The Black Phone (2022)
Never talk to strangers.
Finney Blake, a shy but clever 13-year-old boy, is abducted by a sadistic killer and trapped in a soundproof basement where screaming is of little use. When a disconnected phone on the wall begins to ring, Finney discovers that he can hear the voices of the killer’s previous victims. And they are dead set on making sure that what happened to them doesn’t happen to Finney.
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| Type | Movie |
|---|---|
| Released | 16 June 2022 |
| Genre | Horror, Thriller |
| Director | Scott Derrickson |
| Starring | Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw and Ethan Hawke |
| Runtime | 103 min |
| Rated | R |
| Scores | Rotten Tomatoes (average) 7.0 · Metacritic 65/100 · Rotten Tomatoes 81% · TMDB users 7.5/10 |
| Budget | $18 million |
| Box office | $156 million worldwide |
Where to watch The Black Phone
The Black Phone is streaming on Netflix ($19.99 a month) in the US. If that is the only reason to subscribe, one month of Netflix is $19.99 at list price.
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Rent or buy
You can rent The Black Phone on Apple TV, Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube, Fandango at Home and FlixFling. It is also for sale on Apple TV, Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube and Fandango at Home.
Where to watch The Black Phone in 13 other countries
| Country | Streaming on (price a month) |
|---|---|
| Australia | Binge $19.00 AUD |
| Austria | Joyn free |
| Germany | Joyn free |
| Hong Kong | Max |
| India | Jiohotstar |
| Indonesia | Max |
| Japan | Prime Video ¥600 JPY, U-NEXT ¥2189 JPY |
| Malaysia | Max |
| Papua New Guinea | Max |
| Philippines | Max |
| Singapore | Max |
| Taiwan | Max |
| Thailand | Max |
Subscription, free and ad-supported services we track; prices where Binge Boss has a price list for the country. "About" marks a price the service bills in another currency, converted at the day's rate. All countries as data.
What kind of watch this is
Scott Derrickson’s 2022 horror film, The Black Phone, runs 103 minutes and centers on a trapped teenager who discovers his captor’s past victims are still dialing in. The tension relies on silence rather than volume, forcing the audience to lean in as the protagonist pieces together a way out. Ethan Hawke plays the killer. It is a tight, sound-driven thriller that proves a disconnected phone can be the most dangerous object in a room.
What the critics said
The Black Phone landed in the comfortable middle of the critical spectrum. Rotten Tomatoes reports an 81% approval rating from 271 reviews, with an average score of 7.0 out of 10. Metacritic, applying a weighted average to 38 critics, places the film at 65 out of 100, which it categorizes as generally favorable. The consensus view is that it is an entertaining adaptation of strong source material, even if it could have been scarier. Critics often praised the script’s faithfulness to the original story and its period setting. Chicago Sun-Times called the result "one of the better cinematic nightmares in recent years." Dissent focused on the supernatural elements, with some arguing they undermined the tension.
How it did with audiences
It cost $18 million and took in $161 million worldwide, a margin that turned a low-budget horror into a financial anomaly. Studios had braced for meager profits, but the film finished its run with $90.1 million from the United States and Canada and $71.3 million internationally. That generated an estimated $67.8 million in net profit. It opened fourth at the box office with $23.3 million, beating early projections. Audiences rated it 7.5 out of 10 on TMDB.
What came next for the cast
Ethan Hawke traded 1989 youth for 2023 noir. Jeremy Davies went from war films to horror sequels. Madeleine McGraw jumped from 2018 sci-fi to a sequel. The 2022 film sits between those dots. It did not cause them. Credits are just a list of what happened after.
If you liked this
TMDB's recommendations for people who watched The Black Phone.
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Sources
- The Black Phone on TMDB — synopsis, cast, ratings and recommendations
- Wikidata Q105584511 — review scores, box office and awards (CC0)
- “The Black Phone” on Wikipedia, by its contributors (history) — reception, audience figures and legacy, summarised and adapted here under CC BY-SA 4.0
- Where to watch and prices: Binge Boss, from TMDB watch-provider data (powered by JustWatch) and our own provider list
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