25 Years Later, Heath Ledger’s Cult Fantasy Romance Exits the Realm of Free Streaming

3 weeks ago 11

Published Mar 15, 2026, 12:00 PM EDT

Ryan O'Rourke is a Senior News Writer at Collider with a specific interest in all things adult animation, video game adaptations, and the work of Mike Flanagan. He is also an experienced baseball writer with over six years of articles between multiple outlets, most notably FanSided's CubbiesCrib. Whether it's taking in a baseball game, a new season of Futurama or Castlevania: Nocturne, or playing the latest From Software title, he is always finding ways to show his fandom. When it comes to gaming and anything that takes inspiration from it, he is deeply opinionated on what's going on. Outside of entertainment, he's a graduate of Eureka College with a Bachelor's in Communication where he honed his craft as a writer. Between The IV Leader at Illinois Valley Community College and The Pegasus at Eureka, he spent the majority of his college career publishing articles on everything from politics to campus happenings and, of course, entertainment for the student body. Those principles he learned covering the 2020 election, Palestine, and so much more are brought here to Collider, where he has gleefully written on everything from the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes to Nathan Lane baby-birding sewer boys.

HBO began the year by once again enrapturing viewers in the world of Game of Thrones with the release of the new series, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Following Sir Duncan the Tall (Peter Claffey) and his squire, Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell), the show delivers a smaller-scale, lower-stakes adventure in Westeros that focuses less on the fantastical elements and political machinations of the flagship show and more on how a lowly hedge knight gets by and makes a difference in such an unforgiving land. It's also much different tonally, taking a more optimistic and comedic approach in between the drama through its pure-hearted main character. The approach brings to mind another, more anachronistic medieval story featuring the late great Heath Ledger in one of his most underrated roles.

Released in 2001, A Knight's Tale casts Ledger as a low-born squire named William Thatcher who, like Dunk, has just lost his master. To prove his worth and change his fate, he assumes the identity of a noble knight to participate in jousting tournaments, making waves in the medieval world as he racks up a series of wins and earns the respect of legendary figures like Edward the Black Prince (James Purefoy). Most of all, though, he becomes infatuated with the noblewoman Jocelyn (Shannyn Sossamon) and aims to win her hand in marriage over his rival, Count Adhemar of Anjou (Rufus Sewell), while cementing his legend as more than just a simple peasant. Mixing comedy, romance, and action alike, the film is available to watch right now for free on Tubi, but not for much longer.

A Knight's Tale will be one of the many titles leaving the ad-supported streamer's catalog after March 31, leaving just over two weeks to catch Brian Helgeland's film before it rides off into the sunset. Helgeland, who would go on to helm the baseball biopic 42 starring Chadwick Boseman and, more recently, Finestkind with Jenna Ortega, both wrote and helmed the medieval story just two years before his team-up with director Clint Eastwood on the Oscar-winning Mystic River hit the big screen. His starry cast also featured the talents of Mark Addy, Paul Bettany, Laura Fraser, and Alan Tudyk, who would reunite with the filmmaker on 42.

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'A Knight's Tale' Has Formed a Legend of Its Own

Critics and audiences initially weren't rocked by Ledger's romantic 14th-century adventure, but it still managed to earn a respectable $117.5 million at the box office. The perception of A Knight's Tale has grown in the years since then, too. It currently holds a 79% from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes and has been recognized as a worthwhile action comedy comfort watch, elevated by the Oscar winner and his co-stars' performances. Although still overshadowed by Ledger's legendary turns in Brokeback Mountain and The Dark Knight, it's carved itself a spot in his filmography as one of the films that helped elevate him into the icon he was.

A Knight's Tale departs Tubi at the end of the month. Stay tuned here at Collider for more on the biggest titles coming to and leaving streaming throughout the month.