Hamnet
Directed by Chloé Zhao
In late 16th-century England, Agnes, a healer sensitive to the world around her, builds a home with William, a local tutor and aspiring playwright. As their lives fracture, they are tested by distance, silence, and grief.
Where to Watch Hamnet
Hamnet Ratings & Reviews
- LivewireAdminDecember 8, 2025I think the only reason I was able to reasonably hold it together through this is because the person next to me in the theater was absolutely sobbing and essentially crying for the both of us. I say reasonably, I still had a few tears running down the side of my face. Amazing performances, specifically Jessie Buckley and Jacobi Jupe. I now feel the urge to consume a bunch of Shakespeare's work. I feel like understanding more of his plays will allow me to pick up on more things in this, it's the type of movie that feels incredibly layered. Shit, this actually has me considering a re-watch of Eternals
- Krista GloverFebruary 27, 2026I am absolutely broken after watching Hamnet. 😭 I had no idea Shakespeare had a son, Hamnet, who died at only 11 years old. The film shows how Hamlet wasn't just a play it was William’s way of saying goodbye to his son because he was away working when his son actually passed. By playing the Ghost himself in the play, Shakespeare metaphorically 'died' on stage so his son could be the one who stayed alive as Shakespeare wished had been the case in real life. Naming the play and the main character Hamlet was also his way of making sure that his son would continue to live on as long as it was performed on stage. This film deserves every Oscar. Prepare to cry your eyes out
- sopulaApril 14, 2026the first half of this movie was quite slow and i kept waiting for the killing and sorcery, didnt have any idea it was actually a real life story told mostly from shakespears' wife's perspective. in retrospect however the first half was very effective at immersing me into the ye old england. the final scenes are quite incredible whole film has excellent performances, sets and writing
- James SaenzApril 12, 2026“the rest is silence.” for almost the entirety of the runtime i felt disengaged from this film; i could feel it fervently trying to appeal to pathos, every single audio cue and directorial choice desperately trying to garner sympathy and manufacture an atmosphere of sorrow that hardly ever felt authentic. undoubtedly the performances were staggering (most obviously and notably from jessie buckley, who commands the scene in every second she’s on screen), but it felt like it was trying too hard to make me feel sad that it more often than not ended up making me feel ambivalent. the ending changed that for me. the moment agnes reaches out to touch the actor playing hamlet is the moment the film finally won me over and i broke down in tears. of course that’s the point and the thematic and emotional climax of the film, but it could’ve easily been mishandled and instead it stuck the landing. this made a very interesting double feature with sentimental value; both films circle around artists unable to communicate the complexities of their emotions in normal conversation and so seek to express themselves to their estranged loved ones through art. a beautiful concept that worked far better in sentimental value for me, but zhao also managed to deliver something here that touched me.
- rg9400February 4, 2026I bawled. Grief is such a hard thing to capture and convey in a movie. It's doubly hard when the viewer expects it. I think it's no secret what this movie is about, and a lot of viewers will go into it expecting that moment. For it to work despite those expectations is very impressive. Chloe Zhao's signature bucolic scenery is omnipresent throughout this movie, and there's this dusting of magical realism that gives the movie an almost ethereal feel. However, the real driving force of this movie is Jessie Buckley. Don't get me wrong, Paul Mescal is great as well. However, it is Buckley that is the living, beating heart of this movie, and all Zhao has to do is zoom into her face, and the rest just works. There is a scene where all she is doing is raising her hand to grasp someone, and it broke me. That scene is right up there with some of the best scenes I've seen this year, period. This is a movie about grief, and how we can process and experience it in different ways. I think Zhao and Buckley really capture that theme so poignantly in this movie. I do have one criticism though. The first third of this movie is very slow, and it feels overlong since it's mostly a prologue to the main theme of the movie. I was honestly worried about how I would feel about the movie during this section. Editing it down would have made the movie leaner without losing anything in my opinion. Regardless, this movie hit me hard, so I have to rank it as one of the best movies of the year. I hope Buckley gets her much deserved flowers.
- findersMarch 29, 2026Wow! I am not normally one for venturing to films with Oscar nominations, I often end up disappointed. Nor normally one for ‘period’ or ‘historical’ dramas. But Hamnet just simply and seamlessly draws you in. Jessie Buckley is magnetic. And a hats off to Noah Jupe whose performance (alongside Buckley and Paul Mescal) in the last 15 mins brought tears to the eye. Outstanding. Loved it. I’m getting soppy in my old age.
- russrev1ewsMarch 26, 2026I was really scared to watch this movie because I have a five year-old and I was struggling with the idea of having to watch the loss of a child. Nonetheless, I did watch and I am really glad I did because it was such a powerful movie about parenthood and the inner excavation that you feel as a parent. Like you really do lose a part of interior into the livelihood of your child and I think that’s a really hard thing to capture and Chloe Zhao did a great job of doing that. I thought all the performances were great and to quote my friend Evan, “it was a movie about death that made you want to live life.”
Watch Hamnet Videos
Hamnet Trivia
Hamnet was released on December 4, 2025.
Hamnet was directed by Chloé Zhao.
Hamnet has a runtime of 2h 5m.
Hamnet was produced by Pippa Harris, Liza Marshall, Sam Mendes, Steven Spielberg, Nicolas Gonda.
In late 16th-century England, Agnes, a healer sensitive to the world around her, builds a home with William, a local tutor and aspiring playwright. As their lives fracture, they are tested by distance, silence, and grief.
The key characters in Hamnet are Agnes (Jessie Buckley), Will (Paul Mescal), Mary (Emily Watson).
Hamnet is rated PG-13.
Hamnet is a Biography, Drama, History film.
Hamnet has an audience rating of 9.3 out of 10.
Hamnet had a budget of $30M.
Hamnet has made $107.8M at the box office.