Jennifer Lawrencewas warned off starring in the 2016 sci-fi romancePassengers, by the singer Adele. Lawrence starred in the movie alongside Chris Pratt, and the film has recently found itself at the center of an unexpected resurgence on Prime Video, holding second place in the streamer’s movie chart. For a film that was critically panned at the time of its release,the sudden interest inPassengershas been another streaming surprise. One person who would probably be more surprised than most would be star Lawrence, who doesn’t exactly look back fondly on the movie.
Passengersis set onboard a transporter spaceship, bound for a distant colony planet with a cargo of passengers in hypersleep. When a malfunction causes one of the “passengers” (Pratt) to wake early, he finds himself with a choice of whether to grow old alone, or wake up another passenger. Eventually, he decides that he cannot live and die alone and makes the decision to wake fellow traveler, Aurora (Lawrence).
Passengers
Looking back onPassengers,in a 2022 interview withThe New York Times, Lawrence shared her candid thoughts on receiving negative comments about her movies. The Oscar-winner said of receiving bad reviews:
I was like, ‘Oh no, you guys are here because I’m here, and I’m here because you’re here. Wait, who decided that this was a good movie?’
Responding to the question about which movie made her feel like that, her reply was,“Passengers, I guess.”
This was coming at a time when Lawrence had just returned to Hollywood after a short hiatus, one that had clearly allowed her to take stock of her life and achievements in the industry. Following her Oscar success withSilver Linings Playbook, andthe huge phenomenon that wasThe Hunger Games, she had subsequently hit a lull. As one of the movies in that lull,Passengersis a film that she could have avoided adding to her resume, if she had listened to advice from an unexpected source.
Jennifer Lawrence Should Have Listened to Adele
WhilePassengersis by no means a complete disaster of a movie, Lawrence clearly would reconsider taking on her role if she had her time again. However, she could have avoided being in the movie altogether if only she had listened to the advice she was given by British singer Adele. In the same interview, Lawrence added:
“Adele told me not to do it! She was like, ‘I feel like space movies are the new vampire movies.’ I should have listened to her. Everything was like a rebound effect. I was reacting, rather than just acting. I felt like more of a celebrity than an actor, cut off from my creativity, my imagination.”
WhilePassengersdelivered minor success in theaters, grossing just over $303 million on its $150 million budget, the reviews from critics left a lot to be desired. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film gained a low30% Tomatometer score, although audiences were much more positive about the film, giving it a63% Popcornmeterscore.
If the reviews ofPassengersseemed harsh, then that was nothing compared to Lawrence’s final outing in another huge franchise - theX-Men.Lawrence returned to the world of Marvel in 2019 for the heavily criticizedDark Phoenix. While she citedPassengersas a movie that she probably should not have made, the rushed out final movie of Fox’s tenure of Marvel’s mutants was even worse – it received just a 20% approval rating from critics. Following that movie, Lawrence decided to take a break from the industry following her run of disappointing performances that mostly began withPassengers. However, after returning to Hollywood following her short break, Lawrence seems to have hit her stride again, starring in the Netflix hitDon’t Look Up, Darren Aronofsky’sMother, and the raunchy comedyNo Hard Feelings.
Audiences Still Question the Ending of Jennifer Lawrence’s Passengers
Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt starred in the 2016 sci-fi movie Passengers, which fans remember for its controversial ending surrounding consent.
