Hugh Jackman’s Best Movie on Rotten Tomatoes Is 1 Point Higher Than Logan

When examining Hugh Jackman’s extensive filmography, it’s hard to find a title more popular or successful than 2017’s Logan. From Prisoners to X-Men: Days of Future Past, numerous movies featuring the Oscar-nominated star thrilled both critics and audiences. The Marvel project chronicles a declining Wolverine’s, strife to protect a young mutant girl pursued by scientists. Logan has a 93% critic approval rating from 427 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, making it Jackman’s second-highest-rated movie to date on the site. Considering how acclaimed Logan is, fans might be wondering which film impressed critics a bit more.

Jackman’s best rated movie is 2019’s Bad Education, which holds a 94% critic score from 156 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes. Directed by Cory Finley, the dramedy is based on a true story and follows Frank Tassone (Jackman), the superintendent of a Long Island school district. Frank finds his success in his profession threatened when he is implicated in the largest public education embezzlement scandal in American history. The film takes inspiration from Robert Kolker’s 2004 New York magazine article “The Bad Superintendent.” Bad Education also stars Allison Janney, Ray Romano. The film’s audience score sits at 83%, while Logan posts a 91% audience rating.

Why Critics Loved Bad Education

Bad Education was a huge hit among critics thanks to Jackman’s authentic and layered performance, as well as the movie’s satirical elements. Expressing its admiration of the actor, the Chicago Sun-Times wrote, “Jackman does a magnificent job of portraying a man who has been lying so long on so many fronts, even he isn’t sure of the truth any longer.” Vox‘s review similarly praised Jackman and his co-star, declaring, “Bad Education serves up stellar performances from Jackman and Janney, both of whom seem trapped in hells of their own devising, suspended between a desire to serve the community and the feeling that their labor is underappreciated.” In its review, the Boston Globe commented, “It’s a small and economical movie, but not slight, as it gives us a good taste of the banality of greed and entitlement, never turning its compromised characters into easily dismissed comic monsters.”

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The movie’s front-and-center LGBTQ+ representation was also well received, as the real-life Frank Tassone identifies as gay. The outlet them. remarked, “Frank Tassone isn’t a likeable character; in fact, he’s rather detestable. But that almost makes me love this film even more. It’s been a long journey towards real queer representation.” Other qualities of Bad Education that were praised include Mike Makowsky’s captivating script, Finley’s sharp direction, and the film’s themes about power and corruption. Bad Education‘s many outstanding characteristics cemented it as one of HBO and Max’s highest rated original movies.

How Did Bad Education Impact Hugh Jackman’s Career?

Since it was released directly on Max instead of in theaters, Bad Education didn’t have any box office numbers to speak of. This likely explains why the film fell under the radar and isn’t nearly as popular today as Logan, which pulled in roughly $619 million worldwide. Nonetheless, Bad Education‘s lack of a theatrical run didn’t stop the film from garnering recognition during awards season. As a result of his critically acclaimed performance, Jackman earned a 2020 Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or TV Movie. The same year, Bad Education won in the Emmy category for Outstanding Television Movie. The movie also picked up Critics Choice Awards and Satellite Awards nods for Best Movie Made for Television, while Jackman was nominated for a Satellite Award, a Dorian TV Award, a Gold Derby Award, a Hollywood Critics Association Midseason Award, and other accolades.

Following the success of Bad Education, Jackman notably went on to lead the 2021 psychological thriller Reminiscence and the 2022 drama The Son. In 2024, Jackman returned to the role of Logan in Deadpool and Wolverine, which broke several box office records during its run. Jackman already ranked as one of Hollywood’s most esteemed actors prior to his role in Bad Education, but his performance as Frank Tassone in the movie was widely lauded as one of his greatest — which is a major part of why Bad Education stands alone at the top of Jackman’s filmography on Rotten Tomatoes.

Bad Education is currently available to stream on Max.