The film was met with mainly positive reviews. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, "Beowulf" received a rating of 71% based on 197 reviews, with an average rating of 6.55/10. The website's consensus reads, "Featuring groundbreaking animation, stunning visuals, and a talented cast, "Beowulf" has in spades what more faithful book adaptations forget to bring: pure cinematic entertainment." On Metacritic, the film had an average score of 59 out of 100, based on 35 reviews, indicating "mixed or average" reviews. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B-" on an A+ to F scale.