Disclaimer: The following idea is fictional and not meant to represent any real political ideologies in any shape or form. The creator of this page is not a follower of politics, and as such, any similarity to real figures and/or events is purely coincidental. Thank you for your understanding.
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This article is rated R, meaning it contains content that may be inappropriate for readers under the age of 17. |
| “ | Some secrets are meant to be revealed. | „ |
| ~ Tagline |
| The Hacker | |
|---|---|
 Teaser poster | |
| Directed by | Nicolas Winding Refn |
| Written by | Rhett Reese Paul Wernick |
| Produced by | Joseph Kosinski Mary Parent Lene Børglum Nicolas Winding Refn |
| Starring | Minami Hamabe Liam Hemsworth Rami Malek Karen Fukuhara David Harbour Elle Fanning Josh Brolin Charlize Theron |
| Cinematography | Larry Smith |
| Edited by | Matthew Newman |
| Music by | Cliff Martinez |
| Production companies | Legendary Pictures Space Rocket Nation Monolith Pictures Reese/Wernick Productions Domain Entertainment |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Release dates | May 21, 2025 (Cannes) May 30, 2025 (United States) |
| Running time | 118 minutes |
| Countries | Denmark United States |
| Languages | English Japanese |
| Budget | $75 million |
| Box office | $400.8 million |
The Hacker is a 2025 political action thriller film directed by Nicolas Winding Refn and written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick. The film, set in a future where the United States has become a utopian empire, stars Minami Hamabe as an illegal Japanese immigrant who, thanks to her hacking skills, gets herself entangled into a liberalist organization, who plans to expose the President of the United States. The film also stars Liam Hemsworth, Rami Malek, Karen Fukuhara, David Harbour, Elle Fanning, Josh Brolin, and Charlize Theron.
Announced in December 2022 by Legendary Pictures, the film underwent major production changes, including original director Joseph Kosinski stepping down and Refn replacing him in August 2023. The main cast were announced from January to April 2024, with additional casting taking place later on. Filming began in New York City and Vancouver in March and wrapped in May. Refn's recurring collaborator Cliff Martinez composed the original score.
The Hacker premiered at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival on May 21, and was theatrically released in the United States by Warner Bros. Pictures on May 30. It received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised Refn's direction, cinematography, performances, visuals, action sequences, and musical score. However, it received some criticism for its political themes and violence. Nevertheless, it was a box-office success, grossing $400.8 million worldwide against a $75 million budget. The film has also been listed as one of the best action films of 2025, as well as one of the best of the 2020s.
Synopsis[]
"Following a series of victories in the past decades, the United States has since become a utopian but powerful empire. But a dark secret lurks underneath this seemingly peaceful country. Meanwhile, an illegal Japanese immigrant with high hacking skills finds herself in an escapade when the New America Society, a liberalist organization, recruits her to help them with the most daring task in world history: exposing the President of the United States. As police patrol Washington, D.C., and security is at an all-time high, will the gang succeed in their mission?"
-Warner Bros. Pictures
Plot[]
The United States has become the world's most utopian and dominant country thanks to President Elizabeth Thompson. However, this has led to an influx of illegal immigrants, who are seeking freedom in the country. Among these immigrants is Kai Koyanagi, a Japanese hacker who snuck aboard a cargo plane bound for Washington, D.C. She is taken into hiding by Naomi Belle, who befriends her. Both are abducted soon after a close-encounter with FBI Chief Richard McNamara and several officers.
Kai and Naomi are interrogated by John Kroll, a member of the New America Society, an organization opposed to Thompson. John tells them of Thompson's evil schemes, such as silencing those who speak up against her, erasing any evidence of her wrong-doings, and blackmail and torture against anyone deemed a threat to the United States. He asks Kai for her help in exposing Thompson for her schemes, so Kai, initially conflicted to help the organization, accepts his offer in exchange of becoming a legal resident in the United States. A meeting between all members of the New America Society commences, with head of the organization Donnie Relts delivering a speech about the mission to expose Thompson. Kai and John, along with Franz Nadel and May Ishima, are the members chosen to execute this mission. Meanwhile, President Thompson meets with McNamara and Vice President Gary Nutaga to discuss the security and crime rate, as well as the population of illegal immigrants within the country, to which McNamara states are at a slowly but declining rate, and having had a run-in with Kai.
