The Insider
1999 · Movie · R · 158 min · ★ 7.5 · 91% critics
A scientist with inside knowledge of a powerful tobacco company agrees to speak publicly, triggering intense pressure on his career, reputation, and family. As a major news program pursues the story, legal threats and corporate influence test how far people will go to keep the truth from reaching the public.
Based on The Man Who Knew Too Much
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Streaming on Peacock, Hulu and Disney+ — or rent from $3.99.
3 hours to watch.
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Details
- Years
- 1999
- Release date
- 1999-10-28
- Language
- English
- Rated
- R
- Runtime
- 158 min
- Max quality
- HD
- Critic score
- 91/100
- TMDB rating
- 7.5/10 (2,072 votes)
- Box office
- $60,289,912
- Budget
- $90,000,000
About
You’ll likely enjoy this if you want a tense, fact-based drama about whistleblowing, corporate pressure, and journalistic integrity; Not for you if you dislike long, talk-heavy stories or slow-burn pacing, like in A Simple Plan.
Pros: gripping true-story tension; strong performances; thought-provoking ethics | Cons: long runtime; slow build; some repetitive stretches
Themes
- newspaper
- research
- politics
- spy
- journalism
- interview
- tobacco
- insider
- conspiracy theory
- reporter
- whistleblower
- tobacco industry
- +4 more
Awards & recognition
- National Board of Review: Top Ten Films
- Academy Award — Best Actor · 2000 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Film Editing · 2000 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Picture · 2000 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Sound · 2000 · nominated
Show all 8 awards →
- Academy Award — Best Cinematography · 2000 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Director · 2000 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay · 2000 · nominated
Cast & crew
Al Pacino
as Lowell Bergman
Russell Crowe
as Jeffrey Wigand
Christopher Plummer
as Mike Wallace
Diane Venora
as Liane Wigand
Philip Baker Hall
as Don Hewitt
Lindsay Crouse
as Sharon Tiller
Debi Mazar
as Debbie De Luca
Stephen Tobolowsky
as Eric Kluster
Colm Feore
as Richard Scruggs
Bruce McGill
as Ron Motley
Directed by Michael Mann