Poster © Sony Pictures Releasing. Shown at reduced size for review and commentary.
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GenreAction, Comedy & Drama
RatedPG-13
Runtime1 hr 32 mins
ReleasedJuly 2, 2008
StreamingSee Where to Watch
DirectorPeter Berg
StarringWill Smith, Charlize Theron, Jason Bateman
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Hancock (2008)
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| TTMDB | +Add to Top 8 |
| Hancock's Details | |
| Genre | Action, Comedy & Drama |
| Rated | PG-13 |
| Released | 07/02/2008 (United States) |
| Streaming | See Where to Watch on this page. |
| Running Time | 1 hr 32 mins |
| Budget | $150M (reported) |
| Box Office | Updated daily from Box Office Mojo. See the numbers below. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Hancock's Interests | |
| General | Image makeovers, freight trains, beached whales, support groups, a superhero suit he really does not want. |
| Music | John Powell. Big, stomping hero music for a guy who hates being a hero. |
| Movies | The Incredibles (2004). Superheroes with PR problems, the family edition. |
| Television | What Not to Wear. Hancock would be the season finale. |
| Heroes | Ray Embrey. The nicest PR guy alive, and the only one who believes in Hancock. |
| Hancock's Crew | |
| Director | Peter Berg |
| Writers | Vy Vincent Ngo, Vince Gilligan |
| Producers | Akiva Goldsman, James Lassiter, Michael Mann, Will Smith |
| Cinematography | Tobias Schliessler |
| Music | John Powell |
| Edited By | Colby Parker Jr., Paul Rubell |
| Production | Columbia Pictures, Relativity Media, Overbrook Entertainment, Weed Road Pictures, Blue Light |
| Distributed By | Sony Pictures Releasing |
Hancock is two movies stapled together, and the staple is a twist that makes less sense the more anyone explains it. The first half is a legit fun idea: a superhero so rude and careless that Los Angeles would rather take its chances with the criminals. Will Smith plays him like a guy woken up from a nap to save your life who wants you to feel bad about it. He flings a beached whale back out to sea and it lands right on a sailboat. Jason Bateman, as the sunny PR guy trying to rebrand him, is the best thing in it, all optimism and terrible ideas. Then the twist hits and the movie swaps its jokes for a mythology lecture. At 92 minutes it still feels like it ran out of script. $629.4 million worldwide proves the pitch was great. A 5.4 because the first half is good enough to make you mad about the second. $74 says you bail right after the whale scene, feel smart about it, and look up the ending anyway.
What works: Will Smith’s grumpy hero act, Jason Bateman’s relentless optimism, and a first half full of rescues that cost the city a fortune.
What doesn’t: The midpoint twist turns a sharp comedy into a muddled mythology drama, and the movie never finds its footing again.
Who it’s for: Will Smith fans and anyone who wants a superhero comedy for exactly one hour.
Spoilers
Mary is also a superpowered immortal, and she and Hancock were made as a pair whose powers fade when they stay close together. Hancock leaves town so she can heal, then paints Ray’s heart logo on the moon as a thank you.
John Hancock (Will Smith) can fly, can't be hurt and is strong enough to toss a whale. He is also grumpy, scruffy, usually hungover and wildly unpopular in Los Angeles, because every rescue leaves millions of dollars in damage. Then he saves Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman), a sunny public relations guy, from an oncoming train. Ray decides Hancock just needs a makeover, starting with a public apology and some time in prison. Ray's wife Mary (Charlize Theron) has her doubts about the whole plan. Peter Berg directs. Ninety-two minutes, one very big image problem.
Anyone good at public apologies. Start practicing.
| Will Smith | John Hancock |
| Charlize Theron | Mary Embrey |
| Jason Bateman | Ray Embrey |
| Jae Head | Aaron Embrey |
| Eddie Marsan | Kenneth "Red" Parker Jr |
- (cur | prev) 14:30, 17 October 2026 DataBot +400 Numbers refreshed: Worldwide box office $629.4M; Domestic box office $227.9M; Opening weekend $62.6M; Profit / loss (est.) +$89.7M; Rotten Tomatoes 42%; box office chart updated; Rotten Tomatoes critics 42% (227 reviews); Metacritic 49 / 100; IMDb users 6.4 / 10 (544,947 votes); movie.guru score 4.2.
- (cur | prev) 12:00, 17 October 2026 DataBot +2,000 Profile created from Wikipedia and Box Office Mojo: cast, crew, release dates, budget, official trailer.