John meets up with his friend Lucy, who works as a staff member for Thompson while secretly helping the New America Society. Lucy hands John some documents regarding Thompson's crimes. Kai works with Franz and May to bypass the White House's surveillance team. McNamara is alerted by officer Ian Mendoza of a possible distribution of classified documents inside the White House. McNamara orders any officers within the building to find the perpetrators. The quintet is almost captured by the FBI, but they make a narrow escape after being chased down by unmanned aerial vehicles. Relts is given the documents, and he approves of the group's efforts. He also tells them that Thompson will be delivering a speech to the citizens, and that the time to expose her will be by then. In the meantime, Kai and John develop a bond between each other.
Naomi is suddenly kidnapped by a supposed gang. A member of the gang sends a letter about Naomi's kidnapping to Kai, where she rushes immediately to save Naomi from getting killed. She arrives at a warehouse, where Naomi is getting tortured by one of the gang members. Kai is captured too, and is almost executed when John, Franz and May, having tracked Kai's location, break in and kill the gang members. Kai later finds out that the "gang" was a disguised group of men from the FBI, who were trying to kill her by luring her in, given they know about the supposed mission. An enraged McNamara commands all units within Washington, D.C. to hunt down any citizen affiliated with the New America Society.
The FBI soon locates the New America Society's headquarters. They commence a raid, arresting the members of the organization. John, resisting arrest, shoots an officer, causing a shootout inside the building. Several people are killed, including Relts and Mendoza, and Kai is seriously wounded. Before McNamara could kill Kai, John intervenes, and McNamara shoots him instead. Enraged, Kai kills McNamara.
Several days after the shootout, Kai has isolated herself from Naomi and the outside world, guilty of John's death. She is visited by Franz and May, who encourage her to continue, as John would have wanted them to keep going. Thanks to her friends' support, Kai devises a new plan to take down Thompson. With the support of the remaining members, Kai and her team execute their plan on the day of Thompson's speech, where they break into the White House, hacking into their security system and taking down any guards inside the building. When Kai faces Thompson alone, they engage in a fight. Eventually, Kai knocks Thompson unconscious and broadcasts to the nation all the documents associated with her, causing a public outrage. However, Franz, May, Naomi, and the members of the New America Society support her decision.
The United States becomes politically divided following Thompson's resignation as president, and Nutaga takes her position. When confronted by the FBI about why she did such a thing, Kai says it was to make the people understand the truth. When asked if she has had any regret in partaking and leaving the United States divided, the film cuts to black, leaving Kai's answer unknown.
Cast[]
- Minami Hamabe as Kai Koyanagi, a Japanese-American illegal immigrant with a high knowledge of technology.
- Liam Hemsworth as John Kroll, a member of the New America Society.
- Rami Malek as Franz Nadel, a member of the New America Society.
- Karen Fukuhara as May Ishima, a member of the New America Society.
- David Harbour as Donnie Relts, the head of the New America Society.
- Elle Fanning as Naomi Belle, Kai's friend and roommate.
- Josh Brolin as Richard McNamara, the Chief of Police at the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
- Charlize Theron as Elizabeth Thompson, the 48th President of the United States.
- Alan Ruck as Gary Nutaga, the 51st Vice President of the United States.
- Gabe Frost as Ian Mendoza, a Detective I officer working for Richard.
- Jamie Chung as Lucy Kee, John's friend who works within the Thompson administration.
- Hideo Kojima as Tzu, a Police Officer II working for Richard.
- Rob Yang as Lee, a Police Officer II working for Richard.
Ben Mendelsohn makes an uncredited appearance as Derek Holtman, Thompson's rival in the 2028 US presidential campaign.
Themes and interpretations[]
The film has been characterized as having themes related to political corruption and utopia. The New Yorker's Richard Brody remarked that The Hacker is "more than just a movie. Rather, it's a documentary about what will happen to us in the future." Joshua Zill of Screen Rant noted that Charlize Theron's Elizabeth Thompson served as an allegory for real-life politicians. When asked about the themes in the film, Wernick stated: "It's just a flick. We don't normally write stuff about this, but we did, and it was kind-of fun. Just make sure you know what you're doing."
The fictitious New America Society is depicted as a liberalist organization, opposing the conservative Thompson in the film.
