Anne Hathaway has had a banner year at the box office, but one of her 2026 releases didn't quite hit the mark. Now, that very film is getting a second chance on streaming, proving that sometimes a movie just needs the right platform to find its audience.
Hathaway's year has been nothing short of spectacular. She starred in Christopher Nolan's epic The Odyssey, which grossed nearly $1.8 billion globally, and headlined the long-awaited sequel The Devil Wears Prada 2, which pulled in around $700 million worldwide. She also delivered strong performances in the sci-fi thriller The End of Oak Street and the psychological drama Verity, which earned $120 million and $160 million, respectively. But before all that success, she kicked off the year with a film that barely made back a fraction of its budget.
That film is Mother Mary, a psychological drama directed by David Lowery and co-starring Michaela Coel and Hunter Schafer. Despite the star power, the movie only managed to gross about $3 million against a reported $20 million budget, making it the biggest box-office disappointment of A24's otherwise stellar 2026. The studio had a string of hits this year, including The Drama, Primetime, and the massive Backrooms, which earned $400 million globally. Even the three-hour documentary You Can See Everything surprised everyone with a $50 million haul in just 10 days. But Mother Mary just couldn't find its footing in theaters.
Critics were mixed on the film, which currently holds a 59% score on Rotten Tomatoes. The consensus notes that Hathaway is believable as a pop star, but the movie itself can be "frustratingly obtuse" despite its stylish presentation. It seemed like Mother Mary might be forgotten, but streaming has given it a new lease on life.
According to FlixPatrol, Mother Mary has become the number-one movie on HBO Max worldwide this week. This isn't the first time a theatrical flop has found success on the platform—other films have seen similar revivals—but it's a notable turnaround for a movie that seemed destined to be a footnote in Hathaway's career.
Hathaway's decade-long box-office slump, which included films like Eileen, Armageddon Time, and Mothers' Instinct, appears to be firmly behind her. With The Odyssey and The Devil Wears Prada 2 dominating the charts, she's proven she can still draw crowds. And now, with Mother Mary climbing the streaming ranks, it's clear that audiences are eager to see her in a variety of roles.
For A24, the film's streaming success is a silver lining in an otherwise disappointing theatrical run. The studio has been known for taking risks, and while Mother Mary didn't resonate in theaters, it's finding its audience at home. This trend of surprising box-office outcomes continues to reshape how we think about a movie's success.
As we look ahead, it's clear that streaming platforms are becoming the new home for films that might have been overlooked. Whether it's a franchise revival or a niche thriller, the digital landscape offers a second chance for stories that deserve more eyes. Mother Mary is just the latest example of a movie that found its audience after the theatrical window closed.
So, if you missed Mother Mary in theaters—or even if you caught it and want to revisit—now's your chance to see what all the streaming buzz is about. It's a testament to the power of streaming to give films a new life, and a reminder that box-office numbers don't always tell the whole story.
