The Bikeriders becomes a hit on streaming after a disappointing run at the box office. Directed by Jeff Nichols and based on Danny Lyon's photo book of the same name, The Bikeriders stars Austin Butler as Benny, a young biker who finds himself torn between his loyalty to his new club, the Vandals, and Kathy (Jodie Comer), his girlfriend. The film, which stars Tom Hardy as Johnny, the violent leader of the Vandals, was released earlier this year and grossed only $35.8 million worldwide.
The Bikeriders' Streaming Success Explained
Why The Tom Hardy Movie Disappointed In Theaters
Made on an estimated budget of $40 million, The Bikeriders failed to break even in theaters despite positive reviews and an impressive cast. The film currently enjoys a respectable 80% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes and scored 75% with audiences. A major reason for the film's underperformance is its budget, as mid-budget movies that lack the spectacle of big-budget blockbuster fare can be a harder sell in theaters these days. The film's biker gang subject matter and historical setting probably also gave the project more niche appeal.
Using the standard Hollywood rule of thumb,
The Bikeriders
was likely looking at a break-even point of roughly $80 million to $100 million.
That being said, Butler, Hardy, and Comer are evidently enough to draw audiences on streaming. Hardy has been a reliable talent for years now, and, in addition to playing Venom, he's made a name for himself in the mid-budget thriller space in which he often plays unique, highly flawed characters. Butler, too, is very much a star on the rise as he recently starred as Feyd-Rautha in Dune: Part Two, which was critically acclaimed, as well as Apple TV+'s 2024 miniseries, Masters of the Air.
Though The Bikeriders' reviews and cast may not have been enough to drive the film to success in theaters, these two factors can evidently be powerful benefits on streaming. Audiences these days are more picky about what movies are worth seeing in theaters, often turning to big-budget blockbuster fare, but the streaming landscape means that movies like Nichols' 2024 crime thriller can still find success in the months and years after their releases. While The Bikeriders may have struggled in theaters, it's clear that the film is now finding its audience.
What The Bikeriders' Theatrical Failure Means For The Cast
How Big Of A Deal Is It For Austin Butler & Jodie Comer?
Hardy continues to work regularly inside and outside of Hollywood, and The Bikeriders' disappointing box office haul is unlikely to do any major damage to his career. Hardy, after all, is tried and true at this point and has a number of hits under his belt, and he's a known enough quantity that one bump in the road won't have a noticeable impact on the types of roles he's offered moving forward. The film's underperformance could, however, at least in theory, be more meaningful to stars like Butler and Comer, who are in earlier stages of their careers.
Though Hardy, Butler, and Comer are all well-regarded actors, the underperformance of
The Bikeriders
speaks to the changing entertainment landscape and the fact that very few stars now have the ability to open a film purely on the power of their name alone.
After appearing in 2019's Once Upon A Time... in Hollywood, Butler rose to fame with 2022's Elvis, for which he was nominated for Best Actor. His next major theatrical release was Dune: Part Two earlier this year, which was a critical and commercial smash hit. Both Elvis and Dune: Part Two, however, have audience appeal factors beyond Butler's involvement. The Bikeriders, by contrast, used Butler's star power as more of a selling point, and the film's box office haul could send a message that his name alone isn't enough to draw audiences to theaters.
The Bikeriders' Key Figures
Estimated Budget
Worldwide Box Office
Rotten Tomatoes Critics' Score
Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter Score
Metacritic Score
Metacritic User Score
$40 million
$35.8 million
80%
75%
70.100
6.1/10
Comer has become one of the most exciting actors working in Hollywood today, but she hasn't yet become an actor around which to anchor a film. 2021's Free Guy, for example, which was a hit, is very much a Ryan Reynolds movie and was marketed as such, even though she plays a prominent role in it. Though Hardy, Butler, and Comer are all well-regarded actors, the underperformance of The Bikeriders speaks to the changing entertainment landscape and the fact that very few stars now have the ability to open a film purely on the power of their name alone.
Since the 1950s, there have been some great motorcycle-themed, on-the-road films that pair perfectly with Austin Butler's The Bikeriders.
What Tom Hardy Is Doing After The Bikeriders
What Projects The Actor Has On The Horizon
The most high-profile release on Hardy's horizon is undoubtedly the upcoming Venom: The Last Dance, due out on October 25, 2024, which will conclude his trilogy of villain-centric films in the Sony Spider-Man Universe. It's still entirely possible, however, that Hardy will reprise his role as Eddie Brock/ Venom in a cameo capacity in future films. There was, at one point, talk of Hardy reprising his role as Max Rockatansky for Mad Max: The Wasteland, but the failure of 2024's Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga suggests this now probably won't be happening.
The upcoming Hardy project that is most in line with The Bikeriders, however, is a film called Havoc. Hailing from The Raid director Gareth Evans, Havoc is set to star Hardy as a detective fighting his way through the criminal underworld, and, while it doesn't yet have a firm release date, Evans revealed in a social media post in July that he hopes the film will release in the first quarter of 2025. For now, though, those looking for a memorable Hardy role can watch The Bikeriders on Peacock.
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