Margot Robbie’s over-the-top and criminally underrated R-rated epic is about to leave streaming. Robbie is arguably the modern queen of R-rated hits, starring in Martin Scorsese’s fantastically misunderstood The Wolf of Wall Street (we all know one man who wanted to be Jordan Belfort after watching that film), Emerald Fennel’s recent Wuthering Heights, and Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood. But that Australian star power doesn’t always culminate in box office success. Several of her movies have flopped in theaters, like 2018’s underrated Terminal. But one of her most notorious box office flops is a truly misunderstood R-rated modern masterpiece, and it’s about to be removed from streaming.
Released in 2022, Margot Robbie starred alongside several major A-listers in Damien Chazelle’s most polarizing movie to date. Babylon might not have connected with audiences in theaters (admittedly, it was released during the COVID pandemic — even Christopher Nolan’s Tenet flopped), but since being added to streaming, it’s become a certified cult classic. Babylon was added to Netflix’s streaming library in 2025, and just like the silent movie era, Babylon‘s time on streaming is coming to an end. Babylon will leave Netflix on Jun. 1, 2026.
Chazelle wrote and directed Babylon. Margot Robbie co-led Babylon as Nellie LaRoy, an aspiring actress in 1920s Hollywood. Brad Pitt arguably led the movie as Jack Conrad, who was once the king of Hollywood during the silent era. The film follows several Hollywood legends and up-and-comers as the industry shifts from silent movies to talkies. If you thought actors were over-the-top and excessive nowadays, Babylon is excess incarnate. With a cast that includes Samara Weaving, Tobey Maguire, Spike Jonze, Eric Roberts, Olivia Wilde, Diego Calva, Phoebe Tonkin, and Jean Smart, Babylon features some absolutely bonkers party scenes, with one involving an elephant.
‘Babylon’ Deserved Better
Babylon is easily Margot Robbie’s most contentious movie. The Wolf of Wall Street and Terminal were the subject of some controversy, but Babylon completely divided audience and critics in 2022. The film holds a split 57% Rotten Tomatoes score, with an even more divided 52% audience score. Those poor reviews (and a cheeky little global pandemic happening at the same time) resulted in Babylon grossing just $65 million worldwide, against a budget of roughly $110 million.
Despite having the director of Whiplash at its helm, Babylon wasn’t an immediate hit. It took time for Letterboxd users to get their hands on the film and completely obsess over it. It’s still not considered a completely overlooked masterpiece, as it still has its haters (partly because of its excessive runtime). But Babylon has now found its fan base.
‘Babylon’ is Still a Multi-Oscar-Nominee
Babylon might have been slated by audiences and critics, but, unsurprisingly, a gigantic movie with Margot Robbie and Brad Pitt about the Golden Age of Hollywood was always going to get The Academy excited. Babylon earned three Oscar nominations in 2023, and, quite fittingly, the nominations were for how the movie was made. The film’s production design, score, and costume design were all noticed by The Academy.
Credit: Source link