---
title: "Juror #2"
year: 2024
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/juror-2"
fi1m_id: "juror-2"
imdb_id: "tt27403986"
tmdb_id: 1106739
wikidata_id: "Q119549900"
fi1m_score: 75
critics_score: 76
critics_reviews: 18
published: "2026-09-09"
updated: "2026-09-18T08:37:57.707399+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Juror #2 (2024)

Directed by Clint Eastwood · 1h 54m · MPA PG-13 · Drama, Thriller

## Identity

Juror #2

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/juror-2
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** juror-2
- **IMDb ID:** tt27403986
- **TMDB ID:** 1106739
- **Wikidata ID:** Q119549900
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt27403986/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/1106739, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q119549900

**Fi1m score: 75** · Critics 76 from 18 reviews

*In a sentence:* Twelve strangers in a stuffy room, and the one who most wants to seem fair has the most to lose

> Clint Eastwood’s courtroom drama puts a juror on trial inside his own head, and Nicholas Hoult carries it with a face that keeps trying to stay still. The premise creaks in places. The final shot is the best thing in it.

## Synopsis

Justin Kemp (Nicholas Hoult) is a recovering alcoholic whose wife Allison (Zoey Deutch) is weeks from giving birth after a difficult pregnancy. He is called for jury duty and cannot get out of it. The case is a murder: James Sythe (Gabriel Basso) is accused of killing his girlfriend after a row in a bar, and her body was found below a bridge on a wet night. Faith Killebrew (Toni Collette), the prosecutor, is running for district attorney; Eric Resnick (Chris Messina) defends. As the witnesses describe the evening, Justin realises he was in that bar, drove home over that bridge, and hit something in the dark he took for a deer. Clint Eastwood directs from a script by Jonathan A. Abrams.

## Review

Justin Kemp (Nicholas Hoult) is a recovering alcoholic about to become a father, and his wife Allison (Zoey Deutch) is near the end of a pregnancy that has already frightened them both. He asks the judge (Amy Aquino) to excuse him from jury duty and she does not. The trial is a murder: James Sythe (Gabriel Basso) is accused of killing his girlfriend after a row in a bar, and she was found dead below a bridge on a wet night. Then a witness describes that night, and Justin remembers where he was. He was in the bar, and he drove home over the bridge and hit something in the dark.

Jonathan A. Abrams’s script gives this away early, and the film is better for it. This is not a whodunnit. It is about a man in a jury box working out what he owes a stranger and what he owes his wife. We liked it. It is plain, well built and 114 minutes long, and if courtroom dramas are your evening it is a good one, provided you can swallow more coincidence than a real court would.

The realisation is the scene the film is built on, and Hoult plays it without a gasp. He sits and listens and swallows. Yves Bélanger holds the camera on him in the flat daylight of the courtroom while the witness talks about the rain, and our stomach went before his face did. Joel Cox and David S. Cox then cut back to the bridge, headlights, wipers, a thud, a man peering over a rail into black water, and each return adds one detail the last one withheld. Mark Mancina’s score is a few notes of piano and long stretches of nothing, which is right.

Toni Collette’s Faith Killebrew is the prosecutor and she is running for district attorney, so a conviction would help her. Collette plays her tight and certain and then lets small doubts in one at a time. Deborah Hopper puts her in sharp dark suits and Hoult in soft shirts and cardigans, so you can tell at a glance who is prosecuting and who is trying not to be noticed. Chris Messina’s defence lawyer, Eric Resnick, is tired and decent and overworked. Kiefer Sutherland gets one strong scene as Larry Lasker, Justin’s sponsor and a lawyer, setting out in a level voice what a man with Justin’s history could expect if he walked into a police station and told the truth.

The jury room is where the film has most fun. Ronald R. Reiss gives it a long table, bad coffee and a window nobody looks out of, and Eastwood fills it with people who want to go home. Cedric Yarbrough’s Marcus wants it over. Adrienne C. Moore’s Yolanda made up her mind on the first day. J.K. Simmons’s Harold is a retired detective who cannot stop detecting, and Simmons plays him as the most dangerous man at the table without raising his voice. The film knows we have all seen [*12 Angry Men*](https://film.one/film/12-angry-men) (1957), and it turns that story inside out: the lone juror arguing for doubt has reasons he cannot say aloud.

Now the creaking. The bar, the bridge, the timing: several things must line up and they do, and several people must fail to check what a real prosecutor would check in an afternoon. We groaned once, at a piece of evidence nobody goes looking for until the story needs it. Deutch is given a bump and a worried face and not much else. Some critics have found the holes fatal. We did not, because the film is not asking to be believed as procedure; it is asking what you would do, and it asks seriously.

