Lili Reinhart and Lola Tung’s Witchy Movie Falls Apart in Every Way

When a horror film arrives with two recognizable young stars and an obvious spiritual ancestor in The Craft, expectations naturally run high. So when Forbidden Fruits — starring Lili Reinhart and Lola Tung — fails to deliver on that premise, the disappointment lands harder than it might with a lesser-hyped project.

According to a review published by Collider on March 19, 2026, written by Senior Film Editor Ross Bonaime, Forbidden Fruits is being described as a horror disaster — a film that squanders its cast, its premise, and any chance it had of standing alongside the witch-girl genre classics it clearly wants to emulate.

The review’s framing alone tells you a great deal: this is not a movie that tried and came close. It’s one that, by critical assessment, fails on multiple levels.

What Forbidden Fruits Was Supposed to Be

The comparison to The Craft — the 1996 cult classic about a coven of teenage witches — is baked directly into the film’s marketing and critical conversation. That film endures because it balanced genuine menace with character work that felt grounded and emotionally real. Forbidden Fruits appears to have aimed for that same territory and missed.

Lili Reinhart, best known for her long run on Riverdale, and Lola Tung, who broke through in The Summer I Turned Pretty, represent exactly the kind of casting that should generate buzz. Both have demonstrated real screen presence in their respective projects. The fact that the film still doesn’t work, despite that talent in front of the camera, points to deeper problems — likely at the script and direction level.

Bonaime’s review, published through Collider — one of the most widely read film criticism outlets in the industry — carries weight in shaping how audiences approach a release like this one.

Why This Kind of Film Is So Hard to Get Right

The witch-horror subgenre has a complicated track record. The Craft worked because it understood that the horror wasn’t just supernatural — it was social, emotional, and deeply tied to what it feels like to be young and powerless. Films that try to replicate that formula without understanding its emotional core tend to produce exactly the kind of result being described here.

There’s also a broader pattern worth noting. Female-led horror films that lean into supernatural sisterhood narratives face a specific challenge: they need to earn the darkness. When the character work isn’t there, the scares feel hollow and the empowerment themes feel hollow alongside them.

Forbidden Fruits, based on the Collider review, appears to fall into that trap — a film that has the aesthetic vocabulary of its influences without the substance underneath.

The Stars, the Source, and What the Review Tells Us

Bonaime is not a casual observer. His credentials — Tomatometer-approved, affiliated with both the Washington DC Area Film Critics Association and the Critics Choice Association — mean his assessment feeds into the aggregated critical scores that directly shape audience behavior and streaming platform placement.

A review this negative, from a source this prominent, published this early in a film’s cycle, can materially affect how the movie performs.

What This Means for Reinhart and Tung

For both stars, this is a notable stumble in what are still developing film careers. Reinhart has been working to transition beyond the Riverdale universe and establish herself as a film-first actress. Tung is still in the early stages of building a post-Summer I Turned Pretty identity on screen.

Neither career is damaged by one bad film — that’s not how this industry works. But a high-profile misfire in a genre that promised to showcase range and edge is a missed opportunity that both actresses and their teams will be aware of.

The more pressing question is whether the film finds any audience at all. Horror has a loyal fanbase that sometimes embraces critically dismissed films as cult objects. Whether Forbidden Fruits is bad in an entertaining way, or simply bad, will determine whether it has any afterlife beyond its opening cycle.

What Happens Next for the Film

With a damaging early review from a major outlet already in circulation as of March 19, 2026, the film faces an uphill battle with critics and potentially with audiences who track review aggregates before purchasing tickets or clicking play.

It’s worth watching whether other major outlets align with Bonaime’s assessment or offer a more generous read. A single review, even from a credentialed critic at a high-traffic publication, is one data point. If the consensus hardens around “disaster,” the film’s commercial window could close quickly.

For fans of Reinhart or Tung who were hoping this would be the project that redefined their careers, the honest advice is to temper expectations and perhaps wait for the full critical picture to develop before deciding whether to spend the time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who stars in Forbidden Fruits?
The film stars Lili Reinhart and Lola Tung in the lead roles.

Who reviewed Forbidden Fruits for Collider?
Ross Bonaime, Senior Film Editor at Collider and a Tomatometer-approved critic, published the review on March 19, 2026.

What film is Forbidden Fruits being compared to?
The review draws a direct comparison to The Craft, the 1996 cult horror film, which Forbidden Fruits is described as failing to match.

What is the overall critical verdict on the film?
Based on the Collider review, the film is described as a horror disaster that does not successfully recapture the magic of its obvious influences.

Does the negative review affect the film’s chances with audiences?
A high-profile negative review from a major outlet published early in a film’s cycle can influence aggregated scores and audience decision-making, though the full critical consensus has not yet been confirmed.

Is this review the final word on Forbidden Fruits?
No — this is one review from one outlet. Additional critical responses will shape the fuller picture of how the film is received overall.