Denzel Washington and Spike Lee have been collaborating since 1990’s Mo’ Higher Blues, and the 2 legends have been real staples inside the trade. The film adopted Washington’s Bleek Gilliam, a fictional musician struggling to seek out his method in life. It was their earliest effort collectively, and the 2 award-winning stars would go on to function in lots of extra collaborations.
The duo shortly elected to reunite in Malcolm X (1992), which was a critically famend masterpiece that noticed Washington taking part in historic activist Malcolm X and Lee as Shorty. Their subsequent collaboration was He Obtained Recreation (1998), a sports activities drama that noticed Lee within the driver’s seat as the author and director.
It will not be till Inside Man in 2006 that the pair would collaborate once more, and the heist film went on to thrill critics and earn a powerful field workplace. Whereas they don’t at all times work collectively, as they’ve created numerous productions aside, each Washington and Lee film proved to be entertaining and comparatively profitable.
Highest 2 Lowest Continues Washington & Lee’s Rotten Tomatoes Streak
Denzel Washington sitting on the subway in Highest 2 Lowest
The 2 actors reunited for Apple TV+’s Highest 2 Lowest, and the thriller is already setting a powerful report on Rotten Tomatoes. Primarily based on the Japanese procedural Excessive and Low (1963), this film marks the primary time that Lee and Washington have labored collectively in 18 years, which is itself a powerful accomplishment.
Lee serves because the director, whereas Washington stars as music mogul David King. When King is confronted with a ransom, he’s compelled to face numerous threats as he works to convey his life again to regular. The film was launched in theaters and can start streaming on Apple TV+ on September 5, 2025.
With a 90% Tomatometer rating and an 88% Popcornmeter rating on Rotten Tomatoes, Highest 2 Lowest is continuous a uncommon streak on the evaluation aggregator. This new launch continues a powerful legacy as each considered one of Washington and Lee’s many reunion films has acquired a contemporary designation, regardless of the lengthy look ahead to this newest collaboration.
What This Means For Highest 2 Lowest
Denzel Washington in Highest 2 Lowest poster cropped
It ought to come as no nice shock {that a} Washington and Lee film is critically acclaimed. The pair has by no means disenchanted viewers, as they have an inclination to convey an vitality to every manufacturing that few different pairs can match. Try the chart beneath, which showcases the spectacular accomplishment in depth:
Title
Tomatometer Rating
Popcornmeter Rating
Mo’ Higher Blues
71%
75%
Malcolm X
89%
91%
He Obtained Recreation
80%
83%
Inside Man
86%
85%
Highest 2 Lowest
90%
88%
Their first joint launch was their most disappointing, and even that had scores of over 70% in each Rotten Tomatoes classes. Highest 2 Lowest, in contrast, has earned a 90% Tomatometer rating and an 88% Popcornmeter rating. These outcomes point out that it’s about as spectacular as Malcolm X was.
With few different new releases on the field workplace this week, good word-of-mouth needs to be a terrific boon for Highest 2 Lowest. Critics praised the performances, visuals, and the extraordinary humorousness, and audiences had been equally enthused. Like all of their different releases, Washington and Lee needs to be pleased with their newest thriller, and it will not be shocking if there may be sturdy Oscar potential.
Highest 2 Lowest
7/10
Launch Date
August 15, 2025
Runtime
133 minutes
Writers
Alan Fox, Akira Kurosawa, Hideo Oguni, Ryūzō Kikushima, Eijirō Hisaita, Evan Hunter
Producers
Todd Black, Jason Michael Berman
