The Jackie Chan & John Cena Netflix Movie That Just Debuted To 0% On Rotten Tomatoes
Jackie Chan and John Cena are two of the most bankable action stars of their day. Chan's movies have raked in more than $2.6 billion at the global box office, and he made a name for himself in Hong Kong classics like "Police Story" and "Drunken Master II" before dominating Western cinema as well. Cena, meanwhile, is known for his own theatrical hits, most recently appearing in the box office record-smashing "Barbie."
It is a wonder, then, that the Cena and Chan collaboration "Hidden Strike" sat on the shelf for so long. Per a tweet from Cena, shooting on the China-backed production ended in 2018, after which point it seemed like "Hidden Strike" would never see the light of day. As the film gathered dust, it also underwent a number of title changes, and has at various points been called "Project X-Traction" and "Snafu." The onset of the pandemic setback "Hidden Strike" even further, and it couldn't have pleased the Chinese producers when Cena referred to Taiwan as an independent nation while doing press for "F9" in 2021.
In July, "Hidden Strike" unceremoniously dropped on Netflix, and so far, the film has been universally panned with a resulting 0% on Rotten Tomatoes. That said, it has also skyrocketed to the streamer's top ten.
Hidden Strike has been panned by critics, but remains popular with audiences
"Hidden Strike" unites two former special forces soldiers — John Cena's Chris Van Horne and Jackie Chan's Luo Feng — to lead a caravan of civilians through Baghdad's treacherous "Highway of Death." It's the sort of bland premise that, for all intents and purposes, doesn't really matter, save to be a backdrop for Chan and Cena's charisma and humorous banter. According to critics, however, that chemistry never really surfaces.
Indeed, reviews for "Hidden Strike" are negative across the board. "'Hidden Strike' isn't fun or funny," wrote Brian Orndorf for Blu-ray.com. "It's more of a sensorial assault." In addition, a number of critics took aim at the movie's lackluster CGI.
With only five reviews posted on Rotten Tomatoes at the time of this writing, it is possible that "Hidden Strike" will dig itself out of its 0% hole, though probably not by much. Its potential saving grace is the movie's star power, which has already attracted hoards of viewers to Netflix. If they're at least somewhat charmed by Cena and Chan's attempt at an action-buddy-comedy, a good audience score could lift "Hidden Strike" out of its Rotten Tomatoes trenches.