A new supernaturalhorrormovie featuring one of the stars of the stars of the smash hit Netflix seriesStranger Thingshas earned a solid Rotten Tomatoes score.Stranger Things, which kicked off in 2016, is a sci-fi fantasy series set in the 1980s that draws inspiration from pop culture of the era, includingDungeons & Dragonsand horror movies.
Because of the show’s connections to the genre, many members of theStranger Thingscasthave appeared in horror movies since the show began. This includes Finn Wolfhard (ItandIt: Chapter Two), Sadie Sink (Fear Street Part Two: 1978), Joe Keery (Spree), Charlie Heaton (The New Mutants), andone of their co-stars who has a new movie in theaters.
Witchboard Has Won Over Critics
2025’sWitchboardhas debuted on Rotten Tomatoes with a Fresh score. The supernatural horror movie, which isa remake of the 1986 cult classic of the same name, was directed by Chuck Russell, who previously directed the 1988 remake ofThe Blob(which is widely considered to be one of the rarehorror remakes that are better than the original).
Witchboardstars Madison Iseman as Emily, a recovering drug addict who falls under the thrall of a cursed spirit board. The ensemble cast also includes Aaron Dominguez, Melanie Jarnson, David La Haye, and Jamie Campbell Bower, the latter of whom isbest known for portraying the monstrous Vecna inStranger Thingsseason 4.
Chuck Russell, who is also known for directing the thirdNightmare on Elm Streetmovie, 1987’sDream Warriors, co-wroteWitchboardwith Greg McKay based on the original screenplay by Kevin Tenney. The moviedebuted in domestic theaters on August 15.
Rotten Tomatoeshas now aggregated enough reviews to giveWitchboardan official score on the Tomatometer. Although this score could fluctuate as more reviews are added, at the time of writing, it hasa Fresh 64% score that has been tabulated from 25 different critics' reviews.
What This Means For Witchboard
While a 64% score is just over the 60% threshold past which a movie can be considered Fresh, theWitchboardremake now hasthe best Rotten Tomatoes score of the entire franchise. The original movie only earned a 50% score, while neither of its two sequels (1993’sThe Devil’s Doorwayand 1995’sThe Possession) got enough reviews to earn scores.
While the Rotten Tomatoes audience score of thehorrorremake has yet to be established, it also has a chance to break a record for theWitchboardfranchise. The first three movies earned 40%, 24%, and 12% on the Popcornmeter respectively, so if audiences follow critics' lead, the 2025 installment could break two records at once.
