One of the Most Divisive Sci-Fi Tent Poles of the 21st Century Is Leaving Netflix

Remember when Christopher Nolan insisted on his 2020 movie Tenet being released theatrically before a proper vaccine roll-out had begun? And remember when, after his wishes had been granted, he severed ties with Warner Bros. because they didn’t extend the same courtesy to other filmmakers? Tenet remains perhaps the most controversial movie of Nolan’s career, and not just because of the drama behind its release. It earned uncharacteristically divisive reviews for the filmmaker, who was coming off the beloved World War II hit Dunkirk, which earned him his first Best Director nod at the Oscars. But Tenet, which was his most expensive movie till then, won only a single Oscar after leaving both critics and crowds confused. The movie is currently available on Netflix, but it’ll leave the service at the end of the month.

Released in 2020, only a few months after theaters had started to reopen, the movie made around $360 million globally, against a reported budget of more than $200 million. Tenet was inspired by espionage thrillers, but with plenty of Nolan’s trademark heady sci-fi. It is headlined by John David Washington, with a star-studded supporting cast that includes Elizabeth Debicki, Robert Pattinson, Kenneth Branagh, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and others. Tenet earned mixed reviews, and is now sitting at a 70% score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, where the consensus reads, “A visually dazzling puzzle for film lovers to unlock, Tenet serves up all the cerebral spectacle audiences expect from a Christopher Nolan production.”

Christopher Nolan Is Putting Together His Biggest Movie Yet

Nolan went on to redeem himself with the epic biographical thriller Oppenheimer, which won him his first Best Director Oscar and grossed nearly $1 billion worldwide. He’s now putting together what could be his biggest movie yet — The Odyssey, starring Matt Damon alongside Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Charlize Theron, and Pattinson. Washington went on to headline another sci-fi underperformer, director Gareth Edwards‘ The Creator, which grossed just over $100 million globally. He was last seen in the acclaimed Netflix drama The Piano Lesson, the latest milestone in his father Denzel Washington‘s mission to adapt writer August Wilson‘s work into film.

You have until January 1 to watch Tenet on Netflix. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.