Snake is back.
Into the 9.6-quaked Los Angeles of 2013 comes Snake Plissken. His job: wade through L.A.'s ruined landmarks to retrieve a doomsday device.
Escape from L.A. (1996) is a action, thriller and science fiction film directed by John Carpenter, released on August 9, 1996 with a runtime of 1h 41m. It stars Kurt Russell, Stacy Keach, Steve Buscemi and A. J. Langer. Viewers rate it 5.9 out of 10 across 1,664 ratings.
Watch the official trailer for Escape from L.A. before you stream it.
Official trailers, teasers, clips and featurettes for Escape from L.A..
Trailer
Featurette
Featurette
Kurt Russell
as Snake Plissken
Stacy Keach
as Malloy
Steve Buscemi
as Eddie
A. J. Langer
as Utopia
Cliff Robertson
as President
Bruce Campbell
as Surgeon General of Beverly Hills
Pam Grier
as Hershe Las Palamas
Peter Fonda
as Pipeline
Georges Corraface
as Cuervo Jones
Robert Carradine
as Skinhead
Michelle Forbes
as Brazen
Valeria Golino
as Taslima
Directed by John Carpenter, written by John Carpenter, John Carpenter and Debra Hill, produced by Debra Hill and Kurt Russell.
Average viewer score of 5.9/10 from 1,664 ratings.
90s cheese not quite as good as 80s cheese, but still an entertaining enough action-thriller, though some moments were laughable and not in a good way (Snake riding surfing a wave isn't all that bad ass), plus the effects work was rather poor. I don't have a great fondness for Escape from New York, however it was far superior. **3.0/5**
Reviewed on May 28, 2020
So Los Angeles has become a glorified open-air prison (who'd have thought?) and "Snake" (Kurt Russell) is invited to do his "Mad Max" thing and go in, at considerable peril to himself, and fetch a gadget that could enable the US President (Cliff Robertson) - or anyone else with the codes, for that matter - to use a satellite in the best traditions of "Diamonds are Forever" (1971) and destroy parts or all of the…
Reviewed on July 6, 2022
John Carpenter’s anarchic sequel Escape from LA to conservative Escape from NY swaps grim dystopia for gleeful, sleazy chaos, and it’s all the better for it. Snake Plissken (Kurt Russell, still the ultimate anti-hero) is back, this time sent into a crumbling, post-earthquake Los Angeles turned into an island prison. Same gritty premise, but now dripping with dark humor, wild satire, and Carpenter’s signature punk…
Reviewed on June 2, 2026
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Escape from L.A. (1996) is available to stream on fuboTV, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, MGM Plus and Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel, and to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube and Fandango At Home. Streaming availability is checked against JustWatch data and can change by region.
The main cast of Escape from L.A. (1996) includes Kurt Russell, Stacy Keach, Steve Buscemi, A. J. Langer and Cliff Robertson. The film was directed by John Carpenter. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
Escape from L.A. was released on August 9, 1996 and runs for 1h 41m.
Escape from L.A. (1996) holds an average rating of 5.9 out of 10 from 1,664 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy action, thriller and science fiction films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
Yes. The official Escape from L.A. trailer is embedded in the trailer section of this page and plays instantly, no download or sign-up required.
