# The Upside
**The Upside** is a 2017 American comedy-drama directed by Neil Burger and written by Jon Hartmere, remaking the 2011 French hit *Intouchables* by Éric Toledano and Olivier Nakache. It stars [Kevin Hart](https://www.edgepedia.org/kevin-hart) as Dell Scott, a recently paroled ex-convict hired as a caregiver, and [Bryan Cranston](https://www.edgepedia.org/bryan-cranston) as Phillip Lacasse, a wealthy quadriplegic, with [Nicole Kidman](https://www.edgepedia.org/nicole-kidman) as Phillip's business manager Yvonne Pendleton.[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1987680/fullcredits/) • [2](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-upside/credits/) The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2017 but reached theaters only in January 2019, after its original producer, The Weinstein Company, collapsed into bankruptcy.[3](https://www.inquirer.com/entertainment/the-upside-movie-kevin-hart-bryan-cranston-philadelphia-harvey-weinstein-20190104.html)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Source material | Remake of *Intouchables* (2011), written and directed by Éric Toledano and Olivier Nakache; screenplay by Jon Hartmere[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1987680/fullcredits/) |
| Director and leads | Neil Burger; Kevin Hart (Dell Scott), Bryan Cranston (Phillip Lacasse), Nicole Kidman (Yvonne Pendleton)[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1987680/fullcredits/) • [2](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-upside/credits/) |
| Production | Filmed January 30 to April 4, 2017, in New York City and Philadelphia; produced by The Weinstein Company and Escape Artists[4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1987680/locations/?item=lc1765405) |
| Premiere and release | World premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, September 8, 2017; US theatrical release January 11, 2019, by STXfilms[5](https://embed.letterboxd.com/film/the-upside/details/) • [6](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-box-office-upside-20190113-story.html) |
| Box office | Opened at No. 1 with $19.6 million; domestic gross $108,235,497, worldwide $125,818,440[6](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-box-office-upside-20190113-story.html) • [7](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Upside-The-%282019%29) |
| Reception | Metascore 46 (mixed or average) from 40 critics; about 40% on Rotten Tomatoes; an "A" CinemaScore from audiences[8](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-upside/critic-reviews/) • [9](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/press-release/the-upside-press-release) |
| Home video | Digital release May 14, 2019; Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD, and On Demand May 21, 2019, from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment[9](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/press-release/the-upside-press-release) |
## Spoilers
### Story and source
The plot follows the odd-couple friendship at the center of *Intouchables*: Phillip Lacasse, a [Park Avenue](https://www.edgepedia.org/park-avenue) billionaire left paralyzed from the neck down after a paragliding accident, hires Dell Scott, an ex-convict with no caregiving experience, as his "life auxiliary." Dell introduces the opera-loving Phillip to [Aretha Franklin](https://www.edgepedia.org/aretha-franklin) while Dell himself acquires a taste for opera and abstract art.[10](https://www.transmissionfilms.com.au/films/the-upside) • [11](https://time.com/5498902/the-upside-kevin-hart-movie-review/) Both films are inspired by the real-life friendship of French aristocrat Philippe Pozzo di Borgo and his caretaker Abdel Sellou.[12](https://thecriticalcritics.com/reviews/movie-review-the-upside/)
Screenwriter Jon Hartmere relocated the action from Paris to New York and restructured the story; the [San Francisco Chronicle](https://www.edgepedia.org/san-francisco-chronicle)'s Mick LaSalle argued the remake "fixes the story, giving it a tight structure," so that although it runs 13 minutes longer than the original, it seems shorter.[13](https://www.chron.com/living/article/Review-Upside-improves-upon-original-13525045.php) Editor Naomi Geraghty, a longtime Burger collaborator, said the first cut ran close to three hours and was trimmed to just under two; the [Earth, Wind & Fire](https://www.edgepedia.org/earth-wind-and-fire) sequence modeled on the original was cut down because the Hart character carried a larger backstory.[14](https://www.provideocoalition.com/art-of-the-cut-with-naomi-geraghty-editor-of-the-upside/amp/)
