One Battle After Another debuts with an immensely impressive Rotten Tomatoes score

Leonardo DiCaprio's return to the big screen is already creating a lot of buzz as One Battle After Another has made it's debut with an immensely impressive Rotten Tomatoes score. Critics are already raving about DiCaprio's performance in the film, as he is joined by an ensemble cast of some of the industry's greatest. Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, One Battle After Another is loosely based on Vineland by Thomas Pynchon.

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has made it's debut with a 97% score on the Tomatometer from 66 early reviews. On the other hand, Metacritic has awarded the film with a score of 96, from 33 critics.

Early reviews from media publications have also praised the film's performances, and it's plot, making it an anticipated movie for the audience who have waited to watch Leo's return to the big screen after his stint in Killers of the Flower Moon.

More details about One Battle After Another

One Battle After Another first premiered at the TCL Chinese theatre in Los Angeles on September 8, 2025. The film received instant acclaim from critics and viewers, and is set to thrill audiences shortly after with it's theatrical release on September 26.

The film reimagines the idea of unfinished revolutions. Sixteen years after laying down their arms, a fractured group of ex-revolutionaries is forced back together when an old enemy re-emerges, threatening the daughter of one of their own. At it's core, One Battle After Another is part political thriller and part family drama, with Anderson's narrative dripping with tension, thrill and a DiCaprio we have all waited for.

Leo leads the film as Bob Ferguson, a burned out radical trying to outrun the government and his past. He is joined by Sean Penn as Colonel Steven J. Lockjaw, his adversary. Benecio del Toro plays Bob's loyal accomplice Sergio St. Carlos, while Teyana Taylor plays Bob's partner, and together they have a daughter, Willa, played by Chase Infiniti.

The main case is joined by Regina Hall, Alana Haim, Wood Harris, Tony Goldwyn, and even the legendary Starletta Dupois, who stars as Grandma Jennie.

The film also had a tough journey as it made it's way to the screens. Anderson always wanted to work on a film inspired by Pynchon's 1990 novel Vineland, but feared his admiration would get in the way. Setting the idea for the film aside, he instead worked on standalone stories, which were later stitched together with Pynchon's fingerprints all over them.

One Battle After Another is backed by a budget of $175 million, and is Anderson's most expensive film yet. The film is being distributed by Warner Bros., who are heavily betting on Anderson.