He’s every woman’s dream and one woman’s nightmare.
An FBI informant has kept his new identity secret for 15 years. Now an old flame has recognised him, and the bad guys are back for revenge.
Bird on a Wire (1990) is a comedy, romance and adventure film directed by John Badham, released on May 18, 1990 with a runtime of 1h 50m. It stars Mel Gibson, Goldie Hawn, David Carradine and Bill Duke. Viewers rate it 6.2 out of 10 across 1,066 ratings.
Watch the official trailer for Bird on a Wire before you stream it.
Mel Gibson
as Richard 'Rick' Jarmin
Goldie Hawn
as Marianne Graves
David Carradine
as Eugene Sorensen
Bill Duke
as Albert Diggs
Stephen Tobolowsky
as Joe Weyburn
Joan Severance
as Rachel Varney
Harry Caesar
as Marvin Larson
Jeff Corey
as Lou Baird
Alex Bruhanski
as Raun
John Pyper-Ferguson
as Jamie
Clyde Kusatsu
as Mr. Takawaki
Jackson Davies
as Paul Bernard
Directed by John Badham, written by David Seltzer, Eric Lerner and Louis Venosta, produced by Rob Cohen.
Average viewer score of 6.2/10 from 1,066 ratings.
Serviceable and entertaining, but throwaway action-romance-comedy with both Mel Gibson and Goldie Hawn showing their individual charms. However, the plot is thin and the action kind of average. There's not a whole lot here memorable for either of the stars. Guess it's fine for a lazy Saturday. **3.0/5**
Reviewed on November 6, 2021
I am currently attempting to con my wife into watching this, not because it's a great movie, but because I know it's the kind of movie that she is going to laugh at and enjoy. It has that humor that people that are ESL can really pick up on without having to be an expert native speaker to follow the word play... ... but then again, she's actually gotten good enough with English that she's watching and enjoying…
Reviewed on January 12, 2023
"Bird on a Wire" is an incredibly engaging, entertaining, and well made action comedy which is very reminscient of "Midnight Run" (1988) on more than one occasion. After all, the general frame work - two people being pursued across the country - is principally the same, except this film successfully manages to be able to stand alone. It moves at a wonderfully cracking pace and it is full of funny and thrilling…
Reviewed on January 16, 2026
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Bird on a Wire (1990) is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video and Amazon Prime Video with Ads, 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 Bird on a Wire (1990) includes Mel Gibson, Goldie Hawn, David Carradine, Bill Duke and Stephen Tobolowsky. The film was directed by John Badham. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
Bird on a Wire was released on May 18, 1990 and runs for 1h 50m.
Bird on a Wire (1990) holds an average rating of 6.2 out of 10 from 1,066 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy comedy, romance and adventure films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
Yes. The official Bird on a Wire trailer is embedded in the trailer section of this page and plays instantly, no download or sign-up required.
