Jay Kelly is filmmaker Noah Baumbach’s meditative dramedy about fame, legacy, and the passage of time, featuring George Clooney in a role that feels like it was written specifically for him. Before its December 5, 2025 Netflix debut, the film is receiving an unprecedented theatrical run at historic movie palaces around the world, screened exclusively in 35mm Kodak film—the medium on which it was shot and printed. Starting November 14, 2025, audiences will have the opportunity to experience Jay Kelly in venues ranging from the legendary Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles to the Shin Bugeiza in Tokyo, each carefully selected to mirror the film’s nostalgic celebration of cinema’s golden age. This unique theatrical strategy transforms Jay Kelly into more than just a movie release; it becomes a love letter to the theatrical moviegoing experience itself.
Netflix’s Revolutionary Theatrical Strategy for Jay Kelly
Theatrical Release: November 14, 2025 (Select Historic Theaters Worldwide) | Netflix Premiere: December 5, 2025 | Screening Format: Exclusive 35mm Kodak film projection | Runtime: 2 hours 27 minutes
Netflix is taking an unprecedented approach with Jay Kelly, the new dramedy from acclaimed filmmaker Noah Baumbach. Rather than releasing the film simultaneously across multiple formats, the streaming giant is honoring the film’s cinematic ambitions by giving it a carefully curated theatrical run in 35mm film at historic movie palaces around the world before bringing it to Netflix subscribers. This strategy represents Netflix’s commitment to supporting theatrical cinema while maintaining its streaming identity—a balancing act that reflects both artistic integrity and business evolution.
Director Noah Baumbach expressed genuine enthusiasm for the theatrical strategy: “It is incredibly meaningful to have Jay Kelly screened in so many historic movie palaces around the world. Going to the movies in one of these theaters is a singular moviegoing experience and is to be treasured and supported. Jay Kelly is in part a celebration of the medium and this theatrical run feels like a further celebration.”
Director and Writer
Director and Writer: Noah Baumbach | Previous Notable Works: Marriage Story (2019), The Meyerowitz Stories (2017), While We’re Young (2014)
Noah Baumbach, one of contemporary cinema’s most thoughtful storytellers, brings his signature sensibility to Jay Kelly. Baumbach has built his career on intimate explorations of relationships, regret, and the complexities of life in modern America. His previous film Marriage Story earned six Academy Award nominations and established him as a major voice in prestige cinema. With Jay Kelly, Baumbach turns his attention to the entertainment industry itself, crafting a story that functions as both satire and meditation on fame’s costs and rewards. The film is shot and printed on 35mm Kodak film stock, a deliberate artistic choice that reinforces the movie’s thematic celebration of analog cinema and classical filmmaking.
Cast and Performances
George Clooney as Jay Kelly — The legendary actor essentially plays a fictionalized version of himself, exploring what it means to be a movie star over decades of work. Critics universally praise Clooney for being “perfectly cast,” bringing both charm and genuine vulnerability to a role that allows him to examine celebrity and its toll. TechRadar wrote: “George Clooney is perfectly cast as Jay Kelly, and sells his story flawlessly.” His understated performance becomes the emotional anchor for the entire film, with Clooney selling both the glamour and loneliness of sustained fame.
Adam Sandler as Ron — The acclaimed comedian plays Jay’s longtime manager and closest friend, providing both comic relief and genuine emotional grounding. Sandler’s role showcases his underrated dramatic capabilities while maintaining the warmth that defines his best work.
Laura Dern as Liz — The Oscar-winning actress portrays Jay’s publicist, a key member of his professional entourage. Dern brings sophistication and underlying tension to a character navigating the complexities of managing a temperamental star.
Supporting Cast: Riley Keough (as Jessica, Jay’s estranged eldest daughter), Grace Edwards (as Daisy, Jay’s younger daughter), Billy Crudup (as an old acquaintance triggering Jay’s identity crisis), Patrick Wilson, Emily Mortimer, Stacey Keach, Jim Broadbent, and Greta Gerwig in supporting roles. The ensemble cast collectively delivers what critics describe as “satisfying B-plots” that enrich the narrative.
Plot Summary and Themes
Jay Kelly follows the titular aging Hollywood icon (Clooney) as he navigates life after decades of sustained success. Having built a career spanning generations, accumulated devoted fans, established an extensive filmography, and maintained an entourage of professional enablers and personal advisors, Jay seems to have achieved everything Hollywood promises. Yet the film explores what comes next—what occupies the life of someone who has achieved everything career-wise but faces estrangement from his eldest daughter Jessica and watches his younger daughter Daisy prepare to leave home for independence.
