Apple TV's Action Thriller With John Cena Debuts To Disappointing Rotten Tomatoes Score

Published Oct 8, 2026, 5:11 PM EDT Adam Bentz is a senior news writer at ScreenRant, where he has authored nearly 5,000 articles, including features and lists. He studied creative writing and English with a concentration in screenwriting at Southern New Hampshire University and interned as a writer/journalist for The Borgen Project, an influential organization that fights global poverty. However, one of his proudest achievements is editing a Leonardo DiCaprio freakout compilation that has over 150K views on YouTube. Adam also fancies himself an amateur film critic on his personal website. Sign in to your ScreenRant account This article covers a developing story. Continue to check back with us as we will be adding more information as it becomes available.John Cena's new Apple TV action thriller is off to a bad start. The former WWE star has transformed himself into one of the most prolific action heroes, receiving praise for his roles in Bumblebee (2018), The Suicide Squad (2021), the Fast & Furious franchise (2021–2023), and Peacemaker (2022–2025). However, he also frequently stars in projects that are panned by critics, with recent examples including Little Brother (35%), Jackpot! (33%), Ricky Stanicky (45%), Freelance (10%), Vacation Friends 2 (24%), Hidden Strike (20%), and more. Now, ahead of its release on October 9, Matchbox The Movie has debuted with a 24% score from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie has 17 reviews at the time of writing, so its score could change as more are published. Its audience score should also start to take shape once the film releases on Friday. More to come... Release Date October 9, 2026 Runtime 127 minutes Director Sam Hargrave Writers David Coggeshall Producers Dana Goldberg, David Ellison, Don Granger, Jules Daly, Robbie Brenner, Ynon Kreiz