2024 was the year sex returned to cinema. There was the neo-noir thriller Love Lies Bleeding, the mega-viral love-triangle drama Challengers, the sex-worker-centered Cinderella story Anora, and finally — just hitting theaters with a week left in the year — Nicole Kidman and A24's Babygirl. And they might've saved the best for last. As Mashable Film Editor Kristy Puchko puts it, "Amid stiff competition, [Kidman] delivers one of the sexiest, most thrilling films of the year."
The Oscars may have snubbed the movie, but Kidman's performance earned her the Volpi Cup for Best Actress award at the Venice Film Festival. Now, just a little over a month after its theatrical debut, Babygirl is officially available to watch at home. We're still unsure when it will make its streaming debut, but you can now rent or purchase the film at digital retailers as of Jan. 28, 2025. Here's everything you need to know to watch Babygirl at home.
What is Babygirl about?
In Babygirl, Nicole Kidman stars as Romy, a powerful CEO trying to balance a demanding professional life with her personal life, which includes a loving husband (Antonio Banderas) and two teenage daughters (Vaughan Reilly and nepo baby Esther McGregor). When cocky intern Samuel (Triangle of Sadness' Harris Dickinson) starts inappropriately flirting with her, she's both shocked and aroused. What follows is a lusty affair exploring dominance and submission that threatens to break her entire world apart.
Get a sneak peek at the erotic thriller in the official trailer:
Is Babygirl worth watching?
Interestingly, while critics have been loving Dutch writer/director Halina Reijn's latest flick, audiences are a bit more conflicted. Babygirl currently holds a 77 percent critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but just a 48 percent audience rating. This is likely to change now that the film is available to a wider audience, but the conflicting numbers are definitely curious.
Puchko raved about the erotic thriller in her review out of TIFF. She wrote, "Altogether, the cast makes Babygirl a stunner, landing silly moments as well as sexy ones. Emotionally naked, unapologetically provocative, and defiantly playful, Reijn's film joyfully explores the complicated ties that bind. Amid stiff competition, she delivers one of the sexiest, most thrilling films of the year."
Babygirl even made the top 10 in our list of the best movies of 2024. We expected it to be a contender this awards season, but were surprised to see it snubbed in all Oscar categories.
Read our full review of Babygirl.
How to watch Babygirl at home
Thankfully, A24 didn't tease us for long. Just a little over a month after the sexually charged thriller made its theatrical debut, it became available to watch at home via video-on-demand platforms like Prime Video, Apple TV, and Fandango at Home (Vudu). You can either purchase the film for your digital collection or rent it for 30 days. If you'd rather stream Babygirl instead, scroll on to learn more.
You can purchase and rent the film at the following retailers as of Jan. 28:
Prime Video — buy for $24.99, rent for $19.99
Apple TV — buy for $24.99, rent for $19.99
Fandango at Home (Vudu) — buy for $24.99, rent for $19.99
Google Play — buy for $24.99, rent for $19.99
Note: Renting a film gives you 30 days to watch and just 48 hours to finish once you begin.
Is Babygirl streaming?
There's no official streaming date yet for Babygirl, but as an A24 film, we know it will eventually make its streaming debut on Max alongside other recent A24 theatrical hits like Civil War and MaXXXine, thanks to a multi-year output deal. If you want to be prepared for when the film does eventually land on the streamer — or want to catch up on previous A24 films — you can sign up for a Max subscription ahead of time. Subscriptions start at $9.99 per month, but there are a few ways to save money on your plan.
Check out the best Max streaming deals below.
The best Max streaming deals
Best for most people: Save 16% on Max with ads annual subscription
The cheapest Max subscription is $9.99 per month, but only if you don't mind a few ads here and there. You can wait until Babygirl starts streaming and sign up for a single month of service, then cancel before you're charged for another. Or, you could stick around for the long haul and save some money on your subscription. An annual plan with ads will cost you $99.99 per year, which breaks down to just $8.33 per month. Of course, you'll have to pay upfront, but that'll keep 16% in your pocket as opposed to a monthly plan.
Best Max deal with no ads: Save 16% on a Max Ad-Free annual subscription
Similarly, you can save an extra 16% by committing to a yearly plan of the Max ad-free tiers. If ads are a total deal breaker for you, you have two tiers to choose from: Max Ad-Free and Max Ultimate Ad-Free. The basic ad-free tier costs either $16.99 per month or $169.99 per year (about $14.17 per month), while the Ultimate tier costs either $20.99 per month or $209.99 per year (about $17.50 per month).
Note: Both tiers offer an ad-free viewing experience, but the Ultimate tier comes with 4K Ultra HD video quality and Dolby Atmos immersive audio.
Best Max deal for Cricket customers: Free Max with ads for customers on the $60/month unlimited plan
If you have a Cricket wireless plan, you may be able to access Max for free. Cricket customers on the $60 per month unlimited plan get a free Max with ads subscription. That's a $99.99 per year value for zero dollars. Just head over to the Max app, choose Cricket as your provider, then enter your Cricket credentials to log in. Boom — you're free to watch whatever you want, whenever you want — including Babygirl once it's released.
Check out the terms and conditions on Cricket's website to learn more. If you want to watch Babygirl for free, this will be your only option (once it's released on Max).
Best Max deal for students: Save 50% on Max with ads
College students can get an entire year of Max with ads for just $4.99 per month instead of $9.99. That's 50% in savings. You'll just have to verify your student status with UNiDAYS to retrieve the unique discount code that will drop the price.
Best bundle deal: Get Max, Disney+, and Hulu for up to 38% off
It won't be your cheapest option for watching Babygirl, but you can get a lot of bang for your buck if you opt for a streaming bundle deal — especially if you already subscribe to Hulu or Disney+. For only $16.99 per month (reg. $25.97), you can sign up for Max, Hulu, and Disney+ with ads or $29.99 per month (reg. $48.97) without ads. That's up to 38% in savings for access to three full streaming libraries.
