Rebecca Ferguson's Movie Debut Was This Obscure Swedish Horror With Only 11% On Rotten Tomatoes (2024)

Silo'sRebecca Ferguson joined the Mission Impossible franchise in 2015 and started gaining the wide recognition she deserved, but her movie debut came over a decade before that in an obscure Swedish horror that received terrible reviews. Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation was Ferguson's first Hollywood movie, coming off of a Golden Globe-nominated performance in the BBC miniseries, The White Queen, but she spent the first part of her career in her home country of Sweden. After starring in multiple Swedish soap operas, Ferguson was recruited to join director Mikael Hafstrom's 2004 slasher, Drowning Ghost.

After establishing herself in commercial successes like The Greatest Showman and Dune, you'd fully expect to be able to trace Rebecca Ferguson's acting roots back to something more well-received. However, Drowning Ghost was mostly a failure, with only an 11% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes' Popcornmeter. Luckily for Ferguson, her performance in the Swedish horror movie caught the eyes of other directors, leading her down a path toward international success, and she has definitely come a long way since.

Rebecca Ferguson's First Proper Movie Was A Surprisingly Obscure Swedish Horror

Drowning Ghost Was Trashed By Audience Members On Rotten Tomatoes

The plot of Drowning Ghost, originally released under its Swedish title of Strandvaskaren, centers around a boarding school where students investigate an urban legend about a series of killings 100 years prior. After the death of a fellow student, a dark mystery begins to unfold on the anniversary of the killer's actions. Rebecca Ferguson portrays the school bully Amanda, a supporting character that doesn't add much substance to the plot beyond being the drama-stirring girlfriend of another character. The slasher genre isn't very crowded among Swedish filmmakers, and that might be for a good reason.

When Drowning Ghost was initially released, critics labeled it as a failed attempt to mimic some of the best classic American slasher films like Halloween and Friday the 13th. Audiences weren't very kind either, according to the 11% popcornmeter rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and a wide variety of negative reviews on IMDB. The main criticisms are about the movie's messy plot and how it serves as a generic slasher, similar to what critics had pointed out. One audience member who shared their thoughts on Rotten Tomatoes even stated that this was "probably the worst, most pathetic attempt at horror ever made, but also hysterically funny." So. what was intended to be a new kind of experience for Swedish viewers, ended up being trashed and laughed at.

Rebecca Ferguson's Role In Drowning Ghost Shows How Far She's Come In 20 Years

Dune: Part 2 Wouldn't Be As Good If Ferguson Never Came To America

Rebecca Ferguson is the only Drowning Ghost cast member to achieve international recognition. Ferguson now dominates Hollywood's box office and her films keep receiving higher Rotten Tomatoes audience scores. After the failure of her obscure movie debut, Ferguson received the opportunity to star in acclaimed Swedish director Richard Hobert's 2011 twisted drama A One-Way Trip to Antibes. Ironically, that movie also holds an 11% popcornmeter rating, but it secured Ferguson a Rising Star Award nomination when it premiered at the Stockholm International Film Festival. This established the actress enough to take her career to the next level, leading the 10-part UK historical drama The White Queen, an Emmy-nominated hit.

20 years after Drowning Ghost was released and secured its low ratings, Rebecca Ferguson is highly respected and sought-after in Hollywood. She starred alongside Tom Cruise in three Mission Impossible titles, including 2023's Dead Reckoning Part One, where she performs her own stunts and gets people talking. Ferguson has also received huge praise for her portrayal of Lady Jessica, the true mastermind behind Dune: Part Two. The character's intriguing arch, perfected by Ferguson's acting ability, captured audiences' attention and shocked fans of the novel by expanding Lady Jessica's character. Rebecca Ferguson was never going to be defined by the mess that was Drowning Ghost, and she continues her reign of terror in season 2 of Apple TV's Silo this November.

Rebecca Ferguson