Dwayne Johnson has come a long way from the days when his biggest selling point was simply being an absolutely enormous man who could beat the hell out of people. Early in his acting career, The Rock built his movie persona around hulking action roles in films like Walking Tall, Doom, and Faster, usually playing some variation of the intimidating guy you absolutely did not want to make angry.
These days, Johnson is just as likely to be voicing a talking animal, playing a lovable dad, or starring in a giant family-friendly adventure. From Moana to Jumanji and Red One, his movies have increasingly leaned into comedy, spectacle, and roles that let him be the world’s most famous giant goofball.
But there’s one movie from Johnson’s career that sits somewhere in the middle. It has the massive action-star version of The Rock, but with some of the lighter, more crowd-pleasing energy that would become a bigger part of his career. And now, years after its theatrical run, that overlooked box-office juggernaut is getting a second life on streaming.
That movie is Hercules, Johnson’s 2014 action movie that cast him as the legendary demigod with a giant axe, a bigger beard, and a whole lot of people to punch. According to FlixPatrol, Hercules is currently No. 5 among movies on Netflix worldwide.
Hercules was a genuine box-office success, turning its roughly $100 million production budget into a worldwide theatrical haul of more than $240 million. Critics, however, were considerably less impressed, with the movie earning just 58% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. So while it wasn’t exactly a critical darling, calling it a flop would be selling it short. Now, more than a decade later, the movie is getting another chance to prove just how much people like watching The Rock hit things.
What is Hercules about?
Hercules puts Johnson in the title role, but this version of the legendary hero is less concerned with mythology and more interested in getting paid to fight. After completing a series of brutal labors, Hercules has become a wandering mercenary who leads a group of equally dangerous warriors. When the king of Thrace hires them to train his army, Hercules finds himself pulled into a conflict that forces him to confront his own violent past — and the legend that has grown around him.
The movie also stars Ian McShane (John Wick, Deadwood) as Amphiaraus and Rufus Sewell (The Diplomat, A Knight’s Tale) as Autolycus, two members of Hercules’ crew. Rebecca Ferguson (Dune, Mission: Impossible) plays Ergenia, whose request for Hercules’ help brings the mercenary to Thrace.