No one knows for sure how many memoirs that Jada Pinkett Smith will sell during her latest publicity blitz that has maybe-further humiliated Will Smith (although he’s possibly into it?). However, there has perhaps been an unintended beneficiary in this mess, and that would be Will’s 2019 action movie, Gemini Man. Remember that one? Well, a lot of people are suddenly going there on Netflix.
Gemini Man faded into the box-office background, partially due to Joker‘s dominance throughout that moviegoing season. The Smith film’s budget stood at $138 million, and generally, a movie needs to bring in double that amount (to account for advertising and print costs) to profit. On opening weekend, Gemini Man brought in $20 million and settled around $48 million in the U.S. Granted, it did fare better overseas and eventually saw $173 million worldwide, yet it came up shy of actually making money, which was a bummer of a development. Early reactions to the film were pretty positive, and the project was directed by Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon helmer Ang Lee.
Yet some cinematic justice is coming for Gemini Man, which is now sitting at the #3 spot on the Netflix global films list. Is the memoir effect or simply the case of a film randomly rocketing to the top like a certain Seth Rogen/Charlize Theron team up, Long Shot, or Michael Fassbender as woebegotten detective Harry Hole in The Snowman? No one can say for sure, but here’s the Gemini Man synopsis if you want a refresher:
Henry Brogan is an elite 51-year-old assassin who’s ready to call it quits after completing his 72nd job. His plans get turned upside down when he becomes the target of a mysterious operative who can seemingly predict his every move. To his horror, Brogan soon learns that the man who’s trying to kill him is a younger, faster, cloned version of himself.
Obviously, Gemini Man is currently streaming on Netflix