Prime Video’sCruel Intentionsreboot series is off to a lackluster start, attracting a dismal Rotten Tomatoes rating that is barely half of the original movie starring Sarah Michelle Gellar. Serving as a modernized retelling of the 1782 novelLes Liaisons Dangereuses, plans for a TV show based on the 1999 film began almost as soon as it was released. While the earliest plans foraCruel Intentionsshowwould eventually morph into 2000’s direct-to-video sequel, NBC would pass on a TV adaptation in 2015, only for Prime Video to pick it up in late 2021.
With all eight episodes ofCruel Intentionsseason 1 now available on Prime Video, the majority of the initial reviews for the property’s latest television reboot have not been favorable. Currentlyonly sitting at a 30% critical ratingon review aggregator siteRotten Tomatoes,Prime Video’s reboot currently sits well behind the original movie’s 54% score. However, it has already surpassed the far more dismal 18% received byCruel Intentions 2. Meanwhile, 2004’sCruel Intention 3did not even secure sufficient reviews to achieve an official critical score. Check out the franchise’s comparative scores below:
54%
80%
18%
21%
31%
30%
What Cruel Intentions' Rotten Tomatoes Scores Mean For Amazon’s Reboot
It Is Possible Prime Video’s Show Could Repeat The Movie’s Critical Divide
At this stage, it is still very early days, and it is likely that the official critical score forPrime Video’sCruel Intentionsrebootwill continue to adjust as additional reviews begin rolling in. Moreover, when general audiences begin providing their own input, it is also possible that responses to the television series could go on tomirror the same kind of divide between viewers and critics that Gellar’s movie also receivedduring its own release.
It may be premature and ill-advised to read too much into the reboot’s own critical response, given the originalCruel Intentions’place as a much beloved cult classic also flew directly in the face of numerous critical drubbings.
Despite generating mixed reviews,1999’sCruel Intentionswas a box office success, bringing in $76.3 million worldwide against an original budget of $10.5 million. It would also go on to perform well in the popular people’s choice award circuits, such as the MTV Movie Awards and Teen Choice Awards, with Gellar ultimately winning Best Actress in the former. As such, it may be premature and ill-advised to read too much into the reboot’s own critical response, given the originalCruel Intentions’place as a much beloved cult classic also flew directly in the face of numerous critical drubbings.
Our Take On Cruel Intentions’ Potential Audience Response
Most Critics Are Not The Show’s Intended Audience Demographic
Until a sufficient number of viewers begin supplying their own responses to Prime Video’sCruel Intentionsreboot, it is difficult to predict whether the television show will indeed go on to follow in the footsteps of the movie that inspired it. However, it is possible that the television showmay ultimately benefit from the same kind of generational divide between audiences and criticsthat also underpinned the original movie’s own heavily divided response.
Cruel Intentions TV Show Completely Wasted Its Best Connection To The 1999 Movie
The Cruel Intentions TV show has a new cast in a modern take on the 1999 movie’s story, but it wasted its best connection to the movie.
With many of the professional critics currently reviewing the newCruel Intentionsshow previously on the other side of the audience/critic divide when the movie was released in the late ‘90s, they could very well be inadvertently repeating the same oversight that comes with critiquing a product they are no longer the target audience for. Much like the movie’s place in popular teen culture during the late ‘90s, the newCruel Intentionsis very much geared to appeal to a younger audience that is not widely represented in critical circles.
Cruel Intentions
Cast
Two ambitious step-siblings at a prestigious Washington, D.C. college will stop at nothing to keep their social standing. After a hazing scandal threatens their control, they resort to extreme tactics, including seducing the vice president’s daughter, to safeguard their reputation and influence.
