The Current War
2017 · Movie · PG-13 · 108 min · ★ 6.7 · 58% critics
In the late 1800s, electricity inventors battle to shape how power will reach everyday life, competing to build and sell competing systems. As business rivalry escalates, their clash grows into a high-stakes struggle over influence, contracts, and what powers the future.
Also known as The Current War: Director's Cut
Where to watch
Streaming on Paramount+.
2 hours to watch.
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Details
- Years
- 2017
- Release date
- 2018-02-01
- Language
- English
- Rated
- PG-13
- Runtime
- 108 min
- Critic score
- 58/100
- TMDB rating
- 6.7/10 (1,155 votes)
About
You’ll likely enjoy The Current War if you like tense rivalry dramas and period electricity history with major star power; Not for you if you want fully accurate history or a deeply developed focus on all key innovators, like Genius or Harriet.
Pros: strong leading performances; interesting electrification history; engaging period look | Cons: historically inaccurate claims; story can feel underdeveloped; pacing drags
Themes
- biography
- 19th century
Cast & crew
Benedict Cumberbatch
as Thomas Edison
Michael Shannon
as George Westinghouse
Nicholas Hoult
as Nikola Tesla
Katherine Waterston
as Marguerite Westinghouse
Tom Holland
as Samuel Insull
Matthew Macfadyen
as J.P. Morgan
Tuppence Middleton
as Mary Edison
Stanley Townsend
as Franklin Pope
Damien Molony
as Bourke Cockran
Conor MacNeill
as William Kemmler
Directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon