Streaming has given an overlooked action movie a surprising opportunity to reconnect with fans. After making only a limited impact during its theatrical run and receiving a mixed critical response, the Angelina Jolie thriller is now attracting fresh attention years later.
Those Who Wish Me Dead is resurging on Netflix’s streaming charts
As per Flix Patrol, Angelina Jolie’s Those Who Wish Me Dead has climbed to No. 3 among Netflix’s top movies in the U.S. This puts the 2021 thriller ahead of titles including The Secret Woman, The Angry Birds Movie 2, Ready or Not, Nine to Five, and Shark Tale. The sudden jump gives Taylor Sheridan’s film a fresh moment in the spotlight.
A chance encounter turns Hannah’s already troubled life into a fight for survival. Angelina Jolie stars as a smoke jumper still haunted by a rescue that ended with three people she could not save. Her past catches up with her when Connor, a terrified 12-year-old, crosses her path while fleeing killers determined to silence him. Taylor Sheridan directed the thriller and co-wrote the screenplay with Michael Koryta and Charles Leavitt, adapting Koryta’s novel. Warner Bros. gave the movie a dual theatrical and HBO Max release on May 14, 2021.
Finn Little plays Connor, with Nicholas Hoult, Aidan Gillen, Jon Bernthal, Jake Weber, Medina Senghore, and Tyler Perry rounding out the principal cast. The movie places its characters between relentless killers closing in on Connor and a wildfire tearing through the Montana wilderness.
The movie’s theatrical numbers never came close to matching its roughly $20 million production budget. Box Office Mojo reports a worldwide haul of $19.1 million, with $7.4 million coming from North America and another $11.7 million from international markets.
Viewers, however, have been far kinder than the box office suggests. IMDb currently rates the thriller 6.0/10, while Rotten Tomatoes records a 63% critics’ score and an 86% audience rating. Supporters have singled out Angelina Jolie’s performance, the tense set pieces, the natural scenery, and the action. Critics of the movie have instead found its pacing inconsistent and its story too predictable, with familiar thriller conventions taking some of the edge off.
