Chris Pine’s Gritty Military Thriller Is Being Reclaimed by Streaming Viewers

3 days ago 4

Published Feb 8, 2026, 9:28 AM EST

Rahul Malhotra is a Weekend News Writer for Collider. From Francois Ozon to David Fincher, he'll watch anything once.

He has been writing for Collider for over two years, and has covered everything from Marvel to the Oscars, and Marvel at the Oscars. He also writes obsessively about the box office, charting the many hits and misses that are released weekly, and how their commercial performance shapes public perception. In his time at Collider, he has also helped drive diversity by writing stories about the multiple Indian film industries, with a goal to introduce audiences to a whole new world of cinema.

Swing and a miss > measured victory. Also, #JusticeForHan. (He/Him).

With dad-content doing so well on streaming, it makes sense for major movie stars to grab a piece of the pie for themselves. A few years ago, Chris Pratt headlined Prime Video's The Terminal List; he was at the very peak of his career at the time, starring in multiple blockbuster franchises. A few years before that, John Krasinski starred in Prime Video's Jack Ryan, which ran for four seasons and will return with a feature film spin-off soon. Interestingly, Jack Ryan was played on the big screen in a would-be franchise-starter by Chris Pine. But the movie, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, performed too poorly at the box office to justify a sequel. Pine didn't give up on the dad demographic, and he went on to star in a movie that is now gaining traction on streaming.

He broke out with a starring role in J.J. Abrams' critically acclaimed Star Trek reboot; the movie made more than $385 million at the worldwide box office and spawned two sequels. Some years later, Pine played a major role in Patty Jenkins' DC Extended Universe film Wonder Woman, which emerged as a critical and commercial success. By then, he had established himself among the "Hollywood Chrises" — a group of four white leading men named Chris, all doing tremendously well in their respective careers. But while Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, and the aforementioned Pratt continue to work in franchise films, Pine has taken an interesting detour. He has starred in only one big-budget, IP-driven project in recent years — Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves — and has largely focused on smaller-scale movies. Among them is the made-for-dads thriller The Contractor.

Hint: 'The Contractor' Is Streaming On a Platform Known for Its Dad-Content

Directed by Tarik Saleh in his English-language debut — the filmmaker is best known for his "Cairo Trilogy" — The Contractor was given a day-and-date release in limited theaters and on streaming in 2022. The movie was released as an Amazon Original in international markets and grossed only around $2 million at the box office. It now holds a 45% score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, where the critics' consensus reads, "The Contractor is caught between message movie and standard-issue action thriller, satisfying neither aim despite strong work from a talented cast." According to FlixPatrol, it was among the most-watched movies on the domestic Paramount+ charts this week, as the leaderboard continues to be topped by The Running Man remake starring Glen Powell. You can watch The Contractor at home, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates.