How to Rob a Bank opens Nov. 13 and critics are split: Time Out gives 3 of 5, Film Focus 2.5. Here's where the early reviews agree and where they clash.
David Leitch's heist thriller How to Rob a Bank opens in U.S. theaters Friday, Nov. 13, 2026, from Amazon MGM Studios, and the first reviews are split down the middle. Time Out gives it 3 out of 5. Film Focus Online gives it 2.5 out of 5. The News-Herald calls it entertaining and "unexpectedly resonant." Those scores belong to the outlets, not to us. As of Nov. 12, here is where critics agree and where they do not.
What is How to Rob a Bank about?
Nicholas Hoult plays Ryan, who goes by "The Wolf," the leader of a crew of masked bank robbers in Pittsburgh. Time Out says the gang films each heist with handheld cameras and drones, cuts the footage into pop-art videos and posts them online. The News-Herald adds that the crew is building a devoted following that waits for each new video, and doing it for a higher purpose. Anna Sawai, Pete Davidson and Rhenzy Feliz round out the crew, per Time Out.
John C. Reilly plays FBI agent John West, who is chasing them. Zoe Kravitz plays Reagan Gardner, a software whiz he brings in to help. Mark Bianculli wrote the script, and Time Out notes that Leitch, who also directed Deadpool 2, Bullet Train and The Fall Guy, is the director.
What are critics saying about How to Rob a Bank?
Time Out's Phil de Semlyen gives it 3 out of 5 and calls it a "fun, throwaway action-thriller" with "a surge of adrenaline." He says the first half leans on heist clichés and Deadpool-style quips, then the script sharpens the characters as the net tightens. He singles out Reilly as "as good as he's been in ages" and says the action, including a couple of wild car chases, is strong.
Film Focus Online's Seb Jenkins gives it 2.5 out of 5 and says it lacks "a jewel in its crown." He says it is wonderfully shot with great action, but that the move from wacky comedy to a serious commentary on money feels too contrasting to digest. He also wishes Kravitz and Reilly had more time together.
The News-Herald's Mark Meszoros is warmer. His review says the film puts action in the back seat to make a thoughtful, largely entertaining movie. He does fault it for taking too long to flesh out the crew, which gives it a "slightly disjointed quality."
Where do the reviews agree?
On the cast and the look. Time Out calls Hoult "ever-excellent," and Film Focus says Pete Davidson gives the most rounded performance of the four robbers. All three describe a film that mixes a flashy online-video style with a more serious message about money and unfairness. They differ on whether the mix works. Time Out says it does. Film Focus says it does not.
It is also a small sample. We read three reviews in full, and others, including Punch Drunk Critics and RogerEbert.com, are out that we did not read in full.
Where can you watch it?
In theaters from Nov. 13 in the U.S., per IMDb's U.S. release listing and Time Out. Wikipedia says Amazon MGM Studios is releasing it in the U.S. and that it was moved from an earlier Sept. 4 date. We did not find an announced streaming date, so as of Nov. 12 the theatrical window is the only confirmed way to see it.
Our take: the split reading makes sense. A heist film that wants to be both a lark and a statement is a hard trick, and the reviews that like it are the ones that treat the lark as the main event. If you are picking a weekend movie, that is the useful question to ask yourself. Do you want a stylish, fast heist with a point of view, or a clean, serious thriller? If it is the first, the early reviews lean your way.
What is confirmed and what is not?
- Confirmed: Nov. 13 U.S. theatrical release, Amazon MGM Studios, David Leitch directing, Nicholas Hoult, Zoe Kravitz, John C. Reilly, Anna Sawai, Pete Davidson and Rhenzy Feliz in the cast.
- Opinion: every score and verdict above belongs to the outlet that published it.
- Not announced: a streaming release date, and any aggregate score. We have not seen the film ourselves.
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Picture credit: Photo: Fred Trauerts (CC0). Design: Savvy VibeZ
