Rachel Zegler calls out the “senselessly mean” criticism of the recently released Shazam: Fury of the Gods.  Not only was the film a box office failure, raking in about $65 million against a $110-125 million budget, but it was also subjected to lackluster criticism, as evidenced by its 52% Rotten Tomatoes score.

Zegler, who plays the Greek goddess Anthea, talks on Twitter about how Fury of the Gods is a good film and how she loved making it and working with its cast and crew. She recognizes that she can’t control others’ negative responses, but Zegler feels that “it’s just cool to hate on fun nowadays.” Because of this, Zegler encourages people to go see the movie since they “have an 85% (Rotten Tomatoes) audience score for a reason.”

some people out there and just being… senselessly mean. and it’s unnecessary. and i know, i know, “if you can’t handle the heat…” and all that nonsense, and you’re right. but our film is actually very good. it’s just cool to hate on fun nowadays. that’s okay. we’re good. ❤️

— rachel zegler (she/her/hers) (@rachelzegler) March 19, 2023

While the film was not expected to ultimately surpass the original Shazam, its box office failure surprised its studios. Even international markets failed to bring in enough money to help it at least break even. According to Deadline’s Anthony D’Alessandro, the film is currently falling behind due to its minimal connection to any outside universe. In “a marketplace where we are used to seeing superhero sequels outperform the openings of their predecessors,” audiences are more eager for a “connective tissue” between a superhero film and the rest of its canon than for a standalone movie. Currently, DC Studios bosses James Gunn and Peter Safran are looking to solve this connectivity issue in their plans for the DC multiverse.