The 95% Rated Crime Thriller Quietly Owning Hulu Right Now
If you've opened Hulu this week and wondered what that grim little thriller is sitting near the top, here's your answer. It's Sovereign - and it's the kind of film that leaves you staring at the black screen for a minute after the credits. No hype machine. Just a tough story that gets under your skin.
The movie didn't get a big theatrical push. Didn't need to. Word of mouth has done the heavy lifting, and it's now one of the most-watched titles on the platform, coming in right behind the holiday crowd-pleaser Joy to the World. That's a wild swing in tone, sure, but that's streaming for you.
What's the movie?
Sovereign is a 2025 crime thriller from director Christian Swegal with a cast that immediately makes you look twice: Nick Offerman (movies and tv series), Jacob Tremblay (movies and tv series), Thomas Mann (movies and tv series), Nancy Travis (movies and tv series), Martha Plimpton (movies and tv series), and Dennis Quaid (movies and tv series). Offerman and Tremblay play a father and teenage son pulled deep into the "sovereign citizen" belief system. They're on the road, teaching DIY law and pushing back against any authority that comes near them.
Their path crosses with a small-town police chief (Quaid). And from there, the story doesn't flinch. The tension ramps steadily, choices harden, and the cost of those choices hits like a brick.
Why it's connecting now
This one isn't flashy. It's raw and close to the bone, partly because it draws from real events linked to the 2010 West Memphis police shootings. That context matters; it's a reminder that fringe ideas don't stay abstract for long - they show up on real roads, in real towns, with real consequences.
Maybe that's why it's landed so hard. We're already tuned to headlines about anger, distrust, and how fast people can get radicalized. Sovereign just asks you to sit with it for 100 minutes and watch the fallout.
The reception, in plain terms
Critics have been strong on it - a 95% score on Rotten Tomatoes, which is rare air for a film this small and this dark. Audiences are positive too, if a little more split, with a score in the high 70s. That tracks: it's a gripping watch, but it's not an easy one.
Offerman's turn is what people keep bringing up. He's controlled, scary, vulnerable - sometimes in the same scene. Tremblay matches him beat for beat. And Quaid gives the story a steady counterweight as a cop trying to keep a lid on something that doesn't want a lid.
- Critical score: 95% on Rotten Tomatoes
- Runtime: 100 minutes
- Streaming: Hulu
What's actually in there
You get long stretches of dread and sudden bursts of violence. Motel carpets and fluorescent hallways. Roadside diners where the conversation starts polite and turns pointed. And the quiet moments between a dad and son who love each other, even as the ground under them gives way.
It's not a lecture about politics. It's a tragedy about belief, pride, and how far someone will go once they've decided the rules don't apply to them. By the end, you feel the weight of that choice. Hard.
For the charts watchers
- Festival bump: It drew strong notices out of Tribeca earlier this year, which gave it credibility before streaming.
- Star pivot: Offerman's performance is the hook - a familiar face doing something unexpectedly chilling.
- Timing: The subject matter mirrors what people keep seeing in the news, and word-of-mouth travels fast on Hulu.
- Length: At 100 minutes, it's a no-excuses "let's just watch it tonight" pick.
If you're adding it to coverage
There's a news-adjacent angle worth noting: the film's roots in real incidents and the ongoing conversation around "sovereign citizens." If you need a quick primer on the event that inspired the story, this summary is helpful: West Memphis police shootings (2010).
Bottom line: Sovereign deserves the attention it's getting. It's tense, grounded, and, yeah, bleak. But it's honest about the human cost, and that honesty is why people are pressing play - and then texting a friend to do the same.
If you're in the mood for something that sticks with you, queue it up. And maybe give yourself a minute after it ends. You'll want it.