## Production
Filming began at the start of February 2017 and ran less than 50 shooting days over roughly 12 weeks, with location work in New York, stages in Philadelphia, and a few days in Oregon for the paragliding scenes.[14](https://www.provideocoalition.com/art-of-the-cut-with-naomi-geraghty-editor-of-the-upside/amp/) • [4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1987680/locations/?item=lc1765405) The crew included cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh, production designer Mark Friedberg, and composer Rob Simonsen.[15](https://downloads.ctfassets.net/22n7d68fswlw/3Bk5TqTMmsSoOcmc2MKEK8/c5e8d1d53e3be7f44b6280f177f44862/2017_Festival_Programme_Book.pdf)
## Release delays
The film's path to theaters was shaped by events off screen. It premiered at the 2017 [Toronto International Film Festival](https://www.edgepedia.org/toronto-international-film-festival) to mostly decent reviews, where [Harvey Weinstein](https://www.edgepedia.org/harvey-weinstein) called it his awards bet; three weeks later he faced allegations of sexual misconduct, and [The Weinstein Company](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-weinstein-company) slid into bankruptcy, tying up its slate of films.[3](https://www.inquirer.com/entertainment/the-upside-movie-kevin-hart-bryan-cranston-philadelphia-harvey-weinstein-20190104.html) • [16](https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/01/11/upside-is-hot-button-kevin-hart-release-that-represents-something-unexpected-harvey-weinsteins-late-career-failure/) STX Entertainment picked up the film, recut it from an initial R rating to PG-13, reportedly removing foul language, and released it on January 11, 2019, days after Kevin Hart withdrew from hosting the Oscars when his old homophobic tweets resurfaced.[17](https://www.inquirer.com/entertainment/the-upside-movie-box-office-kevin-hart-bryan-cranston-20190114.html)
## Box office
Despite the controversies and weak reviews, the film opened strongly. It debuted at No. 1 in North America with $19.6 million, nearly double analyst predictions, ending *Aquaman*'s three-week run at the top.[6](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-box-office-upside-20190113-story.html) It went on to gross $108,235,497 domestically and $125,818,440 worldwide, with an opening weekend of $20,355,000 representing 18.8% of the total gross.[7](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Upside-The-%282019%29) [Home video](https://www.edgepedia.org/home-video) added an estimated $7,334,499 in combined DVD and Blu-ray sales.[7](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Upside-The-%282019%29)
## Critical reception
Critics were largely unenthusiastic. The film holds a Metascore of 46, with 23 of 40 reviews negative and 11 positive, and roughly 40% on Rotten Tomatoes, where the critical consensus called it "preachy, manipulative, and frustratingly clichéd."[8](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-upside/critic-reviews/) • [18](https://www.newsofbahrain.com/epaper/19-01-2019/single/page-13.pdf) Reviewers repeatedly faulted its treatment of race, disability, and class: The Independent judged the filmmakers' handling of those themes "superficial in the extreme," while Variety's Scott Tobias wrote that "so little has been done to update or refresh *The Intouchables* for American culture or a new audience that *The Upside* has no integrity as a separate piece of work."[19](https://www.the-independent.com/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/the-upside-review-film-race-disability-bryan-cranston-kevin-hart-a8720571.html) • [18](https://www.newsofbahrain.com/epaper/19-01-2019/single/page-13.pdf)
The leads drew warmer notices. [The Hollywood Reporter](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-hollywood-reporter) found the Cranston-Hart pairing paid off "big time," and several critics credited the actors' chemistry with carrying a predictable script; audiences gave the film an "A" [CinemaScore](https://www.edgepedia.org/cinemascore).[8](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-upside/critic-reviews/) • [9](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/press-release/the-upside-press-release) A disability-community perspective in *New Mobility* noted that Cranston, a nondisabled actor, took heat for playing a quadriplegic character, while acknowledging that the performance conveyed the frustrations of lost physical freedom.[20](https://www.unitedspinal.org/pdf/NM_Feb_21.pdf)
