10 Worst Robert Pattinson Movies On Rotten Tomatoes Ranked By Watchability

It can be difficult for the moviegoing public to stop seeing an actor as their first big role. Robert Pattinson, who is still "the guy from 'Twilight'" to many people, knows this well. Even though it'd been a number of years since the final "Twilight" film hit theaters, some people still scoffed when Pattinson was cast as Batman. Apparently, they'd never bothered to see the many excellent films he's starred in since his days as a sparkly bloodsucker came to an end.

Indeed, Robert Pattinson has steered his career far beyond his most famous franchise, often favoring smaller and more challenging roles. Post-"Twilight Saga," he spent most of a decade appearing in films like "The Lighthouse," "High Life," and "Good Time," many of which earned major acclaim. That isn't to say every one of Pattinson's choices has been perfect, however: He's made some serious duds. But even most of his lesser movies — both within and beyond "The Twilight Saga" — boast something interesting that makes them worth sitting through. These are Robert Pattinson's 10 worst movies according to Rotten Tomatoes, ranked from least to most watchable. 

While a lot of the flak the "Twilight" movies get is unfair — and often stems from an unfortunate bias against media targeted at teenage girls, as critic Savannah Wallace points out – it's not completely unfounded. For proof of this, look no further than the penultimate film in the series, "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1." There is little to defend the film, which is the worst of the series, and the least watchable movie Robert Pattinson has ever made.

By the time the "Twilight" story gets to this flick, a ridiculous number of characters have been introduced. Very few are memorable or do much to justify their part in the story. The small Pacific Northwest town of Forks that makes for such an effective setting in the early films has given way to a globetrotting adventure that brings the story to Brazil and Italy. This appears to be for no other reason than the fact that they look pretty on film. What results is a needlessly complicated mess of a movie that isn't even entertaining. Moreover, it's the first part of a two-film finale, which means the whole thing just serves to set up the next movie. This makes it feel like a teaser trailer stretched out to nearly two hours, with as many long, dull, drawn-out moments as that assessment suggests.

On paper, "Remember Me" might not seem like it has what it takes to be Pattinson's worst non-"Twilight" movie. A coming-of-age film about college students and the strained relationships they have with their parents and each other, it's a largely unremarkable story. Sure, it goes through the motions, but it isn't egregiously bad for most of its runtime.

But then things go wrong for "Remember Me." This film's notorious twist left critics shocked, disgusted, and even offended. We won't spoil it in its entirety here, but suffice it to say that "Remember Me" uses the tragic events of September 11th to deliver a truly unearned gut-punch to unwary audiences. Rather than seeming deep, this smacks of exploitation of the emotions people feel about a horrible event that caused the deaths of thousands. For what it's worth, some outlets, like The Hollywood Reporter, praised Pattinson's performance in "Remember Me" — but that doesn't come anywhere close to redeeming the icky feeling this film leaves in its wake.

Guy de Maupassant's 1885 novel "Bel-Ami" has been adapted for both the big and small screens multiple times over the course of its history. The most recent cinematic attempt came in 2012, and boasts a strong cast including Robert Pattinson, Uma Thurman, Christina Ricci, and Kristin Scott Thomas. Pattinson plays an impoverished soldier who slowly acquires wealth and power through largely manipulative means.

Critics weren't kind to "Bel Ami," and they have cause. The film rushes through its plot and relies too much on the inherent gravitas all period pieces enjoy without actually having the substance to back it up. As for Pattinson's performance, opinions were dire: The Rotten Tomatoes consensus sums things up by pointing to his weak work as a fatal flaw. However, a few individual reviews were more positive. SFGATE praised his ability to subtly portray the lead character's ruthless drive and discomfort with dishonesty — two forces eternally in conflict. 

The amount of enjoyment someone will get out of "Bel Ami" hinges on two things: Their susceptibility to Pattinson's charms and their feelings about shallow-but-beautiful period pieces. Anyone who's into both of these things will likely find "Bel Ami" a fun way to spend a lazy Saturday afternoon ... if not a particularly memorable one.

If you're an up-and-coming actor looking to be taken more seriously, playing a historical figure is a solid route to take. Perhaps this is why Robert Pattinson, who'd gained mainstream attention for his role in "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" and was about to star in a vampire movie franchise, took on "Little Ashes." He plays the famed painter Salvador Dalí in this drama, which explores Dalí's friendship and eventual love affair with the poet Federico García Lorca.

Though this was a gutsy move on Pattinson's part, "Little Ashes" received mostly negative reviews. Critics slammed the movie for failing to build the sort of weight needed to tell a story about repressed sexuality, resulting in something flimsy and dull. However, "Little Ashes" did win a GLAAD Media Award for outstanding limited release film, which suggests it did something right. Moreover, some reviews, like The Philadelphia Inquirer's, praised the film for its bold heart and dreamy mood.

