# Burnt (film)
**Burnt** is a 2015 American comedy-drama directed by John Wells, written by [Steven Knight](https://www.edgepedia.org/steven-knight) from a story by Michael Kalesniko, and starring [Bradley Cooper](https://www.edgepedia.org/bradley-cooper) as Adam Jones, a disgraced chef who returns to London to pursue a third Michelin star.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/70780-BURNT) • [17](https://www.archerypictures.com/burnt) The film was released in the United States on 30 October 2015 by [The Weinstein Company](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-weinstein-company), runs 100 minutes, and was rated R.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/70780-BURNT) It received generally unfavorable reviews from critics and underperformed at the box office.[2](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/burnt/) • [3](https://bombreport.com/yearly-breakdowns/2015-2/burnt/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Director / writers | John Wells; screenplay by Steven Knight, story by Michael Kalesniko[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/70780-BURNT) |
| Release | 30 October 2015 (United States), The Weinstein Company; 100 minutes, R[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/70780-BURNT) |
| Lead cast | Bradley Cooper (Adam Jones), Sienna Miller (Helene), Daniel Brühl (Tony), Omar Sy (Michel), Emma Thompson (Dr. Rosshilde), Uma Thurman (Simone)[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/70780-BURNT) |
| Premise | A former two-Michelin-star Paris chef, ruined by drugs and alcohol, shucks one million oysters in New Orleans as penance, then returns to London to win a third Michelin star[4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/burnt-bares-all-to-show-how-the-sausage-is-made/2015/10/28/ddf0b7f2-798f-11e5-a958-d889faf561dc_story.html) |
| Critical scores | Metascore 42/100 from 28 critics; 29% Tomatometer from 159 reviews, 45% audience score[2](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/burnt/) • [5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/burnt) |
| Culinary consultants | Celebrity chef Marcus Wareing advised on kitchen scenes; Mario Batali consulted on kitchen matters[4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/burnt-bares-all-to-show-how-the-sausage-is-made/2015/10/28/ddf0b7f2-798f-11e5-a958-d889faf561dc_story.html) • [6](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/burnt-2015) |
| Box office | A flop, and Bradley Cooper's third commercial failure of 2015 after *Serena* and *Aloha*[3](https://bombreport.com/yearly-breakdowns/2015-2/burnt/) |
## Spoilers
### Plot and characters
Adam Jones was once the chef at a two-Michelin-star restaurant in Paris, but drugs and alcohol made an already abusive personality worse, and he disappeared, leaving people to assume he had died.[4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/burnt-bares-all-to-show-how-the-sausage-is-made/2015/10/28/ddf0b7f2-798f-11e5-a958-d889faf561dc_story.html) The film opens with his self-imposed penance: shucking one million oysters in New Orleans.[4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/burnt-bares-all-to-show-how-the-sausage-is-made/2015/10/28/ddf0b7f2-798f-11e5-a958-d889faf561dc_story.html) • [7](https://time.com/7199640/best-cooking-movies/) Clean and resurfaced, he arrives in London with the goal of opening a top restaurant and earning the third Michelin star he never won.[4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/burnt-bares-all-to-show-how-the-sausage-is-made/2015/10/28/ddf0b7f2-798f-11e5-a958-d889faf561dc_story.html) • [8](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/burnt-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zotk4nzq)
In what the Washington Post's Stephanie Merry describes as a sequence fit for a heist movie, Adam recruits a kitchen crew: Helene ([Sienna Miller](https://www.edgepedia.org/sienna-miller)), a fiery single mother; Michel ([Omar Sy](https://www.edgepedia.org/omar-sy)), a frenemy from his Paris past; Max ([Riccardo Scamarcio](https://www.edgepedia.org/riccardo-scamarcio)), a violent ex-convict; and Tony (Daniel Brühl), a maître d' devoted to Adam because he is in love with him.[4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/burnt-bares-all-to-show-how-the-sausage-is-made/2015/10/28/ddf0b7f2-798f-11e5-a958-d889faf561dc_story.html) The restaurant is set at the Langham hotel in London.[9](https://www.fcsi.org/foodservice-consultant/worldwide/burnt-a-foodservice-perspective/) The supporting cast includes Emma Thompson as Adam's therapist, Uma Thurman as an exacting restaurant critic, Matthew Rhys as Adam's three-star nemesis, and fleeting appearances by Alicia Vikander and Lily James; scenes shot by Jamie Dornan were cut from the finished film.[4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/burnt-bares-all-to-show-how-the-sausage-is-made/2015/10/28/ddf0b7f2-798f-11e5-a958-d889faf561dc_story.html)
