The Decomposition of Rotten Tomatoes

The latest in pop-culture news, recaps, and reviews, plus close reads, profiles, interviews, and more from Vulture.com. [Brand Logo]( screen time [The Decomposition of Rotten Tomatoes]( The most overrated metric in movies is erratic, reductive, and easily hacked — and yet has Hollywood in its grip. Photo: Bobby Doherty/ In 2018, a movie-publicity company called [Bunker 15]( took on a new project: [Ophelia](, a feminist retelling of [Hamlet]( starring [Daisy Ridley](. Critics who had seen early screenings had published 13 reviews, seven of them negative, which translated to a score of 46 percent on the all-important aggregation site [Rotten Tomatoes]( — a disappointing outcome for a film with prestige aspirations and no domestic distributor. But just because the “[Tomatometer](” says a title is “rotten” — scoring below 60 percent — it doesn’t need to stay that way. Bunker 15 went to work. While most film-PR companies aim to get the attention of critics from top publications, Bunker 15 takes a more bottom-up approach, recruiting obscure, often self-published critics who are nevertheless part of the pool tracked by Rotten Tomatoes. In another break from standard practice, several critics say, Bunker 15 pays them $50 or more for each review. (These payments are not typically disclosed, and Rotten Tomatoes says it prohibits “reviewing based on a financial incentive.”) [read more]( The Latest TV Recaps • The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City: [Tub-thumping]( • The Afterparty: [Saving Grace]( • Reservation Dogs: [Hoka, Bae!]( [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( Stories We Think You’ll Like [Poll Shows 72 Percent of Americans Side With Writers in Hollywood Strike Plus David Fincher “sees both sides” and Adam Driver … does not.]( [The Rolling Stones Are Taking Care of the Broken Glass With help from Sydney Sweeney in the video for “Angry.”]( By Alejandra Gularte [A Motherquake Is Hitting Broadway! Paula Vogel’s Mother Play, starring Jessica Lange and directed by Tina Landau.]( By Jason P. Frank [The Ultimatum’s Ryann McCracken Surprised Even Her Family By Her Choice “I love James, and I really like Trey, but if it would make me truly happy to leave here by myself, I would be okay with doing that.”]( [Jonathan Majors’s Domestic-Abuse Trial Delayed Once Again The new trial date will be set on September 15.]( By Victoria Bekiempis [Gary Busey Involved in Alleged Hit-and-Run, Again The Beach Boys playlist stayed on.]( By Zoe Guy [The Best Comedy Books of 2023 (So Far) These books give us a record of our times via the moment’s best comic minds.]( By Brian Boone [Charlie Watts’s Final Gift Was a Rolling Stones Succession Plan The band revealed Watts personally recommended and gave his “blessing” to new drummer Steve Jordan.]( By Devon Ivie [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( [Today’s Crossword]( 6-Down, Three Letters: Betty and Megan’s ex-husband. Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos: Getty A newsletter of TV and movie recommendations. [Sign up]( to get it every week. [Get the Newsletter]( [logo]( [facebook logo]( [instagram logo]( [twitter logo]( [unsubscribe]( | [privacy notice]( | [update preferences]( This email was sent to {EMAIL}. Was this email forwarded to you? [Sign up now]( to get this newsletter in your inbox. [View this email in your browser.]( You received this email because you have a subscription to New York. Reach the right online audience with us For advertising information on email newsletters, please contact AdOps@nymag.com Vox Media, LLC 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, 12th Floor Washington, DC 20036 Copyright © 2023, All rights reserved