Jenna Ortega's New Sci-Fi Movie Officially Rebounds With Strong Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score

The Sun is finally giving Jenna Ortega’s new sci-fi movie a redemption arc.

After her breakout in the Scream franchise and Netflix’s Wednesday, Ortega has become one of the most in-demand young stars. Unfortunately, her track record hasn’t been pristine over the past two years, as her last few movies have been critical and commercial disappointments. Her latest sci-fi movie, Klara and the Sun, is the latest to fall victim to this trend, earning a poor 25% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes and a $701,059 domestic opening. Despite a rough week, the Taika Waititi-directed adaptation found a bright side.

Klara and the Sun is at least winning over moviegoers, with a solid 78% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. That’s a clear 53-point gap from the Tomatometer. In fact, the rating ranks among Ortega’s top 6 audience scores, just behind Scream VI (90%), The Fallout (83%), Scream (82%), and Studio 666 (80%), and ties with Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (78%). Meanwhile, the sci-fi movie continues a growing trend in Ortega’s career, with her last four films drawing a divide between critics and audiences.

Ahead of its release, reviews of Klara and the Sun were consistently negative, with most criticism pinning the issue on the adaptation straying too far from Kazuo Ishiguro’s bestselling 2021 novel of the same name. Those familiar with the novel noticed that the original story’s deep, melancholic tone gave way to a quirkier, more comedic aura typical of Waititi’s movies.

Winter Spring Summer or Fall (2024)

Critics weren’t impressed, noting a lack of subtle depth, underwritten supporting characters, and underdeveloped subplots. Ortega’s energetic, warm performance as the artificial friend was one of the few areas of praise.

Meanwhile, audiences vehemently disagreed with critics and enjoyed the movie’s humor and emotional weight surrounding friendship, artificial intelligence, and loss. Now that moviegoers are responding more favorably than critics, Klara and the Sun is Ortega’s latest film to follow this trend. Death of a Unicorn, Hurry Up Tomorrow, and Winter Spring Summer or Fall received similar receptions, with audiences leaning more positive.

Rearrange the movies into the correct US release order.

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Despite the strong audience score, it’s unfortunately too late to salvage the movie commercially. According to Variety, Sony scrapped Klara and the Sun‘s wide release after poor reviews spread across social media. The movie ultimately released in 880 theaters domestically and earned $701,059 during its debut weekend. The adaptation had a $20 million budget.

Although Klara and the Sun wasn’t a success, it still has a second chance on streaming. Positive audience reception and word of mouth could improve the new sci-fi movie’s prospects, as Ortega’s previous films have typically benefited from that, especially Death of a Unicorn. It’s expected to drop on Netflix, given the deal with Sony, but no date is set yet.

Ortega has one more 2026 release, The Gallerist, starring Natalie Portman, before she returns as Wednesday Addams for season 3 the following year. She also has another sci-fi movie set for 2027, The Great Beyond, with Glen Powell and Samuel L. Jackson. J.J. Abrams directs the movie.

Klara and the Sun follows Ortega’s titular artificial friend, who becomes a companion to a sick girl named Josie. Waititi co-wrote the screenplay with Dahvi Waller, while the supporting cast includes Amy Adams, Mia Tharia, Aran Murphy, Steve Buscemi, and Natasha Lyonne.

Klara and the Sun is now playing in select theaters.

Klara and the Sun