Eddington, A24’s neo-Western thriller from Ari Aster, is finally finding its redemption on streaming. The film had an underwhelming run at the box office during its theatrical release over the summer.
FlixPatrol reports that Eddington soared to the top of HBO Max’s Top 10 Movies in the United States chart on Nov. 16, 2025 and has held onto its top spot today. The film beat out several other recent releases, including A24’s romantic comedy Materialists (#4), and Zach Cregger’s breakout horror hit Weapons (#6). Eddington features a star-studded cast including Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal, Luke Grimes, Deirdre O’Connell, Michael Ward and Austin Butler in addition to Stone, with its story exploring the COVID-19 pandemic in New Mexico.
Eddington’s story sees a standoff between Phoenix’s small-town sheriff and Pascal’s mayor character, resulting in a high-tension showdown that pits neighbor against neighbor in the titular town. Finding itself divided after the pandemic hits the area, Eddington’s citizens are left struggling — with the mayor implementing a lockdown and mask mandates that set up even more tension. Stone plays Louise Cross, the wife of Phoenix’s sheriff character.
Eddington had its world premiere at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival in May, with a wider theatrical release following in July. It received generally positive reviews from critics, and sits at a 68% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes — not quite stellar enough to be Certified Fresh. With a budget of $25 million, Eddington failed to find its footing at the box office, and it finished its run with a worldwide gross of just $13 million — making its newfound streaming redemption even more important.
The consensus on Rotten Tomatoes for the film praises the cast as well as Aster’s direction, but does note that “its tonal misdirection will often leave viewers wanting.” Audiences noted how the film expertly captured the pandemic-era trauma with “mixed results.” One reviewer gave the film a five-star review, deeming the film “totally unexpected” and added: “Getting sucker punched never felt so wrong and exhilarating at the same time!!”
Another critic was underwhelmed by the film, even calling it “extremely triggering”, in a two-and-a-half star review. “Great cast and was expecting more. Extremely triggering movie that I will not see again,” they wrote.
Emma Stone’s New Dark Comedy Is Off to a Great Start at the Box Office
EddingtonImage via Richard Foreman/A24
While Eddington may only be finding its footing now that it’s arrived on streaming, Emma Stone’s latest theatrical release has been an undeniable hit with audiences from the very beginning. Bugonia, Yorgos Lanthimos’s black comedy film, follows two young men as they kidnap a powerful CEO (Stone), believing her to be an alien trying to destroy Earth. Bugonia is already Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with a critics’ approval rating of 86%.
Bugonia sees a top-notch performance from Stone, with critics praising both her and co-star Jesse Plemons for offering ‘bonkers entertainment’. The film, which had a budget of $45 million, has already made $30 million worldwide since its U.S. theatrical release on Oct. 24. In CBR’s review of the film, Hannah Rose wrote: “This eccentric masterpiece is tailor-made to subvert and examine the current socio-political climate, but just offbeat and quirky enough for it to transcend this era of cinema.”
Eddington is now streaming on HBO Max.
Release Date
July 18, 2025
Runtime
149 minutes
Director
Ari Aster
Writers
Ari Aster
Producers
Ann Ruark, Lars Knudsen, Ari Aster
Joaquin Phoenix
Joe Cross
