Bright: Netflix executive calls critics 'disconnected from the mass appeal' over reviews

'If people are watching this movie and loving it, that is the measurement of success'

Joel Edgerton and Will Smith in 'Bright' (Netflix)

Critics thoroughly disliked Bright, the David Ayer-directed fantasy buddy-cop movie that currently holds a 26 percent rating on aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes.

However, the Will Smith-starring blockbuster has proven a huge success for Netflix, becoming one of their most-watched original movies and gaining positive user reviews.

Unsurprisingly, the executives behind the streaming service are therefore not particularly worried by the negative critical response.

“The critics are pretty disconnected from the mass appeal,” CEO Reed Hastings said following a glowing Q4 earnings report, according to The Wrap.

He added: “We’re moving internationally at this point, and most of those critical reviews are English language and just U.S.”

While Netflix are usually secretive about exact numbers, they have previously revealed Bright accumulated 11 million views in the three days after release.

Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos said those numbers are how they judge the success of their movies, not critical reaction.

“Critics are an important part of the kind of artistic process, but they’re pretty disconnected from the commercial prospects of a film,” he said. ”If people are watching this movie and loving it, that is the measurement of success.”

Speaking about their approach to making new series, Hastings said the company will concentrate on wide-scale projects like Bright, Stranger Things, and The Crown: “That’s what pulls in people that haven’t yet joined. That’s the dominant accelerator.”

Meanwhile, the amount Netflix lost firing Kevin Spacey from House of Cards following sexual abuse allegations has been revealed: $39 million. The breakdown can be read here.