Miami’s Tactical Narcotics Team storms a derelict stash house on a tip after their captain turns up dead. Lieutenant Dane Dumars, played by Matt Damon, leads the crew, including Ben Affleck’s Detective Sergeant JD Byrne, into the raid.
They uncover $20 million in cartel cash hidden in the attic, but protocol traps them on-site to count every bill while threats close in.
Dumars grabs their phones and feeds each member a different cash amount, sowing doubt from the start. The homeowner’s granddaughter, Desi Molina, lets them in but hints at a cut if found, raising flags since she once informed the police.
Local cartel eyes turn hostile with mysterious calls demanding they bail, forcing the squad to barricade as gunfire erupts.
Director Joe Carnahan pulls from 1970s cop classics like Training Day, channeling a real Miami detective’s raid story where seized funds tested loyalties.
Critics note the setup builds relentless tension in tight quarters, with chases and shootouts ramping up the chaos. Rotten Tomatoes consensus highlights how Affleck and Damon’s bond anchors the greed-fueled fray, making suspicion feel raw and earned.
Carnahan’s script leans on confined spaces for paranoia, echoing Assault on Precinct 13 vibes but with modern cartel stakes. Supporting players like Steven Yeun as DEA Agent Nix add layers; his quiet menace clashes with Damon’s bluster. Teyana Taylor’s Desi brings street smarts, negotiating her slice amid the standoff.
Duo Delivers Gritty Gold Again
Affleck and Damon mark their 11th project together, from Good Will Hunting’s Oscar win to Air’s sneaker biopic success.
The Rip fits their pattern of grounded thrillers, with Damon as the scheming leader and Affleck as his frayed right hand handling power shifts after promotion. Their middle-aged weariness sells the burnout of dirty cops eyeing an exit scam.
Past hits stack up strong: The Last Duel earned 85%, and Air 93%, proving Netflix bets big on their draw. Early reviews call their dynamic electric, elevating a familiar potboiler into compulsive viewing despite script wobbles.
The Hollywood Reporter praises Carnahan’s cast for handling paranoia with credibility beyond typical streamer fare.
The Rip (Credit: Netflix)
Artists Equity, their production outfit, pushed Netflix for a crew bonus tied to viewership, a rare win amid upfront fee norms. Affleck pushed the model to motivate the 1,200-person team, drawing from his directing days. This stake aligns incentives, mirroring the film’s theme of shared risk under pressure.
ScreenRant takes credit for their casting for carrying uneven dialogue, awarding 6/10 as solid popcorn fare. Forbes tracks their Tomatometer run, noting The Rip’s 88% from 26 reviews holds firm against detractors calling twists predictable. Collider hails the action’s intensity, offsetting script dull spots with star punch.
Damon’s first Netflix lead contrasts Affleck’s Triple Frontier stint, setting up his Nolan epic The Odyssey next. Kyle Chandler and Scott Adkins beef up the squad, their veteran grit fitting the blue-collar cop world. Sasha Calle’s role adds fresh tension, her outsider view cracking the team’s facade.
Twists Seal Streaming Win
Betrayals pile up as Dumars’ plan unfolds: the tip was bait from slain Captain Velez to smoke out corrupt insiders. DEA Agent Nix and Detective Ro plot the heist, staging attacks to grab the loot. Byrne swipes a burner phone, proving the frame, sparking a brutal armored truck showdown and rooftop pursuit.
Fire guts the house, but the team swaps cash for phone books from Desi’s grandma’s hoard, nabbing the real villains. Desi scores 20% for cooperating, and the duo honors Velez at sunrise. Metacritic’s 64 signals solid genre fun, with RogerEbert.com lauding momentum despite a drawn-out finale.
Viewers split at a 70% audience score, some griping about clichés, while others binge for the star power. Netflix kicks off 2026 strong post People We Meet on Vacation, amid Warner Bros. acquisition buzz against Paramount bids. Carnahan’s action pops on small screens, positioning The Rip as prime weekend fuel.
Reddit threads buzz with praise for practical stunts, with Yeun’s chilling pivot stealing scenes from the leads. Some call out pacing dips in the count room drag, but most agree the finale’s truck flip delivers payoff. Affleck’s directing gig, Animals, looms with Damon producing and Yeun starring, hinting at endless duo synergy.
Broader context ties to Netflix’s cop genre push, from Narcos to this heist riff. Their streak counters streamer slump narratives, pulling 50 million hours viewed in week one per internal metrics. Critics like Esquire crown it a “phenomenal rip,” urging casual watches over awards bait.
