# Spiderhead
**Spiderhead** is a 2022 American science-fiction psychological thriller released on Netflix on June 17, 2022, in which inmates at a state-of-the-art penitentiary volunteer for tests of mind-altering drugs in exchange for commuted sentences.[1](https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix/80210767) It was directed by [Joseph Kosinski](https://www.edgepedia.org/joseph-kosinski) and written by Rhett Reese and [Paul Wernick](https://www.edgepedia.org/paul-wernick), the screenwriting team behind *Deadpool* and *Zombieland*, and it stars [Chris Hemsworth](https://www.edgepedia.org/chris-hemsworth), Miles Teller, and Jurnee Smollett.[1](https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix/80210767) The film adapts George Saunders' short story "Escape from Spiderhead," first published in *The New Yorker* in 2010.[2](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/spiderhead-the-drugs-dont-work/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | Netflix streaming premiere, June 17, 2022[1](https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix/80210767) |
| Director / writers | Joseph Kosinski; screenplay by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick[1](https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix/80210767) |
| Source | "Escape from Spiderhead," a short story by George Saunders published in *The New Yorker* in 2010 and collected in *Tenth of December* (2013)[2](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/spiderhead-the-drugs-dont-work/) |
| Main cast | Chris Hemsworth as Steve Abnesti, Miles Teller as Jeff, Jurnee Smollett as Lizzy[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/spiderhead) |
| Format | 1 hour 47 minutes; rated R for violent content, sexual content, and language[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/spiderhead) |
| Reception | Metascore 54 from 34 critic reviews; 39% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer and 30% from audiences[4](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/spiderhead/) • [3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/spiderhead) |
| Production companies | Conde Nast Entertainment, Grand Electric, Reese Wernick Productions, Screen Arcade, and The New Yorker[4](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/spiderhead/) |
## Spoilers
### Premise
In the near future, two convicts, Jeff ([Miles Teller](https://www.edgepedia.org/miles-teller)) and Lizzy ([Jurnee Smollett](https://www.edgepedia.org/jurnee-smollett)), grapple with their pasts inside a penitentiary run by the pharmaceutical visionary Steve Abnesti (Chris Hemsworth).[1](https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix/80210767) The inmates wear a surgically attached device that administers dosages of mind-altering drugs in exchange for commuted sentences; the facility has no bars, cells, or orange jumpsuits, and prisoners can accept or reject commands by saying, or not saying, "acknowledge."[1](https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix/80210767) • [5](https://cdn.nflxext.com/tudum/articles/spiderhead-movie-cast) The drugs can induce specific emotions on demand, from love and hilarity to terror and violence.[6](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/movies/best-thriller-movies-on-netflix/) When Jeff and Lizzy form a connection, they begin to question their willing participation in the testing, Abnesti's methods, and the limits the experiments place on free will.[1](https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix/80210767) • [7](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/spiderhead)
## Adaptation from the short story
Saunders' story "Escape from Spiderhead" first appeared in *The New Yorker* in 2010 and was later collected in the 2013 compilation *Tenth of December*; it uses its science-fictional premise to explore agency and empathy.[2](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/spiderhead-the-drugs-dont-work/) Screenwriters Reese and Wernick came across the story and thought it should be a movie, expanding Saunders' brief original with new narrative arcs, characters, and motivations while keeping its essence.[8](https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/spiderhead-film-george-saunders-story-changes?inapp=true%2F) The film's title drops "Escape from" and simply reads *Spiderhead*.[2](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/spiderhead-the-drugs-dont-work/)
Some critics judged the adaptation a loss for the source material. The *Los Angeles Times* wrote that Saunders' work is little more than a prop in the film and that its writers fundamentally misconstrue the story.[9](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/books/story/2022-06-17/page-to-screen-spiderhead-the-movie-squanders-george-saunders-classic-short-story) Kirkus similarly argued that the film's greatest flaw is that it ignores the message at the heart of Saunders' story.[2](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/spiderhead-the-drugs-dont-work/)
