Chris Evans and Ana de Armas star in Ghosted, a 2023 romantic action comedy directed by Dexter Fletcher. The film was written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick alongside Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, adapting a story by Reese and Wernick. It premiered on Apple TV+ on April 21, 2023, produced by Skydance.
Trailer, via Apple TV.
Cole Turner Meets Sadie Rhodes
Cole Turner is an organic farmer who writes romance novels about agriculture. He meets Sadie Rhodes, a lonely professional who travels often, at a Washington, D.C. farmers’ market. They spend one night together, culminating in sex, before Cole returns home and finds his texts to Sadie going unanswered.
His sister suspects Sadie is ghosting him. Cole’s parents convince him to surprise Sadie in London, tracking her down via a tracker on his inhaler that he accidentally left in her bag.
Abducted to Pakistan
In London, Cole is kidnapped by arms dealers who mistake him for the legendary CIA operative “the Taxman.” They attempt to torture him with insects to extract a passcode. Sadie rescues him, revealing she is the Taxman herself.
The chase leads through the Khyber Pass, and Cole and Sadie escape their captors. Those kidnappers work for Leveque, a disgraced French Intelligence agent selling a stolen bioweapon called “Aztec,” which he needs the passcode to access.
Marco Warns Cole
Reaching a nearby town, Cole and Sadie argue over their lies to each other. They meet Marco, Sadie’s old contact and former lover, who warns Cole that Sadie puts the success of a mission before her boyfriends’ lives. Marco shows Cole his missing hand and agrees to take him home.
Their plan is interrupted by bounty hunters after Leveque puts a price on Cole’s head. Marco is killed, but the bounty hunters all kill each other.
Sadie Delivers Cole to Leveque
Sadie decides to recover Aztec using Cole as bait. She delivers him to Leveque, who leaves his henchman Wagner on a plane with Sadie, Cole, and the locked case containing Aztec.
Cole and Sadie’s cover is blown when Wagner discovers a picture of the two in bed together on Cole’s phone. Cole parachutes to safety with the Aztec case and a wounded Sadie, landing on Socotra Island.
The Review’s Verdict
Ghosted aims to be a breezy summer diversion, but its premise is thin and its execution is thinner still. The film is a comedy that treats its romantic leads as pawns in a spy thriller, and the two tones never quite reconcile.
Chris Evans plays Cole as earnest and bewildered, which mostly works in the early scenes. Ana de Armas plays Sadie as competent and secretive, but the script gives her little room to breathe. Adrien Brody shows up as Leveque, a disgraced agent hunting the passcode, and Mike Moh appears as Wagner, his henchman.
The rest of the cast fills out the background: Amy Sedaris as Mom, Tate Donovan as Dad, Tim Blake Nelson as Borislov, Marwan Kenzari as Marco, Anna Deavere Smith as Claudia Yates, Lizze Broadway as Mattie Turner, Mustafa Shakir as Monte Jackson, and Tiya Sircar as Patti.
A Plot Built on Stock Beats
The film’s structure is familiar: meet cute, abduction, rescue, betrayal, and a final stand. None of it lands with much force. The chase through the Khyber Pass is energetic but hollow, and the climax on Socotra Island feels like a placeholder rather than a destination.
The film’s tagline promises a real adventure, but the adventure is mostly a series of set pieces strung together without much purpose. Cole and Sadie barely get a chance to talk about their feelings before the action moves on.
A Premise That Can’t Support Itself
The core problem is simple: the film spends its runtime chasing a villain while forgetting why we should care about the couple at the center. The romantic comedy elements are buried under car chases and explosions, and the action sequences themselves are generic enough to be forgotten within seconds of their conclusion.
Ghosted is not a bad movie in the way that some films are bad. It is a movie that never commits to being anything in particular, and that indecision is its undoing.
A Film Worth Skipping
Ghosted is a forgettable entry in the action-comedy genre. It has moments of charm and a few decent action set pieces, but the central romance is underdeveloped and the villain’s scheme is too thin to support the runtime.
The film became Apple TV+’s most watched film debut despite its reception, which suggests audiences were drawn by name recognition rather than quality. That is not a compliment to the film, but it is a fact worth noting.
| Event | Location |
|---|---|
| Cole and Sadie meet | Washington, D.C. farmers’ market |
| Cole is abducted | London |
| Cole and Sadie escape | Khyber Pass |
| Marco is killed | Nearby town |
| Cole parachutes off the plane | Socotra Island |
Final Score
Ghosted is a pleasant enough watch for a lazy afternoon, but it is not a film that rewards attention. Its premise is a promising one, and its cast is capable, but the script never rises above its low expectations.
The film is a missed opportunity, and it is best left unwatched unless you are curious about how the marketing machine works.
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