa Barbara and an MPhil from Oxford University.

Samuel L. Jackson's new movie is not one for the books.

The Oscar-nominated actor is legendary owing to his performances in the likes of Pulp Fiction and The Avengers, but every seasoned actor has a few bombs. Jackson's best movies also include Snakes on a Plane, Kingsman: The Secret Service, The Hateful Eight, The Incredibles, Star Wars, and Django Unchained, while his lesser filmography now includes the thriller Just Play Dead.

Also starring Eva Green, María Pedraza, and Jason Fernández, Martin Campbell's Just Play Dead follows a dysfunctional married couple (Jackson and Green) who are plotting against each other: He plans to fake his death and frame her lover, she wants to actually kill him, and they both hope to take all the assets. While the premise holds promise, Just Play Dead has now gotten a dismal critical reception.

Following a limited theatrical release in the U.S. in August 2026, Just Play Dead has become available on digital platforms and is garnering more reviews. Thus, it now has a Rotten Tomatoes score of 9% from the reactions of 11 critics. This makes it the third-lowest-ranked film of Jackson's career on the review aggregator site, above only Twisted and Kite.

Jackson is, however, an especially prolific actor, and there are a number of his movies on Rotten Tomatoes that also score below 20%, including Strictly Business, Afterburn, Cell, Life Itself, Sphere, The Man, Meeting Evil, The Spirit, Jumper, Cleaner, and Star Wars: The Clone Wars (the 2008 movie). His highest-rated titles include Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair and The Incredibles.

Just Play Dead grossed only $257.635 (per Box Office Mojo), and is soon to be forgotten. Jackson, however, will be busy for the next few years. While he is not part of the confirmed Avengers: Doomsday cast, he is slated to return in its follow-up, Avengers: Secret Wars. He is also reprising his iconic role of Frozone in Incredibles 3, expected in 2028, as well as being reportedly attached to several more projects.

Just Play Dead may be a disaster, but it won't even make a dent in Jackson's legacy. Those who enjoy a good bad movie or just want to see him and Eva Green engaged in a battle of wits can check it out, or they can watch one of Jackson's numerous better movies across several streaming platforms, while looking forward to what's to come in his career.

Just Play Dead, starring Samuel L. Jackson, is now available on VOD.

Cast

• 

  Jack Wolfe

• 

  Eva Green

  Nora Wolfe

• 

  María Pedraza

  Bianca

• 

  Eoin Macken

  Dani