The relationship between rotten tomatoes and IMDB critical reviews and success or failure of films at the box office

Abstract

This brief research delves into the authenticity of Hollywood’s claim that film-rating platforms, namely Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb, are negatively influencing films’ box office earnings. While such a claim might satisfy studios and Hollywood fans, one must authenticate its very basis. Is it verifiably true that a select few film-rating platforms are acting as a hindrance to an industry which provides entertainment for billions of people? This research examines the general feeling of ratings of 5 films and compares it to their respective financial performances, hence exploring the possibility of a relationship between the two. Although empirical evidence of a study of such a small scale requires further research to be carried out prior to the findings to be definitive, popular films such as ‘Baywatch’ and ’47 Ronin’ will be studied in order to explore the hypothetical relationship on the largest scale possible. The results seem to mirror those of Bergquist (2017) who concluded that there exists no relationship between Rotten Tomatoes reviews and the performance of films. This study includes various instances in which Hollywood’s claims are directly contradicting and, while these might be argued to be exceptions, no exceptions should exist on such a large scale if the claims were true. It was, instead, concluded that in order to account for the decline in originality, film studios are hiding behind the guise of film rating platforms negatively influencing potential film-goers.