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Netflix and Not-So-Chill: Preparing to Watch ‘A House of Dynamite’

A House Of Dynamite
Rebecka Green
October 23, 2025

On October 24, 2025, Kathryn Bigelow’s new film, A House of Dynamite, releases on Netflix. The premiere follows a limited run in theaters, which rallied the nuclear threat reduction together to engage in the somewhat lost—but not totally forsaken—art of watching movies in community. I first watched A House of Dynamite at a sold-out theater in Washington, DC, packed with colleagues from the nuclear threat reduction industry. When the credits rolled, something happened I have never experienced in a movie theater: my fellow moviegoers sat still for several minutes. The silence spoke volumes about the film’s jarring premise—and unexpected ending. (Don’t worry—this article is spoiler free).

As the theater lights came up, I turned to the man next to me—a complete stranger—and exchanged a look best described as, “yikes.” We did not speak further, but the mere presence of other people throughout the viewing experience helped lighten the emotional hangover.

Leading up to A House of Dynamite’s release, the subject matter of Bigelow’s film was kept under wraps, with many in the nuclear field able only to speculate on a nuclear-focused plot. When the trailer for A House of Dynamite dropped, the dramatic tension of the film made itself known: the everyday lives of US security and military professionals are uprooted as a nuclear missile barrels towards the United States.

“I always thought just being ready is the point,” a voice says in the trailer for A House of Dynamite. “If they see how prepared we are, no one starts a nuclear war.”

A House of Dynamite is the first major nuclear film to hit the big screen since the sensation of Oppenheimer in 2023, which sent people to the theaters in droves—including to sold-out screenings hosted by Ploughshares. While A House of Dynamite is unlikely to reach Oppenheimer’s level of water cooler chatter, the scale of production is significant—a partnership with Netflix, Academy Award-winner Kathryn Bigelow as director, and a star-studded cast featuring Idris Elba, Rebecca Ferguson, Tracy Letts, Greta Lee, and more.

Experts across the nuclear field eagerly anticipated watching A House of Dynamite, in part to gauge where it may fit in the pantheon of nuclear films. Is it be more military-action blockbuster, like Crimson Tide or The Sum of All Fears? Or perhaps gritty and up-close and personal, like Threads or On the Beach? No matter where A House of Dynamite lands, these cultural moments provide a rare opportunity to spark conversation anew about the role of pop culture in nuclear threat reduction.

Several Ploughshares grantees already published watch guides, breakdowns, and reviews about A House of Dynamite. As you prepare to watch the film, or reflect on your viewing experience, our grantees are sure to have a resource for you.

Before You Watch: Primers & Toolkits

Watch Together

  • On Monday, October 27 at 7pm PT, Tri-Valley CAREs will host a “virtual watch party followed by a post-film discussion on New START advocacy. Join the watch party.
  • On Monday, October 27 at 6pm PT, Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility / PSR-Washington will host a discussion of the film with historian Vincent Intondi. Register to attend.
  • The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists will host a “Experts React: Netflix’s A House of Dynamite” virtual event on Thursday, November 6 at 12:30pm ET. Sign up for the livestream. 

After You Watch: Reviews & Explainers (Spoilers Included)

Keep the Conversation Going

Nukes in movies—why does this matter? A 2024 Pew Research Center study found that “movies, TV shows, music,” rank third behind “friends and family” and “jobs, work, or school” in popular discussion topics among the American public. For me, whatever I’m watching can fill the holes in conversation lulls. During the summer of 2023, most younger Americans, could turn to a peer on the street and ask them their thoughts on the “Barbenheimer” phenomenon (the concurrent release of the tonally-opposite films, Barbie and Oppenheimer), and hear strong opinions about the order they planned to watch the two movies. Film is a tool of both cultural diplomacy and political diplomacy, and A House of Dynamite proves that concerns and questions about nuclear threat are very much considered by leading storytellers today. In the pipeline so far:

  • Annie Jacobsen’s bestselling book, Nuclear War: A Scenario is being adapted by Denis Villeneuve (Dune, Sicario).
  • Ghosts of Hiroshima, a bestselling book by Charles Pellegrino, is being adapted by James Cameron (Titanic, Avatar)

And of course, the waves Oppenheimer made in the nuclear threat reduction field still reverberate today. Ploughshares is a proud supporter of partnerships and coalition work that contributed to this buzz, as well as the amplification of A House of Dynamite. The scale of mobilization has been extraordinary—even before the film even hit Netflix today—and we are eager to track its ongoing impact as the rollout continues.

Did you watch A House of Dynamite already? Message us on X or Instagram—we’d love to know your thoughts!

 

PS: This is not the last time we’ll be discussing A House of Dynamite—or the broader nuclear film canon. Subscribe to our podcast, NukeTalk, on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever podcasts are found, to be among the first to know when we launch our new season!

 

Author

  • Rebecka is the Communications Manager at Ploughshares, where she serves as editor of the organization’s Story Center, manages core digital platforms, and assists with communications strategy across departments.

    Prior to coming to Ploughshares, Rebecka worked in communications at a D.C.-based think tank focused on religion in the United States, at a philanthropic resource network, and in higher education. She holds a B.A. in English and religious studies and has a background in the arts, focused on creative writing and digital production. She is based in Washington, D.C. by way of small-town Iowa.

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