Jeremy Renner's Forgotten Fantasy Action Movie Enters Streaming Charts At The Perfect Time

Published Oct 21, 2026, 11:00 AM EDT Nick Bythrow is a Lead Writer for ScreenRant. He has been writing for the site since September 2022. He graduated from Hampshire College in 2022, where he triple majored in Journalism, Communications, and Media Studies. When he's not writing about TV and movies for ScreenRant and his blog, Frayed Branches, Nick is penning speculative fiction and poetry on Amazon. He lives outside Boston, Massachusetts. Jeremy Renner's forgotten fantasy action movie has entered streaming charts at the perfect time for its lead actor. Renner's best movies hail from the action genre, with many of his most noteworthy films seeing him in an action-focused capacity. This includes his appearances as Hawkeye in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, alongside films like the spy thriller The Bourne Legacy and the comedy film Tag. Renner's starring roles often see him at the center of high-intensity situations even when they're not action-based either, including the recent Knives Out movie Wake Up, Dead Man. One of Renner's most noteworthy movies from the height of his action career was Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters. The movie starred Renner as Hansel and Gemma Arterton as Gretel. The siblings are reimagined as witch hunters after the events of the original fairy tale, where a witch lured them into a house of candy trying to eat them. Its premise sees the duo as bounty hunters who kill witches, soon faced with a mission that has ties to their experience in unexpected ways. Renner's Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters Is Taking The Fight To Paramount+ Now, Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters has officially become a major streaming success on Paramount+, 13 years after the movie was originally released. According to data from October 21, 2026, the movie is sitting at Number 8 in the United States on Paramount+. This makes the film a national success ahead of other top-performing films, including the heist thriller Tuner and 2026's Scary Movie. It helps that the movie, despite having an action focus, includes elements of horror, making it a strong addition to one's Halloween watchlist. The movie's success is rather redemptive for the film, which wasn't well-received upon release. Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters reviews were mostly negative, scoring a 17% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 143 reviews. However, it didn't stop the fantasy action thriller from becoming a box office success, earning $226.3 million worldwide against a $50 million budget. The movie's reimagining of Hansel and Gretel was also meant to be the start of a franchise, but a sequel movie was never produced. The Action Horror Movie's Resurgence Comes At The Perfect Time The renewed interest in Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters comes at just the right time, though, especially for Renner. The actor's time on Paramount+ over the next few months is only just beginning, as his crime drama, Mayor of Kingstown season 5, was recently announced for an early 2027 return. The final season of the show will begin airing weekly on January 15, 2027, with Renner continuing his starring role in the series. As for Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters, the movie is continuing to prove itself a strong addition to Paramount+'s lineup in the US, with interest in the action horror movie coinciding with the Halloween season. It helps that the movie precedes Renner's next big release, adding to how much of a success story he's been on streaming across both movies and TV. While the film didn't do well originally, its streaming redemption shows people are still interested in its dark, action-focused take on the fairy tale. Release Date January 25, 2013 Runtime 98minutes Director Tommy Wirkola Writers dante harper, Tommy Wirkola