Zendaya’s latest film, The Drama, arrives Tuesday on premium on demand, months after a much‑talked‑about theatrical run that pushed it past a major box‑office threshold.
Written and directed by Kristoffer Borgli and co-starring Robert Pattinson as the other half of a couple whose wedding engagement is derailed after a disquieting revelation, the film became the fifth A24 release to clear $100 million at the box office.
That financial milestone sits beside a sharp critical take from the ’s Mark Kennedy, who wrote that the film "wastes two of the planet's most gorgeous people and will surely get everyone involved in trouble for using a current American tragedy as a plot point."
The Drama’s move to premium on demand closes the chapter on its theatrical life and opens a new one for viewers who did not see it in theaters. For streaming audiences, the Tuesday release is the headline item in this week’s rollout: Sam Raimi’s Send Help, starring Rachel McAdams, debuts Thursday on Hulu after a theatrical run earlier this year, and the Netflix adaptation Remarkably Bright Creatures streams Friday, May 8. Musical releases are clustered on the same Friday — MUNA’s fourth studio album, Dancing on the Wall, and Ashley McBryde’s latest album, Wild, are both listed for release on May 8.
Context matters here: The Drama’s box‑office success ties it to A24’s recent commercial momentum, a string of breakouts that helped push this title into the studio’s top five releases by revenue. That theater-to-digital cadence — big theatrical opening, then a quick pivot to premium on demand — reflects a release pattern studios have used to extend a film’s commercial life and reach different audiences.
But the numbers and the schedules do not erase the friction around the movie’s subject matter. The same praise for star power and box‑office legs sits uneasily beside Kennedy’s criticism that the film exploits "a current American tragedy as a plot point." That contrast — commercial success versus moral and artistic complaint — is the tension viewers will be weighing as they decide whether to press play.
For those deciding how to watch, the weeks ahead put The Drama in relief against other new releases: viewers can stream Send Help on Hulu starting Thursday, then choose between the Netflix adaptation of Remarkably Bright Creatures or new music from MUNA and Ashley McBryde on Friday, May 8. For The Drama, the premium on demand window allows immediate access but also concentrates the conversation around the film’s choices about subject and tone.
Conclusion: The Drama is both a box‑office winner for A24 and a polarizing piece of storytelling — the film’s commercial success does not blunt the ethical objections some critics have voiced, so viewers heading to the premium on demand release should expect a movie that will divide opinions as readily as it drew audiences to theaters.
