Jordan Peele’s & Marlon Wayans’ Latest Horror Hits a Major Flop with Critics and Viewers

Jordan Peele’s latest project, Him, has hit theaters with mixed results, leaving many critics and viewers disappointed.

Directed by Justin Tipping and co-written by Tipping, Skip Bronkie, and Zack Akers, the 2025 supernatural psychological sports horror film stars Marlon Wayans, Tyriq Withers, Julia Fox, and Tim Heidecker, it was produced by Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions.

The story follows a young, promising football player, played by Withers, as he trains under an aging quarterback, played by Wayans, at an isolated compound.

The movie premiered in Mexico on September 18, and released in the United States on September 19, through Universal Pictures. While the film’s visuals and the performances of Withers and Wayans were praised, critics largely found the story confusing and unsatisfying.

On Rotten Tomatoes, only 28% of 111 critic reviews were positive, with the site noting that “Him has style to spare but botches its promising concept with rookie execution.” Audiences were slightly more forgiving but still gave it a mediocre 59% rating, while CinemaScore reports a debut grade of C-.

Critics pointed out that while the film starts as a gripping psychological thriller, it loses focus in the final act, which relies heavily on metaphors that fail to land. Many felt the story struggled to balance tension, thought-provoking ideas, and visual spectacle, ultimately leaving viewers confused and disconnected from the characters’ emotions.

Marlon Wayans’ performance stood out as a highlight, injecting energy and charisma into the film. Tyriq Withers also received praise for his portrayal of the young athlete. However, many felt that the unique concept of mixing football with a supernatural, deal-with-the-Devil horror story was overshadowed by a generic, gory ending that failed to deliver the promise of the premise.

Some reviewers criticized the script for abandoning its sports-horror originality, turning the finale into a chaotic, hard-hitting sequence that didn’t allow the audience to reflect or interpret the story. One review bluntly described it as a film that throws a messy spiral right at the audience’s face and expects them to catch it before it destroys the bridge of their nose.

Him starts as a gripping psychological thriller but loses its footing in a metaphor-heavy final act. Stunning visuals and Tyriq Withers’ performance aren’t enough to make up for a confusing & unsatisfying conclusion.

Jason Escamilla

While the premise is interesting, the story often feels confusing, and the emotions don’t always connect. The film wants to be tense, thought-provoking, and visually striking all at once, but it rarely achieves all three.

Abhishek Srivastava

Marlon Wayans’ dynamic performance is easily the highlight of Him, which otherwise never satisfactorily pays off its fun idea of mixing the world of football with a deal with the Devil horror story.

Eric Goldman

Some of what made the script interesting is still here, but it’s all largely undermined by the choice to leave sports-horror specialness behind for a typically gory finale that goes hard but is mostly generic.

Joseph Neff

[HIM] leaves no room for introspection, no room for interpretation, it simply throws a messy spiral right at the audience’s face and expects them to catch it before it destroys the bridge of their nose.

J Hurtado

Overall, Him is recognized for its striking visuals and strong performances but ultimately criticized for a muddled story and an unsatisfying conclusion.

No guts, no glory. #HimMovie is only in theaters September 19. pic.twitter.com/L7WAZ1DHAR

— HIM (@himmovie) August 6, 2025

Him had an interesting idea and strong actors, but it seems like the film couldn’t decide whether it wanted to be a sports thriller, a psychological story, or a gory horror movie. It ends up trying to do too much and delivering too little.

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