A recent John Cena-led action comedy is drawing attention for its unexpected streaming success despite being widely panned by critics. The film has surged in popularity on Netflix, landing a top spot on the platform’s global charts.
Freelance finds big audience on Netflix
As of January 20, 2026, Freelance ranked 6th on the list of top movies on Netflix globally, according to FlixPatrol.
It earned 161 points, trailing behind titles such as The Rip (928 points) and People We Meet on Vacation (719 points). The film also maintained an average ranking of 2.1 across multiple Latin American countries from January 18–20, including Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico.
Freelance, an action comedy directed by Pierre Morel and written by Jacob Lentz, hit theaters on October 27, 2023. John Cena stars as Mason Pettits, a former U.S. Army Special Forces soldier, alongside Alison Brie, Juan Pablo Raba, and Christian Slater. The film later launched on premium video-on-demand on November 28, 2023, and earned $10.2 million at the box office from a $40 million production budget.
FlixPatrol data showed Freelance entered the Netflix Top 10 in multiple countries in Latin America starting January 18, 2026, including second-place rankings in Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, and others. The film consistently held second position across at least 15 countries through January 20. It did not reach the number one spot in any region during the tracked period.
On IMDb, Freelance holds a score of 5.6/10. Rotten Tomatoes reported a 10% approval rating based on 39 critic reviews, with an average rating of 3.2/10. Metacritic assigned the film a weighted score of 26 out of 100, and CinemaScore audiences gave it a “B−” grade. PostTrak noted 58% overall positive responses, with 27% saying they would definitely recommend the film.
The production team filmed Freelance in Colombia from January to April 2022. Pierre Morel, Steve Richards, Christopher Tuffin, and Renee Tab produced the movie.
Originally reported by Anubhav Chaudhry on ComingSoon.net.
