The Electric Stateis the most expensive movie Netflix has ever produced, but it doesn’t seem like it was money well-spent. The streaming service’s newest film isdirected by the Russo brothersand is based on the critically acclaimed 2018 illustrated novel of the same name. Thestory ofThe Electric Stateis set in an alternate United States in the mid-1990s after a civil war was fought between humans and robots. In the film, a young girl travels with a mysterious robot to find her missing brother, teaming up with a smuggler and his robot sidekick along the way.
The cast ofThe Electric Stateincludes Millie Bobby Brown, Chris Pratt, Stanley Tucci, Giancarlo Esposito, Ke Huy Quan, and Woody Harrelson. Despite its star-studded cast and interesting premise,reviews forThe Electric Statehave been horrible. Ahead of its debut on Netflix, the film currently has a disappointing 21% on Rotten Tomatoes (viaRotten Tomatoes). SinceThe Electric State’sbudget was a whopping $320 million, its terrible reviews have made me very concerned about the future of streaming.
Netflix’s The Electric State Is One Of The Most Expensive Movies In History
The Electric State Is The 13th Most Expensive Movie Ever
The Electric State’smassive budget has made it one of the most expensive movies in history. Specifically,it is the 13th most expensive movie ever made. This isn’t necessarily surprising, since the Russo brothers tend to make very expensive films. Two of their other movies,Avengers: Infinity WarandAvengers: Endgame, are also some of the most expensive movies ever made. Here are the top 15 films with the highest budgets:
$447 million
$432 million
$416 million
$379 million
$365 million
$356 million
$351 million
$350 million
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania
$330 million
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
$326 million
$325 million
$320 million
$307 million
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End
$300 million
The Electric Stateactually stands out on the above list, since all the other films are part of major franchises, such asStar Wars, the MCU, andPirates of the Caribbean. It is not necessarily surprising that movies in these franchises are so expensive, since they have proven to be box office successes. However, unlike all the other films,The Electric Stateis being released on Netflix and is not getting a theatrical run.
Why The Electric State’s Budget Is So High
The Electric State Is A Sci-Fi Movie With A Star-Studded Cast
Even thoughThe Electric Statehas no chance of making its money back from the box office, Netflix still agreed to give the Russo brothers $320 million to make the film. Even though the directing duo has made some of the most profitable movies in history, namely the aforementionedAvengersfilms and their other Marvel movies, they haven’t had a hit outside the MCU. Therefore, it is somewhat surprising that Netflix agreed to such a high budget forThe Electric State.
Recent movies from the Russo brothers, such asCherryandThe Gray Man, also haven’t received great reviews, so one would think that Netflix would take this into consideration. However,it seems possible that Netflix just wanted to fund a huge science fiction movie to increase their own stock value. Therefore, the streaming service was more than willing to provide ample money to cover production costs and pay the all-star cast, even though there was never a chance that they would make their money back at the box office.
The Electric State Is Another Reminder That High Budgets Don’t Always Result In Good Movies
The Electric State Is Not A Revolutionary Sci-Fi Movie
Without a doubt,Netflix hoped thatThe Electric Statewould be a massive sci-fi hit. While the film will undoubtedly still rank number one on the streaming service upon its release, it is unlikely that its ratings will go up that much. Therefore,The Electric Stateseems reminiscent of several other underwhelming Netflix movies, such asRed NoticeandHeart of Stone. These films performed well on the streaming service, but received many negative reviews, which ultimately led to audiences forgetting about them not long after their debuts.
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Based on early reviews, I would be surprised ifThe Electric Statewas the beginning of a new franchise for Netflix. Because of this, it can definitely be argued that the streaming service’s money was not well-spent.The Electric Stateis a reminder that high budgets don’t always result in good movies. Overall,it just doesn’t seem likeThe Electric Stateis a very inventive or fresh sci-fi film, which is disappointing considering its massive budget.
Why Streaming’s High Budget Trend Is So Concerning
Netflix Could Have Made A Lot Of Movies With $320 Million
As I pointed out above, I can somewhat understand when movies that are part of major franchises have very high budgets. After all, these franchises have tons of fans that have been supportive for years. Therefore, it makes sense that studios are willing to spend more to appease these fandoms. However,spending $320 million on just one science fiction movie is very concerning to me. Instead of spending this much money on just one movie, Netflix could have produced many more films.
Most of the movies that found success at the 2025 Academy Awards, such asAnoraandThe Brutalist, had budgets of $10 million or less.
The streaming service could have greenlit ten movies with $32 million budgets, or even 32 movies with $10 million budgets. In my opinion, this would have been much smarter than spending so much on just one underwhelming sci-fi movie. It is also worth noting that most of the movies that found success at the 2025 Academy Awards, such asAnoraandThe Brutalist, had budgets of $10 million or less. Undoubtedly,films likeAnoraandThe Brutalistwill stay in the public consciousness longer thanThe Electric State.
How Movies & Shows With High Budgets On Streaming Could Hurt Subscribers
Netflix Could Increase Subscription Prices Even More
SinceThe Electric Stateis not getting a theatrical release, the movie will make zero dollars at the box office. So, how is Netflix making any kind of return on investment? SinceNetflix primarily makes money through subscription fees, it only makes sense that it funded a massive movie likeThe Electric Stateto justify its high subscription cost. Over the years, Netflix has continuously raised its monthly prices, so the streaming service needs to provide adequate content to justify these price increases.
Joe & Anthony Russo’s Changes To The Electric State Graphic Novel Explained By Netflix Movie Directors
ScreenRant interviews The Electric State directors Joe and Anthony Russo about their work adapting Simon Stålenhag’s beloved graphic novel.
