M3GAN beats Avengers: Endgame, Top Gun: Maverick and other blockbusters in ratings on Day 1

M3GAN, the science-fiction horror flick by Gerard Johnstone, has surpassed the ratings of Avengers: Endgame (2019), Avatar: The Way of Water (2022), Top Gun: Maverick (2022), Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) and The Dark Knight (2008), according to Rotten Tomatoes.

The film held its world premiere in Los Angeles on December 7, 2022, and was released in the rest of the United States and worldwide on Friday, January 6, 2023. At the box office, the film has currently grossed over $3 million against a budget of $12 million. It garnered predominantly positive reviews from critics who praised the campy humor and horror blend as well as the film's cast.

The box office collection of M3GAN is only expected to grow or (at worse, fall) as it hits more theaters and audiences get to share their thoughts and opinions.

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M3GAN surpasses Endgame on Rotten Tomatoes, but what do critics and audiences have to say about the film?

M3GAN and Cady, played by Amie Donald/Jenna Davis and Violet McGraw, respectively (Image via Blumhouse Productions/Universal Pictures)

According to Rotten Tomatoes, M3GAN, at the time of this article's writing, has a critical score of 98 percent. It has surpassed Avengers: Endgame, which has a critical score of 94 percent, Avatar: The Way of Water, with a 77 percent critic score, Spider-Man: No Way Home, with a 93 percent critic score, Top Gun: Maverick and 2008's The Dark Knight, which have a critical score of 96 and 94 percent, respectively.

Time will only tell if the critical score for the film stays at 98 percent or falls and whether the audience score will be great or disappointing. So far, the film has only been getting more and more positive reviews.

Critics of M3GAN from different news outlets shared their reviews of the film. David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter and Meagan Navarro of Bloody Disgusting praised the physical and vocal performances of Amie Donald and Jenna Davis, portraying the titular character.

USA Today's Brian Truit rated the film three out of four stars and commended the visual effects and satirical elements.

Owen Gleiberman of Variety had this to say about M3GAN,

"A diverting genre film, one that possesses a healthy sense of its own absurdity." The film satirizes all of us — or, at least, those who now think of the mirror offered by artificial intelligence as an actual form of interaction.

A.A Dowd of The Austin Chronicle had a more negative review of the film. He made a note of the presence of "some real ideas trickling through the film's B-Movie code" and wrote:

"If the film is rarely very frightening (the kill scenes [...] lack both suspense and true holy-shit grisliness), it often works like gangbusters as an over-the-top horror comedy whose fun rests on a toy box full of priceless leering-doll reaction shots and cutting remarks."

Audiences who have seen the film have praised it for its campy-horror vibe and had positive things to say about Gerard Johnstone's film.

However, some fans and audiences found the movie disappointing after watching it. They criticized the film for not being very innovative, adding nothing new to the horror genre, and being very boring.

The film had undergone reshoots during post-production to tone down the violence and gore and secure a PG-13 rating from the American Motion Picture Association.

According to The New York Times, a sequel to M3GAN is reportedly being discussed by Universal Pictures thanks to the film's massive popularity and success with a majority of audiences and critics.

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M3GAN synopsis and cast details

M3GAN follows Gemma, a roboticist at a toy-making company who creates the titular character, a lifelike doll, and an artificially intelligent being. Gemma intends for the doll to be a great companion to a child and a great ally to a parent.

The doll then becomes attached to Gemma's orphaned niece Cady, who lost her parents in a car crash. Things turn horrific and worse when M3GAN gains more of a conscience and self-awareness and soon begins violently targeting anyone who tries to come between her, Cady, and Gemma.

The film's cast includes Allison Williams as Gemma, Violet McGraw as Gemma's niece Cady, Ronny Chieng as David, Brian Jordan Alvarez as Cole, and finally, Amie Donald and Jenna Davis as the titular character, with Donald providing the motion capture and Davis lending her voice.