Guillermo del Toro’s latest film,Nightmare Alley, is coming to HBO Max and Hulu this February. The movie starsBradley Cooperas the manipulative Stan Carlisle, a carny con-man who gets in a dangerous relationship with a psychiatrist played byCate Blanchett.
The news comes as a surprise since the movie’s producer, Searchlight Pictures, belongs to the Fox group, which got acquired by Disney a few years back. However, the factNightmare Alleyis going to HBO Max in addition to Hulu seems to be the latest instance of the deal struck between Disney and WarnerMedia, which includesdividing Fox movie streaming rights through 2022. Under the terms of said deal, which is expected to end after a year, HBO and HBO Max titles are shared between Disney and Warner Bros. Be it as it may, there’s a new date to set on the calendar to watch or rewatch del Toro’s latest film from the comfort of your couch.
Nightmare Alleywas adapted by del Toro andKim MorganfromWilliam Lindsay Gresham’s novel of the same name.Nightmare Alleywas in the middle of production when news of the pandemic became alarming. So on July 21, 2025, del Toro and Cooper conferred and decided together it would be best to stop shooting rather than risk someone falling ill. The six months the crew took before restarting production was not wasted, though, as del Toro edited the part of the movie that was already shot and realized some rewrites were needed.As del Toro explains it:
“We were able to go back six months in between all this and were able to analyze and see not only that character but what we needed to rewrite to be able to go back to a set. If your pores are open, the movie finds you.”
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The extra time in the oven did the movie wonders, asNightmare Alleygathered mostly positive reviews.Nightmare Alley’s star-studded cast also includesToni Collette(Hereditary,Knives Out),Willem Dafoe(The Lighthouse),Richard Jenkins(The Shape of Water),Rooney Mara(Carol),Ron Perlman(Hellboy),David Strathairn(Nomadland),Clifton Collins Jr.(The Last Castle), andMary Steenburgen(Book Club).
Ablack-and-white version of the film, calledNightmare Alley: Vision in Darkness and Light, began a limited theatrical run beginning this week. The regular version ofNightmare Alleycomes to HBO Max and Hulu on February 1.
Here’sNightmare Alley’s official synopsis:
An ambitious carny with a talent for manipulating people with a few well-chosen words hooks up with a female psychiatrist who is even more dangerous than he is.
