Deathstalker Remake Debuts With 86% Rotten Tomatoes Score

Deathstalker has won over critics during its opening weekend. The 2025 movie, which was written and directed by Steven Kostanski (Psycho Goreman), is a remake of the Roger Corman-produced 1983 fantasy cult classic of the same name. The remake’s cast includes Daniel Bernhardt in the title role opposite Paul Lazenby, Christina Orjalo, Nina Bergman, and Ratatouille star Patton Oswalt.

Rotten Tomatoes has now aggregated enough reviews of Deathstalker, which premiered in theaters on October 10, for the movie to have earned an official score on the Tomatometer. While the score could fluctuate as more reviews are added, at the time of writing, 21 different critics have weighed in to give the movie a solidly Fresh 86%.

Generally, the Fresh reviews for Deathstalker range from solid (3 out of 4, 4 out of 5, and 8 out of 10) to perfect (it earned a 5 out of 5 from Harris Dang of In Their Own League), while the Rotten reviews are merely middling (its only scored negative review gives it a 2.5 out of 4).

Overall, critics seem to agree that the movie makes up for its meat-and-potatoes fantasy story and low budget approach with a surfeit of enthusiasm that makes it a worthwhile love letter to the genre and an instant cult classic.

It remains to be seen if audiences feel the same way as critics, as there have not been enough verified user reviews submitted for Deathstalker to earn a score on Rotten Tomatoes’ Popcornmeter.

By default, this score for the remake makes it the best reviewed installment in the fantasy movie franchise, which includes three sequels that were produced through 1991. None of those previous titles have enough reviews from critics to have earned Tomatometer scores.

Below, see a breakdown of the Rotten Tomatoes scores given to the Deathstalker movies by both critics and audiences, where applicable:

While the 1980s fantasy movies may not have Tomatometer scores, all four of them have Popcornmeter scores that are uniformly Rotten. While the 57% score earned by the first sequel drew close to the 60% threshold past which a movie can be deemed Fresh on the platform, the remainder are all in a dismal range below 30%.

Therefore, if Deathstalker‘s audience reviews are as strong as critics’, or at least fall within 26% of their level of positivity, the remake could become the first installment to have a positive score on the Popcornmeter as well. This could potentially reinvigorate interest in the fantasy franchise multiple decades after it went dormant.