Two fan-favorite Hollywood stars are seemingly not getting the hit they hoped for from their new heist movie’s Rotten Tomatoes debut following its world premiere.
Cathy Yan’s The Gallerist stars Natalie Portman and Jenna Ortega, following a struggling art gallery owner (Portman) who hatches a daring plan involving selling a corpse at the Art Basel Miami show to save her business. Also starring Sterling K. Brown, Zach Galifianakis, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Daniel Brühl, Charli XCX, and Catherine Zeta-Jones, The Gallerist premiered on Saturday at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival.
As of January 27, The Gallerist has a Rotten Tomatoes score of 56% from 18 reviews, making it a “rotten” movie, falling just below the 60% needed to be considered “fresh.” Reviewing The Gallerist, ScreenRant‘s Gregory Nussen emphasizes that “The Gallerist is a tepid satire […] packed with characters whose depth of feeling is only skin-deep.” Nussen gives the film a 4 out of 10.
Other critics note the failure to commit to the intended commentary, though occasionally being more generous in their overall review. FandomWire‘s Cole Growth says: “The film fancies itself a critique of the vapid art world, yet possesses less depth than the puddles its characters keep slipping on.” The Daily Beast‘s Nick Schager calls it an “irredeemably obvious and one-note affair.“
The Gallerist is still seeking distribution and may hope to fare better with a theatrical release, but these early reviews probably indicate how a broader audience will also respond. With a fairly niche narrative, The Gallerist has to hope that its cast’s star power would be enough to draw people in, which is hardly a guarantee. Even this particular cast’s success might not help.
Jenna Ortega, who plays Portman’s character’s assistant, is most famous for Wednesday and Scream. She has appeared in several more high-profile projects, such as the legacy sequel Beetlejuice Beetlejuice and the underrated horror Death of a Unicorn, which is having a major resurgence on streaming right now. Additionally, her sci-fi book-to-movie adaptation Klara and the Sun has finally set a 2026 release date.
Portman is known for the likes of Star Wars, the MCU, Jackie, V for Vendetta, May December, and her Oscar-winning performance in Black Swan. The Oscar-nominated animated feature Arco, which Portman produces and stars in, is about to get a wider release. Despite The Gallerist‘s struggles, both Portman and Ortega may have an upcoming hit or two in 2026.
The Sundance Film Festival takes place from January 22 to February 1, 2026, debuting The Gallerist and many more new films.
- Release Date
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January 24, 2026
- Runtime
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88 minutes
- Director
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Cathy Yan
- Writers
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James Pedersen
- Producers
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Jonathan King, Natalie Portman, Roberto Malerba, Sophie Mas, Tom McCarthy, Ash Sarohia, Jonathan King, Yann Henric