James Melzer is a Senior Staff Writer at MovieWeb, working remotely from Pennsylvania. He covers the hottest entertainment news, as well as the latest and greatest in streaming from around the world. James has been a regular staple at MovieWeb for almost three years, writing everything from lists and features, to breaking news and movie reviews.
Before joining MovieWeb, James covered pop culture news for a variety of different media sites, including Manolith and Real TV Addict. He also hosted a successful audio podcast, where he interviewed everyone from authors and artists, to screenwriters and actors.
A new vigilante action thriller that’s been the talk of social media these past few days has come out of nowhere to defy critics, and dethrone one of the biggest movies of the year on streaming. While it’s definitely not everyone’s cup of tea, it’s clear that the film has struck a chord with the masses due to its controversial subject matter, which has no doubt helped bolster its profile.
Directed by German filmmaker, Uwe Boll, the new action thriller follows a wealthy American businessman living in Croatia who, after witnessing a series of violent crimes, decides to take justice into his own hands. Drawing on his military training and resources (of course), he begins tracking down violent criminals and corrupt officials – many of whom are migrants – executing his own brand of vigilante justice. As his actions spread across social media, he becomes both a folk hero to some members of the public, and the target of an international manhunt.
Titled Citizen Vigilante, the new action thriller was released in the United States on June 19 courtesy of Quiver Distribution. Starring Armie Hammer as Michael Sanders, the vigilante at the heart of the picture, it was also released on X for 48 hours on June 25, and was reposted by Elon Musk, which drew widespread attention to it.
Effectively banned in Germany after the FSK (their film classification board) refused to give the movie an age classification because it determined it could incite violence against immigrants, Citizen Vigilante has defied the odds to become a digital streaming hit. Called a “big, dumb, clueless movie” by Brian Orndorf of Blu-ray.com, the new 89-minute action thriller has dethroned the sci-fi smash, Project Hail Mary, in both the Apple TV Store and on Prime Video, where it’s the #1 digital purchase on both platforms.
Citizen Vigilante‘s success comes as Quiver has secured worldwide rights to the film, excluding the U.K., German-speaking territories, South Korea and Taiwan. Thus far, Boll estimates that the movie has made around $600,000, which is a far cry from its $2 million budget. Speaking with Variety about the movie being released on X and how that affected its gross, he said:
“There is, of course, a good and a bad side of the X posting. The question you have to evaluate is: Is that bringing more money in the end, or is that costing me a lot of money? You know, you get a lot of PR, but you don’t get a lot of money. So, we will figure that out in the next four or six weeks.”
No spoilers, but the end of Citizen Vigilante definitely leaves the door wide open for a sequel. Posting on his X account on June 26, Boll shared an AI generated poster for Citizen Vigilante 2, saying it was coming in 2027. That being said, in that same interview with Variety, which was published three days later, the director noted that while he has some ideas, work has yet to begin on a script. When asked whether Hammer would be returning, Boll replied: “I think he would be happy to do it.”
Whether Hammer returns or not, the hunger is definitely there for a sequel, as Boll has been reposting viewers’ demands for a Part 2 on social media, and the film holds an audience score of 94% on Rotten Tomatoes. As we await to see what the future holds for what could be Boll’s new action franchise, you can rent or purchase Citizen Vigilante now on all major digital platforms.
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Watched on X, a must see. Not available to purchase in Australia yet but will as need to support this film. It has balls.
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