With the required character introductions and world building of the first film out of the way, the "Twilight" franchise is free to get right into the action with "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" ... but it doesn't exactly do that. In fact, this film is even more slowly-paced than its predecessor. This is undeniably frustrating, but there's also something to admire about it. It takes a certain amount of tenacity to double down on what preexisting fans like, rather than change things up in order to reach a wider moviegoing audience. 

"The Twilight Saga: New Moon" takes things slowly by abandoning the melodrama of the first film in favor of more realistic ground. Bella is depressed in this film, and we spend a lot of time with her in that dark place. Edward and Bella's romance is similarly rocky, even as it builds towards a far more fantastical plane. This makes it seem more human — in a manner of speaking. That said, plenty of critics found this installment an overlong bore. "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" simply doesn't care if non-superfans of the series are impatient, which means it's a delight for some and a flop for others.

"Queen of the Desert" stars Nicole Kidman as the real-life explorer Gertrude Bell, who accomplished more over the course of her multifaceted life than we could ever hope to touch on here. In fact, her life proved to be more than even an entire movie could touch on, as "Queen of the Desert" earned absolutely brutal reviews. What's more, this by-the-numbers disappointment was directed by Werner Herzog, who even at his worst still typically manages to create something complex and thought-provoking. Not here, sadly: The Independent even went so far as to call this film conventional.

That said, the film's performances were widely praised, with Pattinson earning particular acclaim for his turn as T. E. Lawrence. Moreover, Herzog still knows how to place a camera to make a scene look gorgeous: "Queen of the Desert" is a genuine visual treat. It might be brutally flawed, but if this film gets anyone to dig into Gertrude Bell's career (or watch the far superior documentary "Letters from Baghdad"), the whole thing was worth it. 

Behold "Twilight," the movie that launched a thousand memes about sparkly vampires and a thousand debates between members of Team Edward and Team Jacob. "Twilight" holds up best in terms of its simplicity, especially when compared to the rest of the franchise, which gradually ramps up to encompass a globe-spanning, centuries-long war between vampires, other vampires, and werewolves. The first film doesn't have to carry that weight around — it's just a fun little romantic dramedy that contains the most well-liked cliches of its genre and uses the trappings of magic and immortality as metaphors for teenage romance.

Like every movie in the series, "Twilight" can be a little heavy-handed, and not everyone's crazy about the messages it sends. But it still offers an interesting lens through which to view the agony and ecstasy of young love. It's really only the movie's distractingly subpar special effects and occasionally odd acting choices that seriously affect its modern watchability — and even those can be entertaining, in the right frame of mind.

"The Twilight Saga: Eclipse" occupies a pretty interesting place in the film franchise as a whole. As the third installment of a five-part series, it's only fitting that it marks a transitional point in terms of tone: Here, literally magical teen romance gives way to an action-fantasy epic. It handles this balance better than any of the series' other movies, which makes it something of a "best of both worlds" situation.

Sure, the ever-ballooning cast eventually becomes an issue for the franchise. But it isn't yet a major problem here. The extra players simply don't distract from the core ensemble, who remain the most engaging part of these films — in fact, "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse" fleshes them out in satisfying ways. The action finally starts to get good too, resulting in some exciting set pieces. They obviously don't compare to the epic final showdown to come, but they're definitely more focused and less of a mess than the ones featured in "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1." "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse" is a series high point, especially given the mess that immediately follows it.

"Waiting for the Barbarians" is a bit more disappointing than the other lesser movies of Robert Pattinson's career, largely because of how recently it was released. By 2019, the actor had really made a name for himself by picking solid projects — "Waiting for the Barbarians" is a rare miscalculation. But it's also a minor miscalculation, and far from a bad movie. In fact, of his worst-reviewed movies, it's the best one — though certainly not the most fun.

"Waiting for the Barbarians" is headlined by the underappreciated Mark Rylance, who plays the unnamed magistrate of a desert outpost that has remained  at peace prior to the events of the movie. Challenging that peace are characters played by Johnny Depp and Robert Pattinson.  This movie is rife with fantastic performances and never less than visually engaging, but the script and story leave something to be desired. This undercuts the movie as a whole, but those who can deal with its mediocre plot will find a lot to like in "Waiting for the Barbarians." 

"The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 2" may not be the best of Robert Pattinson's worst movies, in terms of critical reception. In fact, it may even struggle to crack the top three. But it is certainly the most fun and, therefore, the most watchable. By that same logic, it's debatable whether or not it's actually the best "Twilight" movie. But let's put it this way: This is the movie where everything is thrown at the wall. With nothing left to lose, as the series is coming to an end, all stakes are abandoned, and the story is free to go in whatever wild direction it wants to. Even the snobbiest film fans will have a hard time keeping themselves from smiling through the spectacle.

It isn't always easy to stick the landing with a franchise like this, but "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 2" pulls off a miracle by ending things on a high note. This is an especially impressive feat given just how bad the previous movie is. From its satisfying ending sequence to Michael Sheen's delightful scenery chewing, this finale abandons all notions of taking itself seriously in favor of sheer entertainment. If only the series had been willing to do that a bit sooner.