How can I watch The Duke? This stranger-than-fiction comedy movie based around an unlikely heist is the final film directed by the late Roger Michell before he died in 2021. A legendary director, Michell was known for classical romance movies like the classic 90’s movie Notting Hill.
National treasures Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren both appear as real-life husband and wife Kempton and Dorothy Bunton. Based on a true story, The Duke takes place in 1960s Newcastle, with a disgruntled Kempton deciding to take the train to London to steal the newly-acquired portrait of Duke Wellington from the National Gallery and ransom it to pay for TV licences for veterans.
With the discourse around UK TV licenses reigniting in 2022, nobody could have anticipated that the flick, which follows the wild goose chase unfolding from Kempton’s bumbling theft, could have timed its February 2022 release so well — especially given it was initially meant to be released a lot earlier. But now The Duke’s highly-anticipated release is nearly upon us, here is everything you need to know about how to watch the critically-acclaimed movie.
WHERE CAN I WATCH the DUKE?
The Duke’s world premiere was a pretty long time ago now: screening at the Venice Film Festival on 4 September 2020. According to the Hollywood Reporter, it was also selected to screen at the Telluride Film Festival that same month, but the festival was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Originally, the rest of us weren’t meant to wait much longer after Venice to see the drama movie, as it was originally scheduled for a 6 November 2020 theatrical release. This was later pushed back to September 3, 2021, and then again to February 25, 2022.
February 25, 2022 seems to be the date Warner Bros. is sticking with for a UK-wide theatrical release — with tickets available to purchase now as well as on the day subject to individual cinemas’ availability.
CAN I STREAM the DUKE?
At present, the film will only be available to watch in theatres. Its distributor, Warner Bros has its own platform in the US, streaming service HBO Max, meaning that The Duke will probably be available on there in the states before anywhere else.
As for the UK, due to WarnerMedia’s ongoing deal with Sky, it is likely that The Duke will be available to stream on NOW TV, a Sky-affiliated streaming service before anywhere else like Netflix or Amazon Video.
We’ll keep you updated on when exactly the movie is available on streaming services, and when you’ll be able to purchase a DVD or Blu-ray copy of the movie.