The indie physique horror movie The Substance has boomed into an enormous hit.
Made on a finances of simply $17.5 million, per Deadline, the movie grossed greater than $77 million worldwide and has earned many awards and nominations.
The Substance, which premiered on Sept. 20, 2024, has additionally earned its star Demi Moore quite a few accolades, together with a Critics’ Alternative Award, a SAG Award and a Golden Globe.
Throughout her Critics’ Alternative Award speech, Moore stated, “The very recognition, not only for me, however for what this movie is about, what it is attempting to convey, your acknowledgment is nearly just like the elixir.” She continued, “It’s the therapeutic balm to the very difficulty the movie brings ahead.”
The Substance has additionally earned 5 Oscar nominations, together with in main classes like Greatest Image, Greatest Actress for Moore, Greatest Director for Coralie Fargeat and Greatest Unique Screenplay. When the nominations had been introduced, the director turned solely the ninth feminine nominee in her class, per The Hollywood Reporter.
So, the place are you able to watch the highly-lauded physique horror? Learn on to seek out out the place The Substance is at the moment streaming and the place it’s accessible to hire digitally.
What’s The Substance about?
In The Substance, Demi Moore performs an growing older Hollywood starlet named Elisabeth Sparkle who’s fired from her well-liked train present the day she turns 50 as a result of a studio exec (Dennis Quaid) feels she’s change into too previous.
Quickly after, Elisabeth is advised a couple of secret medical process, known as “The Substance,” that guarantees to make her really feel younger and exquisite. The method permits her physique to start one other physique who’s half her age (Margaret Qualley) and the 2 can dwell side-by-side, however just one might be aware at a time.
The principles state that the 2 variations can solely exist for seven days at a time earlier than needing to change out. If one of many variations stays aware for greater than seven days, they start sucking the life out of the opposite.
Determined for youth and sweetness, Elisabeth’s new youthful self (who names herself Sue) shortly will get careless and begins overusing her time, which causes Elisabeth’s physique to rot away. By the tip, she’s virtually unrecognizable and has eroded away right into a hideous monster.
On prime of the movie’s extremely squirm-worthy physique horror, it tackles themes of sexism, ageism and the patriarchy. Moore advised The Guardian that she introduced life to her character through the use of her personal experiences of sexism and ageism in Hollywood, significantly within the ’90s.
“We’ve all had moments the place you return and also you’re attempting to repair one thing, and also you’re simply making it worse to the purpose the place you’re incapacitated,” she stated. “We’re seeing these small issues no one else is , however we’re so hyper-focused on all that we’re not. All of us, if we begin to assume our price is simply with how we glance then finally we’re going to be crushed.”
Moore added, “What I did to myself, what I made it imply about me. Actually that violence, how violent we might be in the direction of ourselves, how simply brutal.”
How can I stream The Substance?
The Substance is streaming solely on Mubi and the Mubi subscription via Prime Video.
Mubi’s chief govt, Efe Cakarel, determined to purchase the rights to the physique horror, making it the distributor’s first world acquisition, after watching the scene during which Quaid peels and eats a mound of shrimp.
“This was one thing extremely distinctive,” he advised The New York Instances in 2025. “I had by no means been this certain about something.”
The place can I hire or purchase The Substance?
Viewers can digitally hire The Substance on varied platforms like Prime Video, Apple TV+ and Fandango at Dwelling.
Can I watch The Substance in theaters?
The Substance can be nonetheless screening in choose cinemas across the nation, so test native theater listings.
