Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis biopic just netted itself $250 million at the box office. But when is Elvis getting a streaming release date? Let’s find out…

As Biopics go, they don’t get much bigger than Elvis, a new film written and directed by Baz Luhrmann that stars Tom Hanks and Austin Butler as The King himself. To date, Elvis has earned more than $250 million at the box office, making it the second biggest biopic of ever behind Bohemian Rhapsody.

If you didn’t catch Elvis in the cinema or you missed the trailer, the movie follows Elvis’ ascent from his humble beginnings to becoming one of the most famous men to ever walk the earth. The story is told from the perspective of his corrupt and infamous manager, Colonel Tom Parker, dutifully brought to life by Tom Hanks.

The film follows Elvis on his rise to fame, starting out with him as a young performer, then his rise to fame, his time in movies, and, of course, his now-legendary love affairs. If you’re a fan of Elvis or musical dramas in general, Elvis is well worth a watch. The film is brilliantly shot, performed, and executed.

Elvis got very solid reviews across the board, clocking an impressive 94% (audience metric) on Rotten Tomatoes. Even Elvis’ daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, was a fan of the film, claiming Austin Butler’s portrayal of her father was “unprecedented and FINALLY done accurately and respectfully” – she reckons Butler should get an Oscar.

Elvis Streaming Release Date

Can you stream Elvis yet? The film opened in cinemas on June 23, 2022, and was produced by Warner Bros Pictures which means it is now available to stream on HBO Max, following its official streaming release date on September 2, 2022.

How To Watch Elvis

Of course, in order to stream Elvis on HBO Max, you will need a subscription to HBO’s streaming platform and HBO Max is currently only available in the USA – although you can use a VPN to bypass this and sign up for an account.

Elvis is now available to rent or buy Elvis via Apple TV, Amazon Prime, YouTube, and other VOD providers. But it definitely will not be coming “free” to any other streaming platforms any time soon – Netflix and Amazon Prime, included.

Will Elvis Come To Netflix?

If you’re a Netflix subscriber and you’re dying to see Elvis, the bad news is the film is not coming to Netflix any time soon. Elvis is currently an HBO Max exclusive for streaming and it will likely remain that way for the foreseeable future. It could come to Netflix at some point but that won’t be for a long time – potentially years.

Why? The main reason is that movie studios like Disney, 20th Century Fox, and Warner Bros Pictures now all have their own bespoke streaming platforms, and they’re all keen to get more paying subscribers.

These new, big-budget films are the perfect marketing tools for attracting more and more subscribers. This is also why Disney+ – not Netflix – is now the world’s biggest streaming platform despite not being available in all regions globally. Disney owns and controls a huge chunk of Hollywood.

Even Paramount has its own now in the form of Paramount+ where Top Gun: Maverick is currently available to stream.

The good news is that you can still buy and rent these big-budget films via video-on-demand services like Sky Store, Apple TV, Amazon, and even YouTube. The downside is that you’ll have to either pay to rent them or, for newer films, buy them outright to watch them early.

Case in point: I’ve been dying to watch Top Gun: Maverick and I don’t have or plan on getting Paramount+, so my only option was to buy it for £15 via the Sky Store. I get to keep the film, digitally, forever but it is still very pricey which is why I only tend to do this for films that are A) critically acclaimed and B) worth the money.

And Top Gun: Maverick was well worth the price. I think I may have to do the same for Elvis too. I’m a big fan, I love biopics, and this one looks to be one of the best in recent history. Perhaps it will replace The Doors by Oliver Stone as my all-time favorite music biopic?