Gabriel Iglesias’ latest Netflix comedy special, Stadium Fluffy, sees the comic play to a sold out Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Not only has he entered an elite group of stand-up superstars that are able to garner an audience on that scale, but he became the only comedian to ever fill a baseball stadium. The Dodgers fan is checking off what was obviously a massive bucket list item here, but he actually didn’t come across the idea all on his own. In fact, he credits fellow comedian Kevin Hart for the lightbulb moment, after Hart filled Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia for Kevin Hart: What Now? 

I caught up with Iglesias to talk about all things Stadium Fluffy, when he volunteered this bit of information regarding his fellow stand-up superstar:

So the two both broke new ground with their respective sports fandom. For Iglesias, the moment was so monumental that he even considered retiring afterward, worrying that the only way he’d be able to outdo himself would be by going to space. Just the name of Hart’s film alone, What Now?, implies that he feels the same way. Once you play to a live audience of that magnitude, what’s next? Obviously for Hart, it’s inching closer and closer to that billionaire status he desires so greatly.

Fluffy, on the other hand, seems adamant about inspiring others to follow in his footsteps, the way he did Hart’s, thus putting the artform of stand-up comedy on a level that is usually reserved for other forms of performative entertainment. He went on to explain:

It means so much to Iglesias, in fact, that he had to shell out a bunch of his own money in order to keep the Stadium Fluffy show running to the length he desired. Iglesias has a history over at Netflix after his show Mr. Iglesias was cancelled after three seasons, but there seems to be no bad blood between him and the streamer, as you can watch Stadium Fluffy on Netflix right now! If stand-up isn’t your jam, no worries, as they’re also releasing a slew of awesome movies and TV shows in 2022.

Ben Affleck is generally associated with box office success, but major blockbuster openings aren't his norm. Only about a fourth of Affleck's movies have opened wide above $20 million, and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice was his first feature ever to open above $100 million. His latest drama, The Accountant, fared better than most, snagging first place at the box office this weekend with $24 million.

Kevin Hart has had pretty good success in the last few years converting his stand up events into feature films, and his latest, the third, had the best box office reception so far. Kevin Hart: What Now? brought in $11 million this weekend, more than his first release Kevin Hart: Laugh at my Pain banked during its entire run. The opening is closer to the $10 million start of his second, Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain, but that feature only opened in around 850 venues, compared with the much larger 2,500+ theater release of What Now?.

Max Steel, the latest action toy-turned-tv-show movie adaptation, arrived in theaters with a thud. With just $2.1 million it didn't even break into the top ten, settling for a distant eleventh place start. Mattel had been rumored to be preparing an entire movie franchise, spring boarding off of the modest success of its TV show, but that seems unlikely after this weekend's disastrous debut.

For the full weekend top ten, check out the chart below:

After selling out the entirety of Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia native Kevin Hart not only made stand-up history, he also made a concert film commemorating that very feat. Unfortunately, history making performance or not, this concert film isn't worth your typical theatrical admission, as Kevin Hart: What Now? is so short, it's over before you know it - even with some extra, more theatrical padding.

When Kevin Hart came home to Philadelphia, he brought down the house by selling out an entire football field. But his trademark blend of observational humor was almost lost to the world that night, as he became embroiled in a plot to thwart a ruthless terrorist in a high stakes card game. The story of what happened that night, and the performance that ensued afterwards, are the focus of the movie Kevin Hart: What Now?

The biggest problem with Kevin Hart: What Now? is the fact that it barely qualifies as a theatrically released film, clocking in at 96 minutes with bookending segments that create a Scary Movie style parody of spy / action films for Hart to star in, alongside guest stars Halle Berry, Ed Helms, and Don Cheadle. Hart's spy antics wear their influences on their sleeve, with Casino Royale and The Equalizer providing the main influences for these segments. While Kevin Hart and Halle Berry's bantering spy couple could be worth a film of their own, you can tell this part of the film is merely to lengthen the runtime of the film. Considering the trailers and television spots for Kevin Hart: What Now? give away 90% of the jokes in these segments, they're rendered even more useless.

As far as the stand up segments go, there's no major complaints there. Kevin Hart does his thing, and the quality of the humor is really dependent on how much of a Hart fan you are. Of course, seeing as there's an entire stadium of fans to be seen, the one big drawback of Kevin Hart: What Now? is that it never fails to remind you of the size and scope of the crowd. This leads to a lot of camera sweeping, and several shots of the entire stadium from the typical "bird's eye view" you'd expect from a football game. It gets distracting, especially considering most stand-up specials keep their focus on either the comedian making the jokes or the audience's reaction to those jokes landing.

