‘Jackpot!’ Review – The Hunger Games But For Wanna-Be-Billionaires

You can become a billionaire in many ways—lottery, bingo, scratch card, etc. However, none of those games comes close to the vicious one Paul Feig (Bridesmaids, Spy) wants you to play (or at least watch) in Jackpot!. While you can make multiple billions by killing the jackpot winner in this movie, Feig won’t cash in that much because his latest feature is – despite being strongly performed – a humourless and predictable one.

It’s not because of the lack of trying, though. Feig can count on a solid cast with tangible chemistry. On the one hand, you have Awkwafina – who, after playing more supporting characters in Renfield and Crazy Rich Asians  – can now finally take centre stage as former child star Katie. After years of absence because of her sick mother, Katie has returned to LA to try her luck again. Lady Luck is certainly on her side, but not in the way she expects. After being repeatedly rejected for an acting role, she gets involved in the $3+ billion jackpot by accidentally unlocking the lottery card of her Airbnb host.

Oh yes, did we mention that this movie is taking place in 2030, so the tickets are much more sci-fi-y than the ones you can buy these days? Like many people in the city, Katie has been struck by the Great Depression of 2026, so this big jackpot would be a very welcome surprise. The only catch is that she has to stay alive until sundown and that everyone else is out to kill her – no guns allowed, though – so that they can claim her jackpot.

An action-comedy, supposedly entertaining film is right up Awkwafina’s street. During the post-screening Q&A with Feig and writer Rob Yescombe (Outside the Wire, Always the Sun), the filmmaker talked about his love for Jackie Chan, and when watching Awkwafina in Jackpot!, that love becomes evident. She portrays a Jackie Chan-esque role and pulls it off beautifully with her usual determination, charisma and wittiness. Sadly, her performance doesn’t reach the same levels as the ones in her previous films. Not because Awkwafina can’t co-lead a movie. No, it’s because the weak script doesn’t do her any favours. She only gets forgettable one-liners, unfunny jokes, and the obligatory choppy action to work with. While the actress is game, she can only play with what Yescombe has given her, which sadly isn’t much.

John Cena (Freelance, Fast X) faces the same problems as Awkwafina as the freelance lottery protector, Noel, who takes the understandably skeptical Katie under his wing. But is this man, who came literally falling from the sky, trustworthy or will he double-cross Katie to get his hands on the big pile of money? That ‘will he or won’t he’ question is interwoven throughout most of the unwieldy storyline, and while it does create some hilarious moments, it’s not used to its full potential.

What is significantly used, though, is Cena’s physicality and experience as a WWE wrestler. While Katie is witty with words – usually at the expense of her protector – Noel’s specialty is fighting off the bad guys and money-hungry, fame-craving LA residents. Whether it’s having to kick someone in their intimate parts, hit someone in the face, or strap Katie on his back, Noel does it all flawlessly, thanks to Cena’s robust and rock-solid performance. Cena also shows the audience the soft and emotional side of his character by ensuring that Noel comes across as a fun, caring and sensitive man. Doing so makes him less of the stereotypical rough-tough guy you often see in similar features.

Awkwafina and Cena could have easily carried this movie on their own, and when you bring them together, you get action-comedy fireworks (as much as the script allows them). You instantly feel the respect between the two, resulting in a heartwarming and exciting moment in Machine Gun Kelly’s panic room (don’t ask!) and a strong stand-off with Noel’s former colleague turned selfish and greedy protector Louis Lewis (a slick Simu Liu). They occasionally also create surprisingly hilarious moments, especially the one involving Kim Kardashian’s head.

You have an actress who knows her way around words and an actor who’s excellent in a physically challenging role, and together, they have great chemistry. So then, why doesn’t Jackpot! hit the mark? Well, we already touched upon it; it’s the unbalanced script. The ‘more action, the better’ is the motto of this movie from the start. Forget explanations; they’re clearly of no importance to the filmmaker. The ones at the beginning are so hasty that you barely have time to process the information before someone throws the first in-movie punch. From then onwards, the director wants to concatenate as many ludicrous action scenes as possible. While doing so, he forgets to create a cohesive storyline and solid characters.

Also, when Jackpot! is about to reach its climax, you will have had enough of the over-the-top and too-energetic characters and the predictable and repetitive moments. Dialling down the speed, wisecracks and violence and instead creating structured characters and surprising moments would have ensured that Awkwafina and Cena could have shone much more and that the feature could have been right on the money.

Jackpot! is now available to stream exclusively on Prime Video.