New York City writer Iris finds her comfortable, solitary life thrown into disarray after her closest friend and mentor bequeaths her a Great Dane named Apollo. The huge dog immediately creates practical problems for Iris, from furniture destruction to eviction notices, as well as more existential ones. Yet as Iris finds herself unexpectedly bonding with Apollo, she begins to come to terms with her past, and her own creative inner life.
The Friend (2025) is a comedy and drama film directed by Scott McGehee, released on March 28, 2025 with a runtime of 1h 59m. It stars Naomi Watts, Bill Murray, Ann Dowd and Constance Wu. Viewers rate it 6.7 out of 10 across 124 ratings.
Watch the official trailer for The Friend before you stream it.
Official trailers, teasers, clips and featurettes for The Friend.
Trailer
Teaser
Teaser
Teaser
Teaser
Featurette
Featurette
Featurette
Naomi Watts
as Iris
Bill Murray
as Walter
Ann Dowd
as Marjorie
Constance Wu
as Tuesday
Sarah Pidgeon
as Val
Carla Gugino
as Elaine
Noma Dumezweni
as Barbara
Felix Solis
as Hektor
Owen Teague
as Carter
Bing
as Apollo
Gina Costigan
as Jocelyn
Josh Pais
as Jerry
Directed by Scott McGehee, written by David Siegel, Scott McGehee and Sigrid Nunez, produced by Scott McGehee, David Siegel and Liza Chasin.
Average viewer score of 6.7/10 from 124 ratings.
“Walter” (Bill Murray) is a cranky old author who decides that he’s had enough of life and so leaves his wife “Barbara” (Noma Dumezweni) with a four-foot, four-legged, slobbering problem. She decides that the best place for “Apollo” is with his longtime friend “Iris” (Naomi Watts). Bluntly, she would rather stick pins in her eyes, but she’s a bit of a sucker for a sob story and so soon she he has a new roomie in…
Reviewed on May 4, 2025
Naomi Watts inherits a 180-pound Great Dane after her mentor's suicide, and the film's whole trick is refusing to turn that into a cute rescue story. Apollo will not ride the elevator, takes over her bed, eats almost nothing for days, and Iris, a committed cat person with zero patience for dogs this size, has to learn to live around him instead of training him into something easier. What makes it work is how…
Reviewed on July 2, 2026
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The Friend (2025) is available to stream on fuboTV, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount+ Amazon Channel 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 The Friend (2025) includes Naomi Watts, Bill Murray, Ann Dowd, Constance Wu and Sarah Pidgeon. The film was directed by Scott McGehee. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
The Friend was released on March 28, 2025 and runs for 1h 59m.
The Friend (2025) holds an average rating of 6.7 out of 10 from 124 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy comedy and drama films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
Yes. The official The Friend trailer is embedded in the trailer section of this page and plays instantly, no download or sign-up required.
