Markiplier’s New Sci-Fi Horror Movie Fails to Impress Critics Despite Strong Box Office Debut

1 week ago 10

Markiplier as Simon gritting his teeth in Iron Lung.

Published Feb 2, 2026, 12:48 PM EST

Erielle Sudario is a Collider News and Feature Author from Australia and has worked in the journalism industry since 2018. She has a passion for entertainment and pop culture news and has interviewed YouTubers, voice actors, film directors, and musicians throughout her career. When she's not writing, you can see Erielle building keyboards, reading a good book, playing video games, and creating content on social media.

After breaking box-office expectations and receiving a near-perfect audience score following its theatrical debut, Iron Lung was unable to replicate that success with the critics. The gritty new sci-fi film has divided critics on Rotten Tomatoes. Iron Lung has been criticized for its lengthy duration and lagging pace, with a handful of reviewers claiming they got "bored." However, some critics praised Markiplier (aka Mark Fischbach) for his performance, and there was some debate over whether Iron Lung was a good horror film.

Iron Lung is a new sci-fi horror film that also serves as Markiplier's directorial debut, based on the 2022 indie video game of the same name. The story takes place in a world where the universe succumbed to "The Quiet Rapture," in which the stars and habitable planets vanish, and survivors reside on space stations. The movie stars Markiplier as Simon, a convict who is selected to pilot a submersible called the "Iron Lung" on a moon with an Ocean of Blood in search of resources.

Collider's Nate Richard reviewed the film, giving it a 6/10. Richard praised Markiplier for creating something cinematic on a low budget and for the film's accuracy with the source material, but called out its pacing and said some scenes could have been cut. Iron Lung's reception was split, generating a 50% score on Rotten Tomatoes. However, the low score has not impacted the film's success at the box office, with a successful fan campaign driving audiences to the theater. The film debuted on Rotten Tomatoes with a 92% audience score, and while it's still "verified hot" on the Popcornmeter, that score now sits at 89% at the time of writing.

Markiplier Reacts to 'Iron Lung's Box Office Performance

When Iron Lung was released, it was reported that the film grossed $8.9 million on Friday across 3,015 theaters and $17 million over the weekend, dominating the domestic box office and beating other films like Brett Ratner's Melania documentary and Sam Raimi's Send Help. Additionally, Iron Lung has generated over $21.7 million in worldwide revenue. Markiplier recently livestreamed a reaction to Iron Lung's box office performance, where he got emotional, saying he didn't expect it to dominate the domestic box office. He also noted that he didn't expect his movie to beat Disney's box-office reign and hopes Iron Lung's success could inspire other independent filmmakers to pursue their projects.

"I think it might be a big win for independent filmmaking. And it's not to shut out Sam Raimi. It's kind of to shut out Disney for winning, like 10 weeks in a row. Maybe they could only win nine weeks in a row in the one weekend that Iron Long is here, it could, you know, I think that might be pretty cool. And maybe if that could inspire someone to keep making films, that'd be pretty cool. And maybe if we could open up a door for other people to see it, to do their projects independently, and know that there could be success in it. I think that'd be pretty cool. I think that might be actually really cool."

Iron Lung is now showing in theaters.