Poster © Warner Bros.. Shown at reduced size for review and commentary.
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GenreComedy
RatedPG-13
Runtime1 hr 26 mins
ReleasedFebruary 4, 1994
StreamingSee Where to Watch
DirectorTom Shadyac
StarringJim Carrey, Sean Young, Courteney Cox
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Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994)
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| Ace Ventura: Pet Detective's Details | |
| Genre | Comedy |
| Rated | PG-13 |
| Released | 02/04/1994 |
| Streaming | See Where to Watch on this page. |
| Running Time | 1 hr 26 mins |
| Budget | $15M (reported) |
| Box Office | Updated daily from Box Office Mojo. See the numbers below. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Ace Ventura: Pet Detective's Interests | |
| General | Hawaiian shirts, a gravity-defying pompadour, a secret apartment zoo, football, dolphins, more dolphins. |
| Music | Ira Newborn. The score knows it's in a cartoon and leans all the way in. |
| Movies | The Mask (1994). Same year, same Jim Carrey, a lot more green. |
| Television | In Living Color. Where Carrey warmed up all these faces first. |
| Heroes | Dan Marino. Playing himself, nailing it. |
| Ace Ventura: Pet Detective's Crew | |
| Director | Tom Shadyac |
| Writers | Jack Bernstein, Tom Shadyac, Jim Carrey, Jack Bernstein (story) |
| Producers | James G. Robinson |
| Cinematography | Julio Macat |
| Music | Ira Newborn |
| Edited By | Don Zimmerman |
| Production | Morgan Creek Productions |
| Distributed By | Warner Bros. |
Jim Carrey plays Ace Ventura like a cartoon that escaped the TV and refuses to go back in, and the movie around him barely exists. The mystery is flimsy, Courteney Cox is stuck explaining it, and the big reveal at the end is built on a mean joke that has aged terribly. What’s left is 86 minutes of a man using every joint in his body as a punchline. His apartment is basically a zoo with a lease, and the second the landlord leaves, animals pour out of every cabinet. He goes undercover in a tutu and shoulder pads and narrowly escapes a shark at a billionaire’s party. Dan Marino plays himself with the stiffness of a guy reading cue cards, which is weirdly charming. Critics landed at 48% on Rotten Tomatoes, while crowds gave it an A minus CinemaScore. A 5.4 because Carrey is a force of nature stuck in a movie made of cardboard. $4,173 says the next time a pet goes missing on your street, you volunteer to help, in a Hawaiian shirt.
What works: Jim Carrey’s fearless physical comedy, the apartment full of hidden animals, and Dan Marino gamely playing it straight.
What doesn’t: The mystery is paper thin, Courteney Cox gets almost nothing to do, and the ending leans on a cruel joke that has aged terribly.
Who it’s for: Fans of rubber-faced slapstick who can enjoy Carrey’s bits and roll their eyes at the ending.
Spoilers
Lieutenant Einhorn is revealed to be Ray Finkle, the former Dolphins kicker who missed a Super Bowl field goal and blamed Dan Marino. The film plays that reveal as a big gross-out gag, which is the part that has aged worst, and Ace gets Snowflake and Marino back in time for the second half.
Ace Ventura (Jim Carrey) is a Miami private eye who only takes animal cases, and the local cops treat him like a running joke. Then Snowflake, the dolphin who serves as the Miami Dolphins' mascot, gets snatched from his tank right before the Super Bowl. Team publicist Melissa Robinson (Courteney Cox) hires Ace to bring him home, and Ace starts snooping around a billionaire's private zoo. Tom Shadyac directs, Dan Marino plays himself, and Carrey's hair does its own stunts. Eighty-six minutes, zero chill.
Anyone with a missing pet and a high tolerance for hair. Alrighty then.
| Jim Carrey | Ace Ventura |
| Sean Young | Lt. Lois Einhorn / Ray Finkle |
| Courteney Cox | Melissa Robinson |
| Tone Lōc | Emilio |
| Dan Marino | Himself |
| Noble Willingham | Riddle |
| John Capodice | Sgt. Aguado |
| Raynor Scheine | Woodstock |
| Frank Adonis | Vinnie |
| Tiny Ron | Roc |
| Troy Evans | Roger Podacter |
| Udo Kier | Ronald Camp |
| David Margulies | Doctor |
| Bill Zuckert | Mr. Finkle |
| Judy Clayton | Martha Mertz |
| Alice Drummond | Mrs. Finkle |
| Rebecca Ferratti | Sexy Woman |
| Mark Margolis | Mr. Shickadance |
| Randall "Tex" Cobb | Gruff Man |
| Cannibal Corpse | themselves |
- (cur | prev) 14:30, 17 October 2026 DataBot +480 Numbers refreshed: Worldwide box office $107.2M; Domestic box office $72.2M; Opening weekend $12.1M; Profit / loss (est.) +$31.1M; Rotten Tomatoes 48%; CinemaScore A−; box office chart updated; Rotten Tomatoes critics 48%; Metacritic 37 / 100; CinemaScore A−; IMDb users 6.9 / 10 (359,146 votes); movie.guru score 4.8.
- (cur | prev) 12:00, 17 October 2026 DataBot +2,000 Profile created from Wikipedia and Box Office Mojo: cast, crew, release dates, budget, official trailer.