James Tynion IV built Tiny Onion in 2023 with Lyrical Media backing to push his stories beyond panels. Fresh off Eisner wins for hits like Something is Killing the Children and The Department of Truth, he now eyes cinema dominance.
Their latest pact covers the Exquisite Corpses adaptation plus a feature spin on Room Service, his one-shot with a 2024 short already out.
Exquisite Corpses dropped last year via Image Comics with artist Michael Walsh. It tracks a twisted Halloween game where twelve top global assassins, bankrolled by US elite families, get dumped in a sleepy town.
They slash until one stands, handing that sponsor family national control for five years. Sales topped 500,000 copies fast, topping new IP launches in the direct market comics.
Room service flips hotel stays sinister. Guests order up perfect meals through room service, with staff handling cleanup. Tynion scripted the prequel comic alongside director PK Colinet’s Kickstarter short. Now they expand it to full runtime, tapping Tynion’s knack for everyday spots gone lethal.
Lyrical CEO Alexander Black calls Tynion a genre shaker. The studio funds his cross-media push, seeing franchise gold in films, animation, and games.
Tynion produces both pics with Black, Arlen Konopaki, Walsh, and Jon Rosenberg as executive producers. No directors attached yet, but the assembly starts with A-list talent hunts.
From Gotham Shadows to Indie Terror King
Tynion cut his teeth on DC’s Batman from 2020, scripting 85 issues through the City of Bane fallout. He mixed action and horror, pitting Bruce Wayne against Deathstroke hordes sans Alfred’s brakes. That run set his rep for high-stakes dread in capes.
IDW crossovers sealed his name, too. The Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles miniseries sold out, pitting the Dark Knight against the Foot Clan in Gotham. Sequels like Adventures kept turtles slicing beside the Bat-family, proving his blockbuster touch.
James Tynion IV (Credit: CNN)
Horror pivot hit paydirt independently. Something Is Killing the Children at Boom Studios snagged Blumhouse film and animation rights last year, with Tynion producing.
Tiny Onion’s animation queue packs WRLDTR33 for Netflix, The Woods, and the original Tipsy Dragon comedy with Irony Point. This lyrical duo amps up his live-action horror footprint.
Comic fans track his sales surge. Exquisite Corpses companion card game drops in the summer, fueling multiplatform bets. Room Service’s short buzz drew festival nods, ripe for expansion. Tynion credits co-creators for passion matching his page-to-screen fire.
Franchise Fever Fuels Next Wave
The horror comics boom favors Tynion’s output. Lyrical Eyes Exquisite Corpses as expandable IP across live-action, animation, and gaming. Room Service fits boutique thrillers like Ready or Not hotel sieges. Both lean on his strength: ordinary rules twisted by hidden rules.
Blumhouse Something is killing the children’s eyes. The werewolf hunts in Archer’s Peak, echoing Tynion’s Erica slaughter procedural. Tiny Onion’s WRLDTR33 tackles internet cults, and The Woods strands teens in alien woods. His slate screams shared universe potential under the Tiny Onion banner.
Trade whispers point to 2027 shoots if scripts lock fast. Lyrical’s Onslaught X-Men film wraps post-production, testing their Marvel muscle. Black bets on creator-led risks for the next horror brands, post-Midnight Mass streamer wars.
Tynion stays hands-on, scripting Room Service himself. Walsh joins the Exquisite Corpses producers, ensuring comic fidelity. Fan reactions light up Reddit, hyping Assassin Royale visuals. His Batman/TMNT legacy draws crowds, but indie horrors cement his bold streak.
Competition heats up. Rivals like Scott Snyder push Absolute Batman, but Tynion owns the horror lane. Tiny Onion hires swell, scouting directors for visceral kills. Exquisite Corpses’ town map and family backstories beg for big screens, and room service carts promise feasts of gore.
Success metrics stack high. Post-500k sales, card game hype, and short film traction position these as sleepers. Tynion’s pivot from superhero gigs to terror trades proves prescient amid superhero fatigue. Studios chase his IP gold, with Lyrical fronting the charge.
This deal cements Tiny Onion as a horror hub. Tynion eyes global reach, thanking Lyrical for seed cash, turning comics to celluloid. The assassin drops, and the hotel hit signals his empire’s scary expansion, with Batman cred opening doors wide.
