A Gritty Denzel Washington Crime Thriller Is Finding An Audience On Hulu Two Decades Later

If you were to ask John David Washington his favorite movies, he'd name two starring his father. One is "Glory," which provided Denzel Washington with his breakthrough role and remains one of the best Civil War movies of all time. The other, however, was one of Denzel's five collaborations with the late, great Tony Scott. The pair worked together on "Crimson Tide," "Déjà Vu," "The Taking of Pelham 123," and "Unstoppable," but it was 2004's "Man on Fire" that represented the very best of the Washington/Scott collabs.

This Denzel actioner might have a surprisingly low Rotten Tomatoes score, but don't let that fool you. When it comes to the star's action efforts, there are few better films in his filmography than "Man on Fire." Long before the Oscar winner took on the role of Robert McCall in the "Equalizer" movies, he was showcasing a similar badassery in Scott's project, which saw him play jaded former CIA agent-turned-bodyguard John W. Creasy. After ruining his career due to a drinking problem, Creasy is very much down and out. He agrees to take on a job in Mexico guarding Pita (Dakota Fanning), the daughter of a Mexican businessman (Marc Anthony), and while the pair clash at first, Creasy soon develops a fondness for his new charge. When she's eventually kidnapped, you can imagine that Denzel's jaded hero is consumed by rage. What results is a protracted and bloody quest for revenge, as Creasy hunts down those responsible.

That, according to John David Washington, adds up to one of Denzel's best movies, and it seems Hulu subscribers agree, as the film is currently finding an audience over on the streamer two decades after it was first released.

"Man on Fire" is one of the best Denzel Washington movies, but it's also one of the best Tony Scott movies. The director had a bit of a reputation for a style-over-substance approach, but with "Man on Fire," he seemed to refine the perfect melding of the two, using his gritty fast-paced visuals as a way to illustrate John W. Creasy's erratic and intense internal state.

For Hulu viewers, no doubt this is a case of "newstalgia," whereby an older movie is presented to a modern audience as if it were new. It's likely that many Hulu subscribers never saw "Man on Fire" when it first hit theaters in 2004, which, when combined with those who just want to revisit Scott's action masterpiece, has allowed the film to gain some traction on the streamer's charts.

The film was added to Hulu on May 1, 2025 and has finally made its chart debut after almost three weeks. According to FlixPatrol, a site that tracks viewership across the various streaming services, "Man on Fire" hit number nine in the United States on May 21, 2025. It's not the most stunning debut, but it's just nice to see "Man on Fire" making even a small impact 20 years after it first arrived.

At the time of writing, "Man on Fire" is only in the ninth spot on the Hulu charts in the United States. But that could change as the week plays out. In order to move up the rankings, however, Denzel's actioner will face competition from bleak Kirsten Dunst sci-fi movie "Melancholia," which has also just found an audience on Hulu. As far as the rest of the top 10 goes, "Man on Fire" will have to overcome Chloe Fineman's critically acclaimed comedy "Summer of 69" which is currently in the seventh spot. Nearer the top of the rankings are two "Kingsman" movies and in the number one position sits "Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation," with viewers clearly revisiting the film that created a new chapter for Tom Cruise ahead of seeing "Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning" in theaters.

That might be a lot to overcome, but if anyone can do it, it's Denzel — especially considering that 38% Rotten Tomatoes score really doesn't represent the way in which "Man on Fire" has come to be seen in the years since its debut. The movie originally made $130.9 million on a $60,000 budget, but failed to impress critics, who thought Scott's showy directorial style made for one long paean to excess and not much more. But the movie has been reappraised in the years since, and is rightly thought of as not only one of Scott's best but as an example of peak Denzel action. As such, it will be interesting to see how the film fares in the streaming age over the next week or so.