'nothing else like it'

‘Nickel Boys’ to Hit Streaming Before the Oscars — What to Know About the Best Picture Nominee

The critically acclaimed film is available to buy now and will be streaming on Friday

By Jonathan Zavaleta

Jonathan Zavaleta

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February 24, 2025

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NB_FP_479 Ethan Herisse stars as Elwood and Brandon Wilson as Turner in director RaMell Ross’s NICKEL BOYS, from Orion Pictures. Photo credit: Courtesy of Orion Pictures © 2024 Amazon Content Services LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Ethan Herisse as Elwood and Brandon Wilson as Turner in 'Nickel Boys' Orion Pictures

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Despite being one of 10 movies nominated for Best Picture, Nickel Boys has largely flown under the radar, in part due to the low-key rollout that has kept it in a limited number of theaters. Whether you were a fan of the Pulitzer Prize-winning 2020 novel or simply want to catch every Best Picture release before the Oscars, here’s what you need to know about streaming Nickel Boys.

How to Watch Nickel Boys

The film, which was distributed by MGM, will be streaming on MGM+ on February 28. MGM+ is available as a standalone subscription or as an add-on with Prime Video and comes with a 7-day free trial.

get mgm+ trial on prime

Since MGM is owned by Amazon, a Prime Video streaming release is likely, though no date has been announced. The movie is also available to buy from VOD platforms like Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV for $19.99. There is also no word yet on a potential Blu-ray release. In addition to the film’s Best Picture nod, it was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay.

The film is based on Colson Whitehead’s 2020 novel about two boys who become friends at a reform school and help each other endure the brutal abuse by the wardens. The fictitious Nickel is based on the Dozier School, whose wardens were accused of beatings, with unmarked graves found on the now-closed site. The story deals with themes of racism in America and the desire to maintain dignity in the face of injustice.

'Nickel Boys' Streaming: Where to Watch the Oscar-Nominated Drama

Nickel Boys

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Colson Whitehead’s novel won him his second Pulitzer Prize, making him just one of four novelists to have won the honor more than once. He also won for 2017’s The Underground Railroad.

Nickel Boys is directed by Ramell Ross and stars Ethan Herisse and Brandon Wilson. Ross and cinematographer Jomo Fray filmed the adaptation with an unconventional first-person POV, which Rolling Stone’s David Fear called “a bold gamble” that “pays off in a huge way.”

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He added, “It’s this choice — along with the insistence from all involved that the story’s abundance of humanism isn’t sacrificed one iota in the pursuit of aestheticism — that makes Nickel Boys not just unique but undeniable. There is simply nothing else like it”

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