Denzel Washington usually has critics and/or audiences on his side when he stars in a new movie, but he made one film back in 2017 that both critics and audiences agreed was “rotten.” Washington is both one of the most bankable A-list stars in Hollywood and one of the most highly acclaimed actors working today. Throughout his career, Washington’s versatile performances have earned him two Academy Awards, two Golden Globes, a Tony Award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, and the AFI Life Achievement Award. Suffice to say, he’s a pretty well-regarded actor.

When Washington makes a critic-friendly movie, like The Tragedy of Macbeth, it tends to get rave reviews from critics and a lukewarm reception from audiences. When he makes a crowd-pleasing action thriller, like Man on Fire, it’ll be panned by critics but get a much more enthusiastic response from audiences. But it’s rare that a movie starring Washington has both critics and audiences turning against it. Unfortunately, that’s what happened with a little movie called Roman J. Israel, Esq. in 2017.

Roman J. Israel, Esq. Is Denzel Washington’s Only Movie In The Last Decade With Rotten Critics & Audience Scores

Some others were “rotten” with critics, but not with audiences

In 2017, Washington teamed up with Nightcrawler director Dan Gilroy to make a legal drama called Roman J. Israel, Esq. Washington plays the title character, an idealistic civil rights advocate and defense attorney who finds himself in the midst of a personal crisis. Not only did the movie bomb at the box office; it was also met with mixed reviews from critics. With a Rotten Tomatoes critics’ score of 55% and an audience score of 57%, Roman J. Israel, Esq. is the only Washington movie of the past decade deemed “rotten” by both critics and audiences.

Roman J. Israel, Esq. isn’t the only Washington movie of the past 10 years that got a “rotten” score from critics, but it is the only one to get a “rotten” score from both critics and audiences. 2018’s The Equalizer 2 got a 52% rating from critics, but a slightly warmer rating of 61% (1% over the “fresh” threshold) from audiences. 2021’s The Little Things got a critics’ score of 45%, but an audience score of 67%. Washington’s 2021 directorial effort A Journal for Jordan got a lackluster critics’ score of 39%, but earned a near-perfect audience score of 95%.

Why Did Critics & Audiences Dislike Roman J. Israel Esq.?

It was a problem with pacing, not with Washington’s performance

According to the critical consensus, the biggest problems with Roman J. Israel, Esq. are its plotting and its pacing. The movie wants to be a morality play tackling an unjust justice system, but it doesn’t quite manage to pull off that ambitious approach. It sets up a few intriguing story threads, but the way it handles the ensuing mysteries is too heavy-handed to be truly compelling. It works as a character study purely because Washington brings the character to life with more depth than he has on the page.

Interestingly, out of all the negative reviews for Roman J. Israel, Esq., no one criticized Washington’s performance. The film itself wasn’t well-received, but Washington’s performance was – he even scored an Oscar nod. Even in Roman J. Israel, Esq.’s harshest reviews, Washington’s performance was praised. It goes back to the old adage that actors can’t control how a movie will turn out; they can only control how good their performance is. Washington often lives up to this tenet – whether a movie he’s starring in is a masterpiece or a misfire, he always turns in an impressive performance.

Denzel Washington Has Very Few Movies Rotten With Both Critics & Audiences

Washington’s movies tend to be well-received

It’s rare that one of Washington’s movies will receive a “rotten” score from both critics and audiences. Out of the dozens of feature films he’s starred in, only seven (including Roman J. Israel, Esq.) have been met with a “rotten” score from both critics and audiences. Audiences tend to like Washington’s movies more than the latter; some of Washington’s worst-reviewed movies have an impressive audience score. John Q has 26% from critics and 78% from audiences. Man on Fire has 39% from critics and 89% from audiences. The Bone Collector has 29% from critics and 63% from audiences.

It often seems to be the case that critics are disappointed when Washington’s talents are underutilized by a less-than-great movie, whereas Washington’s fans are just happy to see him deliver a solid performance. But even on that scale, Roman J. Israel, Esq. misses the mark. Denzel Washington is great in it as always, but according to the Rotten Tomatoes audience score, that’s not enough to make up for the movie’s missteps.