Hugh Jackman’s 56% Rotten Tomatoes Musical Based on Controversial Historical Figure Is Streaming for Free

Hugh Jackman has a long list of acclaimed characters, from playing Wolverine in X-Men movies and the MCU, Robert Angier in The Prestige, the titular character in Van Helsing, and many more. But one of his movies that combines his love of doing musical and acting, The Greatest Showman, has been a controversial move, and now it’s available to stream on Prime Video for fans to see.

The Greatest Showman chronicles the life of real-life figure PT Barnum and elaborates on his journey to become a worldwide sensation in the show business. As his imagination and innovative ideas take him to the top of his game. The movie is full of foot-tapping songs, a talented ensemble cast, and thematically shines a light on the fact that where there’s will, there’s a way. Directed by Michael Gracey from a screenplay by Jenny Bicks and Bill Condon, the period drama was a huge success, earning $459 million worldwide. It received several accolades, including an Oscar nomination.

While the critics gave the movie a 56 percent Rotten Tomatoes score while the audience score sits as high as 86 percent. The main criticism of the feature is that it romanticized the portrayal of Barnum and his circus of ‘freaks’, which was seen as a whitewashing of his exploitative history. Nonetheless, the feature is a decent watch with an ensemble cast including Zac Efron as Barnum’s partner Phillip Carlyle, Michelle Williams as Barnum’s wife Charity, Rebecca Ferguson as Swedish singer Jenny Lind, and Zendaya as Anne Wheeler. Also rounding off the cast are Keala Settle, Sam Humphrey, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Eric Anderson, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, among others.

What’s Next for Hugh Jackman?

Jackman was last seen in the MCU’s Deadpool & Wolverine, where he reprised his fan-favorite mutant. While his casting is unconfirmed, fans also expect him to continue his Wolverine streak in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday or Avengers: Secret Wars. Given the OG X-Men characters are returning to Doomsday, him joining the roster will be ideal. But Deadpool & Wolverine had a Secret Wars Easter egg – so take a guess. Apart from the superhero outings, Jackman will also be seen in Craig Brewer’s Song Sung Blue where he stars opposite Kate Hudson. He’ll also be playing the titular character in Apostle Paul, Robin Hood in The Death of Robin Hood starring alongside Bill Skarsgård and Jodie Comer.

The Greatest Showman is streaming on Prime Video. You can check out the trailer above and stay tuned to Collider for more such updates.