## Production and title changes
The film was produced by 3 Arts Entertainment, Shiny Penny, and Battle Mountain Films, with Stacey Sher, Erwin Stoff, and John Wells producing, Adriano Goldman as cinematographer, and Rob Simonsen composing the score.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/70780-BURNT) It was originally titled *Adam Jones*; The Weinstein Company renamed it *Burnt* in early 2015 when it set an October 23 release date, a change the Observer's Mark Kermode attributed to the existence of [Jon Favreau](https://www.edgepedia.org/jon-favreau)'s 2014 film *Chef*.[10](https://www.thewrap.com/cate-blanchetts-carol-bradley-coopers-burnt-get-new-release-dates/) • [11](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/nov/08/burnt-review-chef-bradley-cooper-sienna-miller) The release date was later moved again to 30 October 2015.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/70780-BURNT)
**Kitchen authenticity.** Two professional chefs advised the production. [Marcus Wareing](https://www.edgepedia.org/marcus-wareing), the London-based celebrity chef, consulted on the menus, service, and kitchen scenes.[4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/burnt-bares-all-to-show-how-the-sausage-is-made/2015/10/28/ddf0b7f2-798f-11e5-a958-d889faf561dc_story.html) • [12](https://www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk/behind-the-scenes-marcus-wareing-on-burnt/) [Mario Batali](https://www.edgepedia.org/mario-batali), the American chef, advised on kitchen matters more broadly.[6](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/burnt-2015) Cooper reportedly did his own cooking on camera, telling interviewers there were no cooking doubles.[13](https://gulfnews.com/going-out/burnt-has-realistic-kitchen-capers-1.1607267) Reviewers singled out the kitchen sequences as the film's strongest material: the Washington Post called the behind-the-scenes glimpse of high-pressure restaurant work both fascinating and horrifying, and credited Wells's experience on the kinetic medical drama *E.R.* for the effective staging.[4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/burnt-bares-all-to-show-how-the-sausage-is-made/2015/10/28/ddf0b7f2-798f-11e5-a958-d889faf561dc_story.html)
Professional kitchen observers were less convinced. [John Cornyn](https://www.edgepedia.org/john-cornyn), a foodservice consultant and president of the FCSI Educational Foundation, noted that the film's chefs taste sauces with bare fingers and reuse spoons without washing them, that an experienced cutting-edge chef is improbably introduced to a sous-vide machine, a technology he said had existed for at least 20 years, and that the hero doubles and triples staff salaries despite a restaurant supposedly in financial distress.[9](https://www.fcsi.org/foodservice-consultant/worldwide/burnt-a-foodservice-perspective/)
## Reception
**Critical response was negative on balance.** Metacritic assigned a Metascore of 42, labeled "Mixed or Average," from 28 critic reviews, with 11% positive, 71% mixed, and 18% negative; its user score was 5.9 from 125 ratings.[2](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/burnt/) Rotten Tomatoes recorded a 29% Tomatometer from 159 professional reviews and a 45% audience score from more than 10,000 ratings, with the site's critics consensus calling the film a few spoonfuls of compelling culinary drama lost in clichés and an unsavory main character.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/burnt)
Individual reviews varied in emphasis. [Rex Reed](https://www.edgepedia.org/rex-reed) of the Observer gave it 75, calling it well acted, sumptuously photographed, and smartly written.[2](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/burnt/) The Los Angeles Times' Kenneth Turan found it mildly diverting at 50.