One of just 8 failed attempts to reboot or remake an Arnold Schwarzenegger classic without the action icon falls flat on streaming

It sounds obvious, but in the majority of cases Arnold Schwarzenegger‘s best movies succeeded largely on the back of the Austrian Oak’s undeniable screen presence, star power, and charisma. And yet, Hollywood has repeatedly tried to mine his back catalogue without his involvement, and Eraser: Reborn is merely one of many attempts that have proven be nothing short of dire.

The 1995 original isn’t among the former Governor of California’s top tier, but it’s an entertaining enough blockbuster that delivers exactly what his legion of fans had come to expect. Dusting off the property almost two decades later, the end result was a bargain basement shoot ’em up with nothing to offer.

Not that it’s an isolated incident, to be fair, when almost every attempt to bring back an Arnold-fronted IP without its biggest draw and main selling point has failed miserably. We’re talking Jason Momoa’s dismal Conan the Barbarian, virtually every Predator follow-up until Prey, Terminator Salvation, Colin Farrell’s lifeless Total Recall do-over, the True Lies TV series canceled before its first season had even finished airing, Dolph Lungren taking over for Kindergarten Cop 2, and Larry the Cable Guy stepping in for a successor to Jingle All the Way.

Sylvester Stallone’s risible Escape Plan sequels can sit this one out because he’s an Arnold-level icon in his own right, but despite Eraser: Reborn inexplicably becoming one of the biggest hits on Prime Video this weekend per FlixPatrol, the evidence is stacked to the upper reaches of the atmosphere that if Schwarzenegger won’t sign on, then don’t bother breathing new life into the brand.