Street Fighter Reviews Are In: Critics Split on Capcom's Reboot

Critics are divided on Street Fighter. The Capcom adaptation was at 38% on Rotten Tomatoes on Thursday, according to MovieWeb, after debuting at 34%. Forbes says the score was based on 32 reviews, while MovieWeb counts 34, and both note it will move as more reviews post. The film opens in theaters on Friday, October 16.

Directed by Kitao Sakurai, the PG-13 film stars Andrew Koji as Ryu, Noah Centineo as Ken Masters and Callina Liang as Chun-Li. Cody Rhodes plays Guile, Jason Momoa plays Blanka and David Dastmalchian plays M. Bison. Forbes also lists Roman Reigns as Akuma, 50 Cent as Balrog, Olivier Richters as Zangief and Eric André as Don Sauvage.

The reviews are sharply mixed. Variety's Siddhant Adlakha wrote that “after a strong start, Kitao Sakurai's Capcom adaptation nosedives into nonsense,” according to Forbes. The Hollywood Reporter's Frank Scheck wrote that the film “tries to thread the needle between fan service and welcoming the uninitiated.”

Some critics were kinder. Consequence's Liz Shannon Miller wrote that “at its best, Street Fighter operates like a deranged live-action cartoon, which is exactly what I wanted from it,” and MovieWeb says IndieWire called it a “messy, maximalist reboot destined for cult status.” MovieWeb reports that critics widely praised Rhodes as Guile, Momoa as Blanka and the hand-drawn flashback animation by Titmouse.

On Metacritic the film sits in the mid-40s, with World of Reel reporting 45 and MovieWeb 46. MovieWeb lists domestic opening projections of $30 million to $40 million from Box Office Pro, $22 million to $32 million from Box Office Theory and $27 million to $34 million from Global Box Office. Unofficial reports put the budget between $82 million and $120 million, and Paramount has not confirmed a figure.