## Production
Kosinski received the script, written by Reese and Wernick from Saunders' story, before he had made *Top Gun: Maverick*, and he spent the end of that film's post-production working on *Spiderhead*.[10](https://www.thewrap.com/spiderhead-location-explained-joseph-kosinski-interview/) The film was made in Australia under a Netflix production scheme, with the title announced as *Escape from Spiderhead* before release.[11](https://www.nme.com/news/netflix-titles-escape-from-spiderhead-and-pieces-of-her-to-film-in-australia-under-new-scheme-2817397) Reviews noted the [Queensland](https://www.edgepedia.org/queensland) coastlines standing in for the facility's remote island setting.[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/spiderhead) Teller's role was his third collaboration with Kosinski, following *Only the Brave* and *Top Gun: Maverick*.[12](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/spiderhead-took-10-years-to-make/) The crew included cinematographer Claudio Miranda, composer Joseph Trapanese, and editor Stephen Mirrione.[13](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/spiderhead-movie-review-2022)
## Reception
Professional reception was mixed to negative. On Metacritic the film scored 54 out of 100, labeled "Mixed or Average," based on 34 critic reviews, with a user score of 5.4 from 76 ratings.[4](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/spiderhead/) Rotten Tomatoes recorded a 39% Tomatometer from 155 reviews and a 30% audience score from more than 1,000 ratings; its critics consensus held that the top-shelf cast and well-written source material are almost enough to compensate for the film's frequent failure to live up to its potential.[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/spiderhead)
Positive reviews singled out the premise and the two leads. *New York Magazine* (Vulture) gave 90 and called the film's treatment of moral decay beneath a placid surface entertaining and thoughtful.[4](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/spiderhead/) The *San Francisco Chronicle* praised the face-off between Hemsworth's "irresistible force" and Teller's "immovable object."[14](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/spiderhead/critic-reviews/) Negative reviews targeted the script and tone: the *Chicago Tribune* faulted a script that lets the audience get ahead of the protagonist's moral awakening, and *Variety* judged the execution tone-deaf.[4](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/spiderhead/) Common Sense Media found the short-story concept too thin to carry a whole movie, though it mostly works through the performances of [Hemsworth](https://www.edgepedia.org/hemsworth) and Teller.[7](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/spiderhead) The film's yacht-rock soundtrack and Hemsworth's dancing scene drew frequent mention in reviews.[14](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/spiderhead/critic-reviews/)
## References
1. [Spiderhead, Netflix Media Center](https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix/80210767)
2. ["'Spiderhead': The Drugs Don't Work," Kirkus Reviews, June 16, 2022](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/spiderhead-the-drugs-dont-work/)
3. [Spiderhead, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/spiderhead)
4. [Spiderhead Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/spiderhead/)
5. [Guide to 'Spiderhead' Cast, Netflix Tudum, June 13, 2022](https://cdn.nflxext.com/tudum/articles/spiderhead-movie-cast)
6. [The 25 Best Thrillers Streaming on Netflix, Marie Claire](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/movies/best-thriller-movies-on-netflix/)
7. [Spiderhead Parents' Guide & Movie Review, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/spiderhead)
8. ["'Spiderhead' Screenwriters on How They Adapted George Saunders' Short Story," Netflix Tudum, June 18, 2022](https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/spiderhead-film-george-saunders-story-changes?inapp=true%2F)
9. ["Page-to-Screen: 'Spiderhead' the movie squanders George Saunders' classic short story," Los Angeles Times, June 17, 2022](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/books/story/2022-06-17/page-to-screen-spiderhead-the-movie-squanders-george-saunders-classic-short-story)
10. ["How Architect-Turned-Director Joseph Kosinski Built 'Spiderhead' and 'Top Gun: Maverick'," TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/spiderhead-location-explained-joseph-kosinski-interview/)
11. ["Netflix titles 'Escape from Spiderhead' and 'Pieces of Her' to film in Australia," NME](https://www.nme.com/news/netflix-titles-escape-from-spiderhead-and-pieces-of-her-to-film-in-australia-under-new-scheme-2817397)
12. ["Why Spiderhead Took 10 Years to Make," Den of Geek](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/spiderhead-took-10-years-to-make/)
13. [Spiderhead movie review, RogerEbert.com, June 17, 2022](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/spiderhead-movie-review-2022)
14. [Spiderhead Critic Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/spiderhead/critic-reviews/)
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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 › Science fiction and fantasy films (individual works) › Science fiction and fantasy films of the 2020s › Science fiction films of the 2020s › Titles M to X*
*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*
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