[2](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/burnt/) Screen Daily's Tim Grierson acknowledged strong performances from Cooper but wrote that every story beat arrived with such predictability that the project seemed smothered in bland sweetness.[14](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/burnt-review/5095602.article?blocktitle=REVIEWS&contentID=40296) [Mark Kermode](https://www.edgepedia.org/mark-kermode) in the Observer called it overegged and undercooked, and suggested Favreau's *Chef* as a more palatable alternative.[11](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/nov/08/burnt-review-chef-bradley-cooper-sienna-miller) Glenn Kenny's RogerEbert.com review credited the film with minor surprises and restraint at its triumphant ending, including a sequence comparing Michelin stars to *Star Wars* heroes.[6](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/burnt-2015)
**Commercially the film failed.** The box-office tracking site Bomb Report counted it as the third flop for Cooper in 2015, after the troubled *Serena* and the summer bomb *Aloha*.[3](https://bombreport.com/yearly-breakdowns/2015-2/burnt/) Time magazine ranked it ninth on its list of 2015's worst films, saying Cooper served up an undercooked meal.[15](https://time.com/4144126/movies-2/)
## Afterlife
Reassessment has been kinder in some quarters. A 2024 Time retrospective on cooking movies included *Burnt*, describing it as inherently ridiculous but entertaining, and crediting it with tackling toxic masculinity in professional kitchens before that problem was widely acknowledged in the restaurant world.[7](https://time.com/7199640/best-cooking-movies/) The film remains widely available on streaming and digital platforms, including Prime Video, Tubi, and Plex.[16](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/burnt?package=plc)
## References
1. [Burnt (2015), AFI Catalog](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/70780-BURNT)
2. [Burnt Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/burnt/)
3. [Burnt (2015), Bomb Report](https://bombreport.com/yearly-breakdowns/2015-2/burnt/)
4. [Stephanie Merry, "'Burnt' bares all to show how the sausage is made," The Washington Post, October 29, 2015](https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/burnt-bares-all-to-show-how-the-sausage-is-made/2015/10/28/ddf0b7f2-798f-11e5-a958-d889faf561dc_story.html)
5. [Burnt, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/burnt)
6. [Glenn Kenny, "Burnt movie review & film summary," RogerEbert.com, October 29, 2015](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/burnt-2015)
7. [The Best Movies About Cooking, Time, December 21, 2024](https://time.com/7199640/best-cooking-movies/)
8. [BURNT, British Board of Film Classification](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/burnt-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zotk4nzq)
9. [Jon Horsley, "Burnt: a foodservice perspective," Foodservice Consultants Society International](https://www.fcsi.org/foodservice-consultant/worldwide/burnt-a-foodservice-perspective/)
10. ["Cate Blanchett's 'Carol,' Bradley Cooper's 'Burnt' Get New Release Dates," TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/cate-blanchetts-carol-bradley-coopers-burnt-get-new-release-dates/)
11. [Mark Kermode, "Burnt review – overegged and undercooked," The Observer, November 8, 2015](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/nov/08/burnt-review-chef-bradley-cooper-sienna-miller)
12. ["Behind the scenes: Marcus Wareing on Burnt," delicious. magazine](https://www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk/behind-the-scenes-marcus-wareing-on-burnt/)
13. ["'Burnt' has realistic kitchen capers," Gulf News](https://gulfnews.com/going-out/burnt-has-realistic-kitchen-capers-1.1607267)
14. [Tim Grierson, "'Burnt': Review," Screen Daily, October 21, 2015](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/burnt-review/5095602.article?blocktitle=REVIEWS&contentID=40296)
15. ["Movies: The Worst Films of 2015," Time, December 10, 2015](https://time.com/4144126/movies-2/)
16. [Burnt streaming: where to watch online, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/burnt?package=plc)
17. [Burnt, Archery Pictures](https://www.archerypictures.com/burnt)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Drama and biographical films (individual works) › Drama films 2015 to 2019 › Drama films 2015 and 2016 › Released in 2015*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license