Eli Roth's Ice Cream Man Lands 26% Rotten Tomatoes Score Ahead of August 7 Release
Updated
Updated · Yahoo! Voices · Aug 4
Eli Roth's Ice Cream Man Lands 26% Rotten Tomatoes Score Ahead of August 7 Release
3 articles · Updated · Yahoo! Voices · Aug 4
Summary
Ice Cream Man opened to a 26% Rotten Tomatoes score, with several critics calling Eli Roth’s latest horror film repetitive, thinly plotted and a contender for 2026’s worst genre release.
Reviews say the movie burns through its shock early: The Wrap said its killer-kid gore has “only one gag,” while AV Club and Deadline argued the carnage overwhelms character, motive and story.
The unrated film centers on an ice cream vendor whose treats turn suburban children into killers, a premise some reviewers compared to Home Alone meets Hostel and others dismissed as empty-calorie splatter.
Not all notices were hostile—Nerdist gave it 3 out of 5 stars, calling it a silly, practical-effects-heavy Eli Roth splatterfest that works for viewers who want gore over actual scares.
The poor reception lands as horror films such as Obsession and Backrooms have drawn stronger acclaim this year; Ice Cream Man reaches theaters on Friday, August 7.