Rotten Tomatoes is a controversial yet useful tool in today's cinematic landscape. The aggregate website has come under fire for the way it scores films, and yet, it's become the metric for what is and isn't an acclaimed release. It's commonplace, in 2024, for a trailer to include a Rotten Tomatoes score as an indicator of quality.
Rotten Tomatoes is set the make a change, however. Rotten Tomatoes noted that it will be adding a brand new Audience Rating metric dubbed "Verified Hot." The rating is intended to provide a more accurate assessment of regular moviegoers, given the discrepancy between them and critics.
Rotten Tomatoes will verify ticket purchases
The "Verified Hot" designation will be given to films that have an audience score above 90% among moviegoers. The catch, though, is that moviegoers will only be able to contribute to the new audience rating if they can prove that they actually bought a theater ticket.
The caveat is meant to ensure that moviegoers who are submitting reviews based on the theatrical experience actually had a theatrical experience. In the past, there was nothing to confirm whether a review was fabricated, or if the moviegoer in question had even seen the film.
Rotten Tomatoes is partnered with Fandango, so any ticket purchases made through the Fandango will immediately be uploaded and verified by Rotten Tomatoes, thus allowing a vote to be cast in the support of the "Verified Hot" rating.
Over 200 films have been given the 'Verified Hot' label
Rotten Tomatoes isn't wasting any time with this new rating, either. The website has already gone back and retroactively added the label to over 200 films that were released over the last five years.
Some of the most notable titles include Bad Boys: Ride or Die and Twisters, while earlier titles that have been given the "Verified Hot" label include Top Gun: Maverick and Oppenheimer.
The notion of introducing checks and balances will undoubtedly help to bolster the reliability of Rotten Tomatoes scores, especially when it comes to films that are controversial and/or sparking debate online. Do you think Rotten Tomatoes' changes will provide more accurate scores?