The Greatest Showman
Stream
Rent & Buy
The story of American showman P.T. Barnum, founder of the circus that became the famous traveling Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.
What critics thought
DivisiveCritics were sharply divided on release, with most agreeing the musical numbers are electric but splitting hard over whether the film is anything more than dazzling emptiness — the same spectacle-over-substance trade-off Barnum himself perfected. Audiences embraced it far more warmly than reviewers did, and its popular reputation has only grown since, earning a spot on retrospective best-of lists even as the original critical mixed verdict stands.
“The Greatest Showman is a concoction, the kind of film where all the pieces click into place, yet at an hour and 45 minutes it flies by, and the link it draws between P. T. Barnum and the spirit of today is more than hype.”
Owen Gleiberman·Variety
“With all that corn and cheese and old-timey sentiment, The Greatest Showman ends up scoring some very timely social arguments. P. T. Barnum himself would have approved the dramatic sleight of hand.”
Richard Roeper·Chicago Sun-Times
“This ersatz portrait of American big-top tent impresario P. T. Barnum is all smoke and mirrors, no substance. It hammers pedestrian themes of family, friendship and inclusivity while neglecting the fundaments of character and story.”
David Rooney·The Hollywood Reporter
“How do you cast a virtuoso Hugh Jackman as P. T. Barnum, spare no expense in production values, add a score by Oscar and Tony winners Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, and still end up with the shrill blast of nothing that is The Greatest Showman? Ask first-time director Michael Gracey, who cut his teeth on commercials and music videos without ever mastering the crucial knack of building snippets of musical comedy and drama into a satisfying whole.”
Peter Travers·Rolling Stone
“You've rarely seen a more straight-laced musical about the joys of letting your freak flag fly.”
Justin Chang·Los Angeles Times
Accolades
Parents guide
- Violence
- mild
- Sex
- none
- Profanity
- none
- Substances
- mild
- Intensity
- mild
Genres
Biography, Drama, Musical
Cast & Crew
Michael GraceyDirector
Hugh JackmanP. T. Barnum
Zac EfronPhillip Carlyle
Michelle WilliamsCharity Barnum
Rebecca FergusonJenny Lind
ZendayaAnne Wheeler
Keala SettleLettie Lutz
Yahya Abdul-Mateen IIW. D. Wheeler
Natasha Liu BordizzoDeng Yan
Paul SparksJames Gordon Bennett
Sam HumphreyCharles Stratton
Austyn JohnsonCaroline Barnum
Cameron SeelyHelen Barnum
John DebneyComposer
Joseph TrapaneseComposer
Bill CondonWriter
Seamus McGarveyCinematographyThe Greatest Showman
The story of American showman P.T. Barnum, founder of the circus that became the famous traveling Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.
What critics thought
DivisiveCritics were sharply divided on release, with most agreeing the musical numbers are electric but splitting hard over whether the film is anything more than dazzling emptiness — the same spectacle-over-substance trade-off Barnum himself perfected. Audiences embraced it far more warmly than reviewers did, and its popular reputation has only grown since, earning a spot on retrospective best-of lists even as the original critical mixed verdict stands.
“The Greatest Showman is a concoction, the kind of film where all the pieces click into place, yet at an hour and 45 minutes it flies by, and the link it draws between P. T. Barnum and the spirit of today is more than hype.”
Owen Gleiberman·Variety
“With all that corn and cheese and old-timey sentiment, The Greatest Showman ends up scoring some very timely social arguments. P. T. Barnum himself would have approved the dramatic sleight of hand.”
Richard Roeper·Chicago Sun-Times
“This ersatz portrait of American big-top tent impresario P. T. Barnum is all smoke and mirrors, no substance. It hammers pedestrian themes of family, friendship and inclusivity while neglecting the fundaments of character and story.”
David Rooney·The Hollywood Reporter
“How do you cast a virtuoso Hugh Jackman as P. T. Barnum, spare no expense in production values, add a score by Oscar and Tony winners Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, and still end up with the shrill blast of nothing that is The Greatest Showman? Ask first-time director Michael Gracey, who cut his teeth on commercials and music videos without ever mastering the crucial knack of building snippets of musical comedy and drama into a satisfying whole.”
Peter Travers·Rolling Stone
“You've rarely seen a more straight-laced musical about the joys of letting your freak flag fly.”
Justin Chang·Los Angeles Times
Accolades
Parents guide
- Violence
- mild
- Sex
- none
- Profanity
- none
- Substances
- mild
- Intensity
- mild
Genres
Biography, Drama, Musical
Cast & Crew
Michael GraceyDirectorHugh JackmanP. T. BarnumZac EfronPhillip CarlyleMichelle WilliamsCharity BarnumRebecca FergusonJenny LindZendayaAnne WheelerKeala SettleLettie LutzYahya Abdul-Mateen IIW. D. WheelerNatasha Liu BordizzoDeng YanPaul SparksJames Gordon BennettSam HumphreyCharles StrattonAustyn JohnsonCaroline BarnumCameron SeelyHelen BarnumJohn DebneyComposerJoseph TrapaneseComposerBill CondonWriterSeamus McGarveyCinematographyStream
Rent & Buy