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Though comic book movies and superhero adaptations obviously arrived before the turn of the century, they were few and far between. It meant that for every Superman (1978) and every Batman (1989) that we got, there were at least three or four films that are barely even worth mentioning in the same breath. After the year 2000, it was kicked into overdrive, not only delivering the X-Men feature film franchise but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe and now the DCU. These franchises have completely changed the trajectory of comic book adaptations, making them not only a staple of Hollywood but also giving us some of the best movies of our time.
Buried between the likes of The Dark Knight and The Avengers, though, are comic book movies that don’t fit into a grandiose film franchise or didn’t make a billion dollars at the box office, but they’re still culturally significant for their sheer entertainment value. Among those films is one of the very best of the genre, 2012’s Dredd, a long-awaited adaptation of the classic 2000 AD character that was comic-accurate. Though a flop upon release, fans have come to appreciate Dredd for what it brought to the table, and the good news is you’ll be able to stream it again very soon, and for free.
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Dredd Streaming Free on Plex This Summer
Starting June 1, Plex will have a host of new movies available for free streaming on the platform, and among them is 2012’s Dredd. Since Dredd isn’t tied to any specific major streaming deal, like Marvel Studios’ movies appearing on Disney+ or Warner Bros. films going to HBO Max, the movie tends to hop around on streaming. As a result, Dredd actually hasn’t been available on streaming for quite some time, so when the film does make its debut on Plex in just one week, it will mark the first time it’s been on streaming in months. On top of that, it will be free to watch for anyone.
Judge Dredd has been riding the highways of Mega City One and doling out punishments in the pages of comics since 1977, but the only adaptation of the character to reach the big screen was the 1995 film starring Sylvester Stallone. That film was not only a critical and commercial failure, but a creative one as well, with its lead actor breaking the biggest rule established for the character since his inception: taking off his helmet. The missteps with the film set Judge Dredd back a long time, at least until 2012.
When Karl Urban was hired to play the character in a new film from director Pete Travis and screenwriter Alex Garland, one of his immediate choices was to honor this element of Judge Dredd’s history, and he stayed true to his word with his version of the character never taking his helmet off the entire film; only his non-plussed grimace and nose are seen the entire time.
Urban’s choice to hide his face the entire time is just one of many creative choices in Dredd that have made it a fan favorite. On top of that, the film has slick, stylized action that not only made it stand apart from other generic comic book movie sequences but also fully utilized the 3D format upon release. Furthermore, Dredd was able to replicate the feeling of reading a Judge Dredd comic book by leaning heavily on satire and maintaining a dry sense of humor.
Upon its release, Dredd flopped. The film made $41 million at the box office, against a budget that was reportedly in the same range. Though praised by the critics who saw it, boasting an 80% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the film was released in the dead zone of September, while audiences had begun to lose interest in 3D films entirely (not to mention debuting in the shadow of The Avengers). All that is to say, it makes sense why you may not have seen Dredd when it debuted, but the perfect time to watch it is approaching, and it costs nothing.
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