Hailee Steinfeld has become a hugely popular figure among comic book aficionados after voicing Gwen Stacy in the instant classic Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, before winning an entirely new legion of fans as the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Kate Bishop in Hawkeye. However, her first foray into the genre couldn’t have gone much worse, given the response to 2016’s Term Life.
Based on the graphic novel of the same name by A. J. Lieberman and Nick Thornborrow, Vince Vaughn and Steinfeld head up the cast as father-and-daughter duo Nick and Cate Barrow. He’s a hitman, but he needs to stay alive for 21 days in order for his life insurance policy to kick in, providing a payout and financial security for his estranged child.
Naturally, there’s a bevvy of criminals, mob enforcers, rival contract killers, and corrupt cops hot on his tail, forcing the family unit on the run in an effort to ensure he survives long enough to provide for his offspring. That’s a decent setup bolstered by two talented stars, never mind a supporting ensemble that boasts Bill Paxton, Jonathan Banks, Taraji P. Henson, Jon Favreau, Terrence Howard, and plenty others among its number.
However, Term Life holds the distinction of being one of the worst-reviewed comic book flicks in recent history, thanks to a big fat zero percent score on Rotten Tomatoes. Directed by A Christmas Story‘s Ralphie of all people, the universally-panned effort has at least finally been given a gift of its own after being rediscovered by streaming subscribers.
Per FlixPatrol, Term Life is currently the ninth most-watched feature on the ad-supported platform Freevee’s global charts, even though a lot of viewers may regret their decision by the time the credits come up.
