This weekend, the biggest new hit didn’t come from theaters at all — it came from Netflix. While Darren Aronofsky‘s Caught Stealing and the Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman-led The Roses had buzzy debuts, the long-awaited adaptation of Richard Osman’s The Thursday Murder Club has already stolen the spotlight. The film rocketed straight to the top of Netflix’s global charts upon its release, instantly establishing itself as one of the platform’s most successful late-summer launches.
Directed by Chris Columbus (Home Alone, Mrs. Doubtfire) and produced under Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment, The Thursday Murder Club pulls no punches with its cast list. Leading the quirky quartet of retirees are Ron Ritchie (Pierce Brosnan), Ibrahim Arif (Sir Ben Kingsley), Elizabeth Best (Dame Helen Mirren), and Joyce Meadowcroft (Celia Imrie). Add in David Tennant, Naomi Ackie, Tom Ellis, Daniel Mays, and a host of familiar British faces, and it’s no wonder Netflix subscribers are already calling it one of the best casts and most fun movies of the year. For Brosnan, it’s also a reunion of sorts with his MobLand co-stars, Mirren and Geoff Bell — and it’s fun to see them acting all lovely and friendly given how psychotic all three of them are in that show — cementing 2025 as a banner year for the actor both in television and on streaming.
Is The Thursday Murder Club Worth Seeing?
Early reviews have been glowing. The film currently sits at an 81% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes, with praise largely focused on its balance of humor, heart, and mystery. Collider’s Maggie Lovitt praised it as “all the best parts of British mysteries” rolled into one, awarding the movie a near-perfect 9/10. She highlighted how the film smartly leans into the strengths of its older cast rather than reducing them to background roles, writing:
“The film may not reinvent the wheel or do anything particularly groundbreaking, but it does draw attention to the fact that Hollywood has largely forgotten that actors in their ‘twilight years’ are still fully capable of leading ensemble casts and delivering memorable performances that aren’t solely defined by being a younger character’s parent. In fact, these characters use their age and the experience that comes with it to their advantage, while playing into the preconceived notions of what is expected of them. It’s Only Murders in the Building meets Book Club in all the best ways, and Netflix should go ahead and greenlight the next four novels to be adapted as quickly as possible.”
For now, fans can stream The Thursday Murder Club on Netflix.
The Thursday Murder Club
- Release Date
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August 28, 2025
- Runtime
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118 minutes
- Director
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Chris Columbus
- Writers
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Katy Brand, Suzanne Heathcote
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