While the original movie thrilled audiences and critics alike, M3GAN 2.0 has been deeply divisive on Rotten Tomatoes. The original, released in 2022, follows the story of an AI doll who becomes sentient and expresses a drive for violence. M3GAN was a resounding success, earning $182 million against a $12 million budget and quickly earning the right to a sequel.

The follow-up was released in theaters and sees M3GAN returning to life to combat another rogue AI. Allison Williams returns as Gemma, alongside Violet McGraw (Cady), Amie Donald and Jenna Davis (M3GAN), Ivanna Sakhno (AMELIA), and more. With a budget of around $20 million, it faces high expectations of success given the original’s box office performance.

Unfortunately, M3GAN 2.0 is struggling to entertain critics. It has already received a Rotten designation on Rotten Tomatoes, thanks to its 57% Tomatometer score. However, audiences have been more favorable, offering an 84% Popcornmeter score, but it leaves a deeply divided landscape for Blumhouse’s latest horror release.

What This Means For M3GAN 2.0’s Reception

How It Compares To The Original M3GAN

This is an underwhelming reception for M3GAN 2.0, especially compared to the original’s scores. Though it has earned a higher Popcornmeter, its Tomatometer score has dropped by 36 points at the time of writing, as it originally received a respectable 93% rating from critics. Check out the chart below, which showcases the drastic decline:

Even the favorable critics are not necessarily ecstatic about this movie, as many argue that the sequel fails to maintain the same eerie tone of the original. Instead of improving on M3GAN‘s overall story, director Gerard Johnstone raised the stakes, but the tonal shift didn’t engage critics in the process.

That decision has thrilled audiences, however, who argue that the switch from horror to action has been beneficial for the franchise. While critics have seen a significant decline from M3GAN‘s near-universal praise, audiences love MEGAN 2.0 even more than the original, granting an 84% Popcornmeter score to the new release, as opposed to 78%.

Our Take On M3GAN 2.0’s Reception

The Audience Score Is More Important

While still generally considered a horror movie due to its connection to the original, M3GAN 2.0 instead focuses on action as the тιтular android fights against a rogue AI. While still praising it as a hilarious break from reality, ScreenRant‘s Mary Kᴀssel described the movie as “a comforting but bland middle ground“, which echoes the concerns of other critics.

Straying too far from the original is always a risk when developing a sequel, and this movie may have taken that decision too far. The sequel is being heavily compared to Terminator 2: Judgment Day, but the execution isn’t as well-conceived. Nevertheless, it seems that M3GAN 2.0 is connecting more with audiences, which will impact its future with SOULM8TE coming out next year.

Source: Rotten Tomatoes