Scarlett Johansson's "Masterpiece" Hit $73M Sci-Fi Officially Releases On HBO Max In 2 Weeks

Published May 22, 2026, 5:10 PM EDT

Adam Bentz is a senior news writer at ScreenRant, where he has authored nearly 5,000 articles, including features and lists. He studied creative writing and English with a concentration in screenwriting at Southern New Hampshire University and interned as a writer/journalist for The Borgen Project, an influential organization that fights global poverty.

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Eight years after its theatrical debut, Isle of Dogs is releasing on HBO Max in two weeks. Written and directed by Wes Anderson, the stop-motion animated film follows a 12-year-old boy who, after an outbreak of canine flu forces a Japanese city to banish all dogs to an island used as a garbage dump, arrives on the island to find his beloved pet.

Now, following its theatrical release in 2018, Isle of Dogs is officially coming to HBO Max on June 1, per Warner Bros. Discovery. Other movies coming to the streaming service on that date include A History of Violence (2005), Contagion (2011), Hell or High Water (2016), Mid90s (2018), Midsommar (2019), Room (2015), and The Rock (1996).

Isle of Dogs' cast consists of Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, Bob Balaban, Jeff Goldblum, Bill Murray, Kunichi Nomura, Akira Takayama, Greta Gerwig, Frances McDormand, Scarlett Johansson, Liev Schreiber, F. Murray Abraham, Tilda Swinton, Yoko Ono, Harvey Keitel, Ken Watanabe, Mari Natsuki, Fisher Stevens, Nijirō Murakami, Courtney B. Vance, Yojiro Noda, Frank Wood, Roman Coppola, Anjelica Huston, and Kara Hayward.

At the time of release, Isle of Dogs received rave reviews, resulting in a 90% Rotten Tomatoes score, with critics claiming that its gorgeously crafted stop-motion animation showcases Wes Anderson at his most meticulous and delivers one of his most delightfully charming and endearing stories. It also has an 87% audience score.

Several critics called Isle of Dogs a "masterpiece," including Adele Campisi of Loud and Clear Reviews, who named it "Wes Anderson's underrated masterpiece, mixing the originality of The Royal Tenenbaums, the visuals of The Grand Budapest Hotel, and the cuteness of Fantastic Mr. Fox." Doug Jamieson of The Jam Report called it "another visually glorious and absurdly quirky masterpiece from the hipsters' god of cinema, Wes Anderson."

Mike Scott of the Times-Picayune praised it as "an artful and entertaining gem that is at turns whimsical and thoughtful, humorous and heartfelt, silly and sweet -- and an artistic masterpiece, to boot." Rick Bentley of the Tribune News Service said, "In a career already filled with unforgettable work, Anderson has found his animation masterpiece."

Isle of Dogs grossed $73 million at the box office against its approximately $35 million budget, and went on to receive two Oscar nominations for Best Animated Feature Film and Best Score for Alexandre Desplat.

Release Date March 23, 2018

Runtime 102minutes