Cannes praised Rex for portraying the “likable asshole” in the film and even said he should win Best Actor for his work out of the festival. “‘Red Rocket’ both advances and further clarifies what has become director Sean Baker’s signature hook, marking a now four-strong series that sees in the lives of sex workers a kind of key to unlock elements of the modern American experience,” TheWrap’s Ben Croll wrote in his review of the film.