Spinal Tap II: The End Continues has won over critics ahead of its theatrical premiere on September 12. The new comedy movie is a legacy sequel that comes 41 years after the original This is Spinal Tap. The 1984 rock mockumentary, which grossed $5.8 million against its reported $2 million budget, has become a notable cult classic over the years.

The upcoming Spinal Tap II: The End Continues features original director Rob Reiner returning to the helm in addition to reprising his role as documentarian Marty Di Bergi. His original co-stars Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer have also returned as Spinal Tap guitarist Nigel Tufnel, singer David St. Hubbins, and bᴀssist Derek Smalls respectively.

Rotten Tomatoes has now aggregated enough reviews to give Spinal Tap II: The End Continues an official score on the Tomatometer. While the score could fluctuate as more reviews are added, at the time of writing, 18 critics have weighed in to give the movie a solidly Fresh score of 72%.

What This Means For Spinal Tap II: The End Continues

This Fresh score provides good news for multiple members of the Spinal Tap II cast and crew. In fact, it marks the first Fresh score for a Rob Reiner-directed narrative feature since 1995’s The American President (91%), as he has had a string of 11 splats for movies including The Bucket List (40%), Flipped (54%), and Alex & Emma (11%).

Additionally, it is the first Fresh score for Christopher Guest as either an actor or director since 2005’s Mrs. Henderson Presents (68%). The only Fresh movie he has been involved in during that entire span, prior to Spinal Tap II: The End Continues, is the 2024 comedy Sunlight (90%), which he executive produced.

However, this 72% score still pales in comparison to the original This is Spinal Tap. The 1984 movie has a near perfect 98% score that is officially Certified Fresh on the Tomatometer because it comes from 174 different critics’ reviews. Additionally, it has a similarly strong audience score with 92% from more than 100,000 verified ratings on the Popcornmeter.

Our Take On The Spinal Tap II: The End Continues Rotten Tomatoes Score

2025’s Spinal Tap II: The End Continues has big shoes to fill. While this Fresh score is a good sign that it’s a solid comedy, general audiences will need to have the same reaction or better in order for it to live up to the original in any way, which could be key to it being a box office success.

While Spinal Tap II: The End Continues‘ reported $22.6 million budget is small for a 2025 movie, it still needs to prove that it can capture the audience that made the original a cult hit in order to justify costing more than 10 times the price tag of the original movie (and more than three times its inflation-adjusted $6.3 million budget).