Oscar buzz has been growing around Russell Crowe’s performance in a new World War 2 drama, but that may die down after the movie’s underwhelming debut score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Crowe was once an awards-season heavyweight whose every performance generated mᴀssive Oscar buzz. His three-year run of Best Actor nominations began in 2000 with a nod for The Insider, then crested in 2001 when he walked away with Oscar gold for his performance in Gladiator.

2002 saw Crowe snagging one more Best Actor nomination for A Beautiful Mind. It’s been nothing but Oscar disappointment since then for the star, who as of 2025, has yet to receive a fourth nomination.

But hopes of a Crowe Oscar comeback have been gaining steam lately, thanks to his performance as a notorious historical figure in a new World War 2 drama that just premiered at TIFF, and has now made its Rotten Tomatoes debut.

Russell Crowe’s Nuremberg Debuts With A Disappointing Rotten Tomatoes Score

Talk of Crowe garnering a long-awaited fourth Oscar nomination may cool now that the World War 2 movie generating all the buzz has debuted to an underwhelming Rotten Tomatoes score.

Nuremberg just premiered at TIFF, and Rotten Tomatoes has aggregated the first reviews, tallying an early score of just 50% for the prestige drama set during the famed Nuremberg trials after World War 2. Just 12 reviews have been compiled as of publication, so the film’s score could still rebound.

Our Take On Nuremberg’s Poor Rotten Tomatoes Debut

A film generating Oscar buzz for one of its stars could be expected to debut with a high Rotten Tomatoes score, but Nuremberg, whose first trailer premiered in late July, underwhelmed many of the critics who got an early peek at TIFF, leading to its disappointing fresh rating.

Crowe himself is receiving acclaim for his performance as infamous Nazi war criminal Hermann Göring, with critics calling the role a return to the larger-than-life form the star displayed during his Gladiator days. His co-stars Rami Malek and Michael Shannon are also getting high marks.

The acting may be strong in Nuremberg, but its story is not up to the same level, at least according to the first handful of reviews. Critics say the story lacks surprises, and suffers from an absence of depth in its exploration of the nature of evil.

Critics give Nuremberg kudos on the technical end of things, but some call the movie oversimplified and badly paced, while others downgrade it for feeling stale and unconvincing.

Despite all the negative early reviews, Crowe could still have a sH๏τ at an Oscar nomination for Nuremberg. It’s been quite a while since the star played a role as beefy as a Nazi war criminal, and critics seem to be high on his performance, even if they’re not so enthusiastic about the film overall.