20 Awesome Moments From TERRIBLE Recent Movies

Despite its topical AI-centric premise, new sci-fi thriller Mercy is basically a throwback to the junky cyber-thrillers of the 1990s, and commits the cardinal sin of strapping Chris Pratt into a chair for the bulk of the film's runtime, all while Rebecca Ferguson only interacts with him as a disembodied digital avatar.

It's all very silly and stupid, and while this could've been a fun time if it took itself a little less seriously, ultimately its suspiciously sympathetic sentiments towards AI can't help but come off as pretty damn icky.

But there is one great honest-to-God laugh early in the film when various reporters cover Chris Raven's (Chris Pratt) arrest for his wife's murder.

One of the reporters just so happens to be played by Jay Jackson, best known for his turn as iconic reporter Perd Hapley on the legendary TV sitcom Parks and Recreation.

Perd is such an institution in his own right that it's basically impossible to take Jackson seriously in the role of a genuine news reporter in a non-comedic film such as this.

Whether Jackson was cast as a strange joke or the casting department had simply never seen Parks and Rec, it's the one genuinely joyous moment in the entire film, and really all the indication we needed that, despite its best efforts, Mercy is a deeply unserious movie.