When an encounter with an old acquaintance (Billy Crudup) triggers an unexpected identity crisis, Jay impulsively drags his hapless entourage—including manager Ron (Sandler) and publicist Liz (Dern)—on a chaotic European adventure. Beginning in Paris and culminating at an Italian film festival where Jay is scheduled to receive a lifetime achievement award, the journey becomes a collision between regret and acceptance, between the need to belong and the impossibility of connection when surrounded by people whose allegiance is purchased.
Thematically, Jay Kelly explores fame’s costs, the isolation of sustained success, the father-daughter relationship, the nature of identity, and the question of what remains when external validation fades. The film operates as both satire of Hollywood excess and genuine meditation on the human need for authentic connection.
Critical Reception
Jay Kelly premiered at the 2025 London Film Festival, where it received mixed-to-positive critical reception. Critics praise Clooney’s performance and the film’s meditative qualities while noting its occasionally uneven tone.
TechRadar delivered a glowing review, calling Jay Kelly “a movie you won’t want to miss” and awarding it their full recommendation. The review praised the film’s pacing, structure, and Clooney’s performance while highlighting how “Baumbach’s use of time and perception prompts thoughtful discussion” and how the film “expands on its initial subject in considered and careful ways. The last scene will definitely make you cry.”
Mashable described the film as “sharply winsome,” noting that it “shows many of the ways stars aren’t just like us — and several crucial similarities,” capturing both Hollywood satire and genuine human emotion.
Flickering Myth offered a more critical perspective, noting the film is “tonally all-over-the-place,” with moments that veer from genuine melancholy to sitcom-like broadness, though acknowledging Clooney’s central performance remains compelling throughout.
The critical consensus emphasizes the film’s self-indulgence—playing essentially as a love letter to George Clooney—but suggests that this indulgence serves the emotional purpose Baumbach intended, allowing the film to exist “in the way that it needs to.”
Where to Watch: Theatrical and Streaming
Theatrical Release (November 14, 2025): Jay Kelly screens exclusively in 35mm Kodak film at carefully selected historic movie palaces around the world. Netflix has curated over 25 participating venues designed to evoke cinema’s golden age. Attendees will receive limited-edition film programs as commemorative keepsakes.
Historic Theater Locations Include:
North America: The Egyptian Theatre (Los Angeles), Paris Theatre (New York), The Vista Theatre (Los Angeles), Music Box Theatre (Chicago), Nitehawk Cinema (Brooklyn), River Oaks Theatre (Houston), Smith Rafael Film Center (San Rafael), State Theatre (Traverse City, Michigan), Michigan Theatre (Ann Arbor), Mayan Theatre (Denver), Hollywood Theatre (Portland), Coolidge Corner (Boston), Grand Lake Theatre (Oakland), Plaza Theatre (Atlanta)
International: Picturehouse Central (London), Delphi Filmpalast (Berlin), Tower Theater (Sacramento), Cineteca Nacional de Mexico (Mexico City), Stella Cinema Rathmines (Dublin), Victoria Eugenia Theatre (San Sebastian), Cinerama Empire (Geneva), Ritz Cinemas (Sydney), Shin Bugeiza (Tokyo), and additional locations worldwide
Netflix Streaming (December 5, 2025): Following its theatrical run, Jay Kelly debuts exclusively on Netflix globally on December 5, 2025. The film will be available with all Netflix subscription tiers (with or without ads), allowing Netflix subscribers worldwide to access the film from any device.
Digital Platforms (December 5, 2025): Jay Kelly will be available for digital rental and purchase on platforms including Apple TV, Google Play, Vudu, and other digital retailers, allowing viewers who prefer to own or rent the film to do so independently.
Final Thoughts: A Love Letter to Cinema
Jay Kelly represents both a personal project for George Clooney and a bold artistic statement from Noah Baumbach about the nature of stardom and connection. Whether you experience it in a historic theater on 35mm film or on Netflix from home, the film offers thoughtful meditation on fame, legacy, and what it means to be seen. The theatrical run provides a unique opportunity to experience the film as Baumbach intended—on the big screen, in glorious 35mm, at a venue designed to honor cinema’s classical era. For those who experience Jay Kelly theatrically, the experience becomes more than viewing a movie; it becomes participation in a cultural celebration of the medium itself.