Production[]
Development[]
In late 2021, writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick began developing a script titled The Hacker, a political action thriller. It was originally a spec script that had "remained in secret for a while." Reese and Wernick showed the script to Joseph Kosinski, who worked with them on Spiderhead (2022). Kosinski was unsure of working on a political thriller, but accepted it. However, Kosinski left the film in August 2023 due to creative differences but would retain his producing credit on the film.
In December 2022, the film was announced by Legendary Entertainment, who would co-produce the film and Warner Bros. Pictures handling distribution. In August 2023, shortly after Kosinski's departure, Nicolas Winding Refn was hired to direct the film. Commenting about his involvement, Refn stated that "this ain't far off from my other projects. So I'm sure I could work on a film like this one."
Casting[]
By November 2023, Ryan Gosling was attached to star in the film as John, having worked with Refn on Drive (2011) and Only God Forgives (2013). However, Gosling left due to scheduling conflicts. In January 2024, Rami Malek and David Harbour were set to star in the film as Franz and Donnie, respectively. Jeff Bridges was originally offered the role of Donnie, but he declined due to his commitment in Tron: Ares. Liam Hemsworth, Josh Brolin, and Karen Fukuhara had entered the cast in February as John, McNamara, and May, respectively. Chris Pine was eyed to play John after Gosling's departure. Ben Mendelsohn was originally set to play McNamara, but dropped out. He would instead make an uncredited cameo appearance as Holtman. In March, Charlize Theron was in final talks to star in the film as Thompson, the presidential antagonist of the film. In April, Minami Hamabe was set to play the film's titular main protagonist Kai. The Hacker is Hamabe's first English-language film, and she learned English in order to prepare for the role.
In June 2024, Elle Fanning was revealed to have joined the cast as Kai's friend Naomi. Fanning had worked with Refn on The Neon Demon (2016). Gabe Frost and Jamie Chung were respectively cast as Ian and Lucy in July. Set footage revealed that Alan Ruck would appear in the film in an undisclosed role, which would later be revealed as Nutaga. Ken Watanabe was eyed to play Nutaga.
Filming[]
Principal photography began on March 2, 2024 in New York City, under the working title Peacekeeper, where some streets were closed to pedestrians. Many exterior appearances of buildings in the city were rebuilt to resemble those in Washington, D.C., the film's main setting. Filming also took place in Vancouver. Larry Smith, Refn's recurring collaborator, filmed some scenes using IMAX-certified digital cameras. Principal photography wrapped on May 25.
Post-production[]
The visual effects for the film were provided by the Moving Picture Company. Over 2,000 VFX shots were used, although most of the stunts in the film were practical.
Music[]
Main article: The Hacker/Soundtrack
By September 2024, Cliff Martinez was set to compose the score of the film, having worked with Refn on various projects prior. The soundtrack featuring Martinez's score was released through WaterTower Music on May 30, 2025, the same day as the film's theatrical release. Lana Del Rey contributed an original song for the film titled "Good Luck".
Marketing[]
A teaser poster of the film was released in August 2024, depicting the United States flag with the Great Seal in place of the 50 stars. The poster included a link to the website of the fictitious New America Society. The website contained various images and descriptions from the film, including the goal to "expose President Thompson", as depicted in the film. The website created a huge buzz across the internet, with some outlets calling it the "most immersive alternate-reality game of all time."
On December 17, 2024, the first trailer of the film was released. The trailer, set to the tune of New Order's "Blue Monday", received 100 million views on all social media platforms upon the first 24 hours.
Release[]
Theatrical[]
The Hacker was originally scheduled to release on December 6, 2024, but was delayed indefinitely due to the 2023 Hollywood labor disputes. After the strikes ended, the film was given a May 23, 2025 release date. It was pushed back by a week to May 30. The film was theatrically released in IMAX, RealD 3D, Dolby Cinema, and 4DX.
The film held its world premiere at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.
Home media[]
The film was released on digital on July 22, 2025. It was then released on 4K UHD, Blu-Ray, and DVD on August 19, 2025.
Reception[]
Box office[]
The Hacker grossed $206.4 million in the United States and Canada, and $194.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $400.8 million.
Critical reception[]
On Rotten Tomatoes, 81% of 295 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.82/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Filled with thrilling action and visuals, Nicolas Winding Refn really hacks his way into the mainstream media with The Hacker." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 76 out of 100 based on 62 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale, while PostTrak reported 71% of filmgoers gave it a positive score, with 60% saying they'd definitely recommend it.
Accolades[]
Credits[]
Main article: The Hacker/Credits