Some actors become so synonymous with one or two roles that it’s easy to forget that they’re immensely talented performers with a wide catalog of other incredible performances. And when you’ve spent decades commanding the Enterprise or guiding the X-Men as Professor Charles Xavier, audiences probably aren’t expecting you to suddenly become one of the most terrifying villains in modern horror. Yet that’s precisely what Patrick Stewart did ten years ago as he gave audiences one of the most unpleasant performances in recent memory. Audiences are now rediscovering it.
Stewart’s brutal R-rated horror thriller Green Room has officially climbed into the Top 4 of America’s streaming movie rankings, reaching No. 3 on JustWatch’s U.S. chart. After witnessing a crime, a rock band is unexpectedly thrust into a life-or-death battle to escape from a diabolical club owner and his henchmen. The film stars Anton Yelchin (Star Trek) as Pat, Imogen Poots (28 Weeks Later) as Amber, Patrick Stewart (X-Men) as Darcy Banker, Alia Shawkat (Arrested Development) as Sam, Joe Cole (Peaky Blinders) as Reece, Callum Turner (Masters of the Air) as Tiger, Macon Blair (Blue Ruin) as Gabe, and Mark Webber (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World) as Daniel. The movie is directed by Jeremy Saulnier (Blue Ruin).
How Good Is ‘Green Room’?
Green Room earned widespread acclaim upon its release, particularly for Saulnier’s relentless direction, its realistic depiction of violence, and Stewart’s deeply unsettling performance as the calculating leader of a white supremacist organization. The film holds a 90% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes, with reviewers praising its atmosphere, performances, and refusal to soften its extraordinarily grim subject matter. As for the violence, there’s certainly no shortage of blood and carnage. There are shotguns, boxcutters, attack dogs, and so much more. Green Room features some of the most impressive gore and makeup effects work you’re likely to see in a while, and Saulnier revels in his achievement, taking the time to let his camera linger on the gruesome details.
Its renewed streaming popularity offers another opportunity for audiences to discover one of the most intense horror thrillers of the past decade, and it’s a great window into Stewart’s ability as an actor for those who only know him from Star Trek and X-Men.
Green Room is currently available to stream in the United States, including on Netflix.
