From Box Office Bust to Streaming Sensation: Rebecca Ferguson and Chris Pratt's Mercy Takes Off on Prime Video

If you follow sci-fi at all, you probably noticed Rebecca Ferguson’s face popping up everywhere—she’s the big draw in Silo on Apple TV+ and, of course, right there alongside sandworms in Denis Villeneuve's Dune movies. So you’d figure her latest project, a supposedly timely AI thriller called Mercy, would be a sure thing at the box office. Yeah, not so much. When it hit theaters, even Ferguson and Chris Pratt couldn’t save it from barely clearing $54 million and getting absolutely roasted by critics. Yikes.

But here’s where things get interesting, and maybe a little bit hilarious: Mercy has pulled a full 180 on streaming, shooting right up to #1 on Prime Video globally. In just a few days, it knocked Agent Zeta—Prime’s own attempt at a 'Jason Bourne with a Wi-Fi connection'—into second place. It’s also the most popular movie in the US on Prime, with Ryan Coogler's Oscar-winner Sinners in second, and—because we're living in peak weirdness—a Melania Trump documentary directed by Brett Ratner holding third. Welcome to 2026.

So What Exactly Is Mercy?

Mercy is directed by Timur Bekmambetov (think Wanted and Night Watch), written by Marco van Velle, and has a cast that includes Kali Reis, Chris Sullivan, Annabelle Wallis, and Kylie Rogers—plus your headline duo, Ferguson and Pratt.

Plot-wise, it’s actually pretty simple: Chris Pratt plays Chris Raven, a cop accused of killing his wife. But instead of facing a real jury, he’s got just 90 minutes to plead for his life to an AI judge—played by Ferguson in full 'intimidating future robot' mode. It’s trying for that whole 'AI-run justice system is a bad idea' vibe, and, to be honest, it wears the message on its sleeve.

Critical Flop, Streaming Hit

When Mercy opened in theaters, critics were practically sharpening their knives. Rotten Tomatoes? A merciless 25%. Mark Keizer over at MovieWeb threw out a 3/10, basically calling it another swing-and-a-miss from the same producer who brought us Prime Video's Ice Cube version of War of the Worlds (which, if you missed it, you’re honestly fine).

Here’s the twist: now that it’s on streaming, audiences are suddenly tossing Mercy a life raft. The film’s RT user score is a wild 83%—yeah, that's not a typo. Some viewers are over the moon, like the fan who gushed,

I’m honestly not sure it earned that much enthusiasm, but hey, sometimes the internet loves what critics don’t.

Minority Report Déjà Vu?

Of course, the second this movie dropped, everyone started comparing it to Minority Report. Both are set in societies obsessed with AI and future-tech messing with criminal justice. Fans on Rotten Tomatoes (and just about every corner of social media) couldn’t resist pointing out the similarities—except most agree Minority Report did it better. As one viewer put it:

So, yeah, if you go in expecting Spielberg-level action and mind games, manage those expectations.

Main Cast: Who’s Who

• Rebecca Ferguson as Judge Maddox (the AI who gets to play God)
• Chris Pratt as Chris Raven (cop on the chopping block)
• Kali Reis
• Chris Sullivan
• Annabelle Wallis
• Kylie Rogers

So, Mercy might not be the next sci-fi masterpiece, but it’s living proof that sometimes all a box office dud needs is a streaming audience willing to give it a second chance—or maybe just curious enough to see what the fuss is about. If you want an AI thriller with a heavy message and you’ve already rewatched Minority Report a dozen times, Mercy is now just a click away.