Didn’t catch Civil War in theaters or want to watch the film again? A24’s new dystopian war movie made its digital debut before it arrives on Max sometime this year. Find out how to watch Civil War at home on sites like Apple TV and Prime Video, below.
Written and directed by Alex Garland, Civil War is set in a dystopian future in the U.S. “where a team of military-embedded journalists races against time to reach Washington, D.C., before rebel factions descend upon the White House,” the film’s synopsis reads. Kirsten Dunst stars alongside Wagner Moura, Cailee Spaeny, Stephen McKinley Henderson, and Nick Offerman in the Civil War cast.
In Civil War’s first trailer, a news broadcast announces that 19 states have seceded and uprisings are occurring across the nation. Lee, a veteran war photographer, and her team attempt to document it all on video. “The whole movie is open to interpretation,” Dunst, who plays Lee, told Variety ahead of the film premiere. “For me, there were things I just accepted that were unexplained. It allows the audience to fill in their own feelings about what they’re watching.”
Civil War’s director and writer told IndieWire he was “selective to what was presented according to what the journalists were moving through.” He explained, “If you unpack some of the moments or some of the statements within the moments, [the political world-building is] probably less ambiguous than it might appear at first blush.”
Garland continued, “But I think that’s probably actually something to do with the grammar of the way film often functions, which is to be very, very clear about everything at every moment. And because this is doing that less so, it feels like there’s an absence of something, but I’m not sure there really is an absence.”
Civil War marked A24’s widest release ever and the studio’s most expensive film at $55 million. The dystopian thriller grossed over $112 million worldwide and $67 million in domestically, according to Box Office Mojo. The film also became A24’s second-biggest release following the Oscar-winning 2022 film, Everything Everywhere All At Once, starring Michelle Yeoh.
The New Yorker critic Richard Brody wrote in his review that “the most common critique is that the movie’s writer and director, Alex Garland, films a visually recognizable world but downplays real-world politics, leaving out the particular ideologies that make this catastrophic conflict seem a part of our time.”
Form your own opinion about Civil War when you watch the film at home this weekend. Here’s how to tune in.
How To Watch Civil War At Home
As of May 24, Civil War is available to stream on video-on-demand sites Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, and Fandango At Home. You can purchase Civil War for $24.99 or rent the movie for $19.99. You have 30 days to start watching a rental and 48 hours to finish Civil War once it’s begun.
When Is Civil War Coming To Streaming?
Civil War will also eventually be available to stream Max, but the release date has not yet been announced. The film’s production company, A24, signed a deal with Warner Bros. Discovery in December 2023 to bring its theatrical films to the streaming site this year.
For reference, A24’s film Priscilla started streaming on Max in February 2024 — almost four months after its theatrical release in October 2023. If you apply a similar timeline to Civil War, the movie could land on Max as early as August 2024. Stay tuned to learn exactly when Civil War will be available on the streaming site.
Watch the official trailer for Civil War below.