The fact that Kevin Hart has made stand-up history with his record-breaking gig is nothing to overlook. However if Kevin Hart: What Now? decided to focus more on Hart's roots in Philadelphia, and the truly momentous nature of his gigantic accomplishment, it might have made this film more worth seeing in a theater. But as a barely extended stand-up special that seems better fit as an HBO or Pay-Per-View event, this concert film isn't worth the prices most theaters charge for admission. Still, if you're a big Kevin Hart fan, and if you aren't interested in any of the weekend's other options, then Kevin Hart: What Now? might be something you'll have fun with.

Big Ben is back in action as a mathlete/assassin in theaters this week, plus we've got a superhero and a bit of stand-up comedy. Coming this Friday we've got the The Accountant, Kevin Hart: What Now? and Max Steel. It's gonna be a Rotten Week!

Just remember, I'm not reviewing these movies, but rather predicting where they'll end up on the Tomatometer. Let's take a look at This Rotten Week has to offer.

I've got a bad feeling about The Accountant. Sure, on the surface you have Ben Affleck playing this weird mashup of Rain Man and Jason Bourne, which seems like it should be cool enough. The production level appears like they went for it budget-wise, and I suspect the studio has high hopes it'll cross-appeal between hardcore action folks and "good movie" lovers. But something just feels off. I don't know if it's Affleck not speaking at all during the trailer or just the confusing tone/nature of the proposed plot. Maybe I just don't get it.

Director Gavin O'Connor has helmed a couple of well-received sports movies in the past with both Miracle (80%) and Warrior (82%), but The Accountant looks like a whole new animal for the filmmaker - and it's hard to say exactly if he's standing on perfectly solid ground. There aren't any early reviews available yet to help determine what the ultimate outcome will be, but I can see it playing closer to his work in Pride and Glory (35%). I want it to be good, but I've got some concerns.

I would say it's not great for a stand-up-special-turned-feature-flick that the producers felt the need to add on a ton of glitz glamour instead of letting the comedy speak for itself. Sure, Kevin Hart is a massive (massive, massive) star and his comedy is loved by millions. But when the central conceit of a stand up special doesn't appear to be the comedy itself, the trailer for the film dedicating a lot of time to a fake spy narrative, then I cry a little bit of foul. It's possible that the feature version of Kevin Hart: What Now? will strike a better balance between the fiction and on-stage work, but I'm a bit put-off.

When it's not about the titular star's wild fantasies, Kevin Hart: What Now? details the events of Kevin Hart's famous show at Lincoln Field in Philadelphia that sold out 53,000 seats - something no comedian has ever done before. That alone is impressive. But now it's a feature film and in an effort to make it passable for theater audiences it looks like they loaded it up with bloat. I don't think critics respond well.

This trailer for Max Steel starts out fine enough, with a loner kid moving to the new town, and then diving further into the mystery surrounding his father and a secretive experiment. You can see some of the superhero hints coming along. And then bam, a flying robot with a super annoying voice comes into the picture, and you can officially consider my ticket unsold. What the hell? I mean this thing turns so juvenile so quickly it almost made my head spin. Yes, I know this based on a cartoon and is geared toward a younger audience. That would make sense if the rest of the backdrop, the main character, the over-arching story followed suit in the flick, but they don't.

There isn't much reason to expect Max Steel to be any semblance of good. The trailer looks weak and the director, Stewart Handler, doesn't really inject us with a whole ton of confidence either. To date, Handler has only one other major directing credit under his belt, and that was the 2009 horror remake Sorority Row (22%). Fans of the source material might get a kick out of Max Steel, but I suspect everyone else will give it the thumbs down.

I went 0-3 last week in what can only be considered a rough one for the Rotten Watch. The biggest miss was The Girl On The Train (Predicted: 74% Actual: 46%). Critics appear to agree Emily Blunt was about the only thing that saved the flick from being terribly mediocre. Instead it came in merely below average. This is surely a massive disappointment considering the success of the novel. I stand by the original prediction considering the source material, strong casting and director Tate Taylor's previous critical successes. But this one ends up looking bad on the ol' resume.

Meanwhile, Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life (Predicted: 34% Actual: 53%) was shaping up to be a real bad miss earlier in the week when the Tomatometer sat in the mid 70's. I couldn't believe it based on how stupid the trailer for the movie looked. The score did ultimately drop over the course of the week, but not far enough to bring it within what I consider "win" range for my predictions. I missed this by almost twenty points and definitely had the tenor of the reviews incorrect.

Finally, Birth of a Nation (Predicted: 90% Actual: 77%) was a near miss. I thought the reviews would tick up a bit from the head start I got last Sunday. The Sundance darling dipped only slightly, but it was enough to keep me out of range. I still think this movie will be around come awards season, but it could have probably used just a few more positive reviews to be a favorite on Oscar night.

Next time around we've got a big one with Jack Reacher: Never Go Back, Keeping Up with the Joneses, I'm Not Ashamed, Boo! A Madea Halloween and Ouija: Origin of Evil. It's gonna be a Rotten Week!