## Place among the remakes
*The Upside* is one of several adaptations of *Intouchables*, alongside the 2016 Indian film *Oopiri* and the 2016 Argentine production *Inseparables*. Commentators describe it as adopting a conventional Hollywood narrative framework and recasting the story in terms of American class relations, urban life, and identity politics, while keeping the core narrative recognizable.[21](https://gun.av.tr/insights/updates/an-analysis-of-the-film-side-by-side-in-the-context-of-adaptations-and-copyright-law) An academic assessment characterizes the remake as carrying "the implicit burden of remediating the representational ills of the original" for American audiences, emerging as a "contested homage" to *Intouchables*.[22](https://gua.soutron.net/Portal/Default/en-GB/RecordView/Index/3141) The original French film, by contrast, won five [César Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/cesar-awards) and was reported by one disability publication to be the most financially successful French movie of all time.[23](https://www.unitedspinal.org/pdf/NM_Feb_19.pdf)
## References
1. [The Upside (2017) - Full cast & crew, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1987680/fullcredits/)
2. [The Upside credits, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-upside/credits/)
3. [Kevin Hart's Philly-shot movie The Upside faces two roadblocks, The Philadelphia Inquirer](https://www.inquirer.com/entertainment/the-upside-movie-kevin-hart-bryan-cranston-philadelphia-harvey-weinstein-20190104.html)
4. [The Upside (2017) - Filming & production, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1987680/locations/?item=lc1765405)
5. [The Upside (2017) directed by Neil Burger, Letterboxd](https://embed.letterboxd.com/film/the-upside/details/)
6. [Kevin Hart and 'The Upside' topple 'Aquaman' from top box office spot, Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-box-office-upside-20190113-story.html)
7. [The Upside (2019) - Box Office and Financial Information, The Numbers](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Upside-The-%282019%29)
8. [The Upside critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-upside/critic-reviews/)
9. [The Upside Press Release, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/press-release/the-upside-press-release)
10. [The Upside, Transmission Films](https://www.transmissionfilms.com.au/films/the-upside)
11. ['The Upside' Is Just Too Retrograde to Be Funny, Time](https://time.com/5498902/the-upside-kevin-hart-movie-review/)
12. [Movie Review: The Upside (2017), The Critical Movie Critics](https://thecriticalcritics.com/reviews/movie-review-the-upside/)
13. [Review: 'Upside' improves upon original, San Francisco Chronicle / Hearst](https://www.chron.com/living/article/Review-Upside-improves-upon-original-13525045.php)
14. [ART OF THE CUT with Naomi Geraghty, editor of "The Upside", ProVideo Coalition](https://www.provideocoalition.com/art-of-the-cut-with-naomi-geraghty-editor-of-the-upside/amp/)
15. [2017 Festival Programme Book, Toronto International Film Festival](https://downloads.ctfassets.net/22n7d68fswlw/3Bk5TqTMmsSoOcmc2MKEK8/c5e8d1d53e3be7f44b6280f177f44862/2017_Festival_Programme_Book.pdf)
16. ['The Upside' is a hot-button Kevin Hart release, The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/01/11/upside-is-hot-button-kevin-hart-release-that-represents-something-unexpected-harvey-weinsteins-late-career-failure/)
17. [How Kevin Hart's 'The Upside' doubled box office projections, The Philadelphia Inquirer](https://www.inquirer.com/entertainment/the-upside-movie-box-office-kevin-hart-bryan-cranston-20190114.html)
18. [Newspaper page including Rotten Tomatoes consensus and Variety quote, News of Bahrain (January 19, 2019)](https://www.newsofbahrain.com/epaper/19-01-2019/single/page-13.pdf)
19. [The Upside review, The Independent](https://www.the-independent.com/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/the-upside-review-film-race-disability-bryan-cranston-kevin-hart-a8720571.html)
20. [New Mobility, February 2021 issue, United Spinal Association](https://www.unitedspinal.org/pdf/NM_Feb_21.pdf)
21. [An Analysis of the Film 'Side by Side' in the Context of Adaptations and Copyright Law, Gün + Partners](https://gun.av.tr/insights/updates/an-analysis-of-the-film-side-by-side-in-the-context-of-adaptations-and-copyright-law)
22. [Library record on Intouchables and The Upside, Soutron portal](https://gua.soutron.net/Portal/Default/en-GB/RecordView/Index/3141)
23. [The Rucker Report, New Mobility, February 2019, United Spinal Association](https://www.unitedspinal.org/pdf/NM_Feb_19.pdf)
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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 › Comedy and romantic films (individual works) › Comedies of 2017 to 2018 › Titles K to W*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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