White Birdhas earned a solid Rotten Tomatoes score. The movie is both a sequel and prequel to 2017’sWonder, which starred Julia Roberts and was adapted from the R. J. Palacio novel of the same name and grossed $315 million against its $20 million budget. The new movie follows expelled bully Julian (Bryce Gheisar, reprising his role) learning about his grandmother’s (Helen Mirren) youth in France during World War II. TheWhite Birdcastalso includes Ariella Glaser, Orlando Schwerdt, Gillian Anderson, Patsy Ferran, Ishai Golan, Jem Matthews, Stuart McQuarrie, Olivia Ross, and Jo Stone-Fewings.
Rotten Tomatoeshas now calculated an official Tomatometer score forWhite Bird. Compiled from 37 different critics' reviews,the movie has earned a solidly Fresh score of 73%. This is just 13 points shy of the original movie, which is Certified Fresh at 86%. This score could fluctuate as more reviews are added, but at the time of writing it is the best score for a directorial effort by Marc Forster since 2006’sStranger Than Fiction.
What This Rotten Tomatoes Score Means For White Bird
The Movie Could Become A Word-Of-Mouth Success
This Rotten Tomatoes scorecould indicate that there is still power in theWonderfranchiseeven though it has been dormant for seven years. While there is no audience score on the platform yet, other audience metrics are showing that the movie is getting an overwhelmingly positive response. In fact,Deadlinereports that it is receiving a perfect CinemaScore of A+, indicating that its audience score could potentially be even higher than the Tomatometer score earned by critics’White Birdreviews.
This positive reaction to the under-the-radar title could buoy it into becoming a sleeper hit…
It remains to be seen if this audience response turns the movie into a word-of-mouth hit. WhileWonderwas a box office smash, becoming the 32nd highest-grossing release of 2017 worldwide, theWhite Birdreleasehas not been so lucky, asit has been projected to debut to less than $2 million during its opening weekendat the domestic box office. However, this positive reaction to the under-the-radar title could buoy it into becoming a sleeper hit as it continues to run in theaters.
How White Bird’s Rotten Tomatoes Score Compares To Its Cast And Crew’s Recent Work
The Movie Is A Bright Spot Among Several Rotten Streaks
TheWhite BirdRotten Tomatoes score hashelped to buoy the critical reception of many of the main cast and crewthat worked on the movie. This is not necessarily the case for the stars playing the younger characters, who have shorter resumes and thus haven’t had time to accrue any sort of streak. However, in addition to Marc Forster, who directed seven movies with lesser scores betweenStranger Than Fictionand the new release, this includes multiple figures both in front of and behind the camera. See Forster’s recent streak of movies below:
73%
70%
72%
30%
67%
29%
64%
65%
Stranger Than Fiction(2006)
White Birdhas alsoearned star Helen Mirren one of her best scores of the decade so far. The only movie she has worked on that has achieved a higher score since 2020’sThe Duke(97%) was the smash critical and commercial hitBarbie(88%), which she narrated and in which she does not appear onscreen at any point. Of the movies in which she appeared, all four -F9: The Fast Saga(59%),Shazam! Fury of the Gods(49%),Fast X(56%), andGolda(53%) - received Rotten scores.
White Birdhas broken a similar streak for screenwriter Mark Bomback, who has not earned a Fresh score as either a screenwriter or an executive producer since 2018’sOutlaw King(68%), having worked on projects includingThe United States vs. Billie Holiday(55%), Netflix’sDamsel(56%), andThe Art of Racing in the Rain(45%).Gillian Anderson is the only major talent for whom this score hasn’t been a huge reversal, as she recently worked on 2021’sRobin Robin(100%) and 2024’sScoop(76%).
Our Take On the White Bird Rotten Tomatoes Score
The Movie Could Start An Expanded Wonder Franchise
IfWhite Bird’s critical success is compounded with potential commercial success, it could usher in a new era for the franchise. While it is the first theatrical installment sinceWonderdebuted in 2017,more entries in the franchise could arrive before long, especially if their budgets can be kept low enough to make them low financial risks. While original stories could be explored in spinoffs, Palacio also has more source material from which stories can be derived, including 2017’sWe’re All Wonders.
AlthoughWhite Birdis a prequel for the majority of its runtime,the sequel elements require some knowledge of the previous installment, so read more about theWonderendinghere.
Gheisar’sJulian is the only returning character from the original movie, but the originalWondercastincluded major stars such as Owen Wilson and Jacob Tremblay alongside Julia Roberts.
Screen Rant’s originalWonderreviewis also available for further reading, serving asa refresher ahead of the well-received new installment.
White Bird
Cast
White Bird follows Julian’s transformative journey after his expulsion from Beecher Prep, as his grandmother recounts her courageous story of survival in Nazi-occupied France, where she was sheltered by a classmate amidst growing dangers.