Set against Eastwood’s other films about ordinary men and the institutions around them, [*Mystic River*](https://film.one/film/mystic-river) (2003), *Changeling* (2008), *Sully* (2016), this is quieter and shorter and has less to prove. There is no speech about the system. There is a man, a room and a question. The reviews so far have treated it as a farewell, and we would rather judge it as a film, which it can stand. The last shot, which we will not describe, is held longer than most directors would dare, and it sent us out quieter than we expected.

It is a 12A and there is nothing in it a teenager could not watch. See it with someone who will argue with you afterwards about what Justin should have done. The argument will last longer than the film.

*Fi1m score 75, published 9 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics like this a good deal, and they like it for the same reasons. The consensus is that Eastwood has made an old-fashioned, unfussy courtroom drama that cares more about conscience than suspense, showing its hand early and asking what a juror does once he realises he may be the guilty man. Nicholas Hoult’s slow-burn performance draws the widest praise, with Toni Collette’s prosecutor and JK Simmons close behind. Many reviews also note the brisk pacing and the director’s respect for the audience’s intelligence.

The reservations cluster on the premise, which even admirers admit relies on convenient coincidences, and on an ending some find abrupt. The spread is fairly narrow, with most reviews warm, but a few dissent sharply: The Playlist finds the plot holes fatal and the visuals dull, Collider thinks the contrivances undermine the film’s case about justice, and The Wrap likes almost everything except the final scene.

## Straight answers

**Is Juror #2 worth watching?**

*Juror #2* is worth watching for anyone who likes a courtroom drama built on a moral question rather than a mystery, and we scored it 75. Nicholas Hoult carries it as a juror who realises he may be the guilty man, and the final shot is held longer than most directors would dare. You will need to swallow more coincidence than a real court would allow.

**How long is Juror #2, and what is it rated?**

*Juror #2* runs 1h 54m and is rated PG-13 by the MPA in the US. It is a drama and thriller film.

**Where can I watch Juror #2 in the US?**

*Juror #2* is streaming on HBO Max, Hulu, The Roku Channel and Amazon Prime Video in the US, and it is also available to rent from Amazon Prime Video from $4.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is Juror #2, and is it suitable for children?**

*Juror #2* is a 12A, and there is nothing in it a teenager could not watch. The murder is described in court and glimpsed in brief flashbacks of a wet bridge and headlights, without gore; the film runs on guilt and argument rather than violence or fright. Younger children would find it slow rather than upsetting, and its themes of drink and responsibility are aimed at adults.

**How does Juror #2 compare to 12 Angry Men?**

*Juror #2* turns [*12 Angry Men*](https://film.one/film/12-angry-men) inside out: the lone juror arguing for doubt has reasons he cannot say aloud, so the film is about a man's conscience rather than a jury's reasoning. The earlier film is the tighter and more persuasive of the two, and the one to see if you want the argument itself; Eastwood's is quieter, with a creakier plot, and better on what a single juror owes a stranger.

**What should I watch after Juror #2?**

After *Juror #2*, try [*12 Angry Men*](https://film.one/film/12-angry-men) (1957, Fi1m 91): The jury-room film this one is arguing with; hot, cramped and still persuasive. Then [*A Separation*](https://film.one/film/a-separation) (2011, Fi1m 93): An Iranian family, a fall down the stairs, and nobody entirely telling the truth; and [*The Verdict*](https://film.one/film/the-verdict) (1982, Fi1m 84): Paul Newman as a drunk lawyer handed one last case; slow, sad and steady.

### Reviews we read (26)

- **RogerEbert.com**, Christy Lemire (85/100, inferred): Eastwood crafts a solid, old-fashioned courtroom drama that ends his directing career on a high note with brisk storytelling and strong performances. The film stands out for its thoughtful themes and retro pleasures in a twisty script about moral dilemmas during jury duty. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/juror-2-clint-eastwood-film-review)
- **The AV Club**, Ignatiy Vishnevetsky (B+): Juror #2 is the best Clint Eastwood film in years, a confident and unpretentious character-driven courtroom drama with a great cast. It centers murky moral contradictions without easy resolution, making for an involving psychological story. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/juror-2-review)
- **Empire**, John Nugent (80/100, inferred): The critic calls it one of Eastwood's best films in years, a sharp and compelling grown-up legal procedural that examines justice in a riveting, entertaining way. They single out the classical filmmaking, moral dilemmas, and strong central performance for praise. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/juror-2/)
- **Little White Lies**, David Jenkins (4/4/4): The critic calls it one of Eastwood's finest late-era films, a morally complex riff on the courtroom drama that culminates in a haunting final shot. It singles out the philosophical riches beneath the zany plot and the way it refuses binary moral delineations among the characters. [Read](https://lwlies.com/reviews/juror-2)
- **The New Yorker**, Richard Brody (80/100, inferred): Eastwood’s brisk thriller shows how self-interest and politics undermine justice, with a lone skeptic juror facing personal stakes in a murder trial. It stands out for its anti-political critique and quietly confident, original form that trusts the audience. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-front-row/in-juror-2-clint-eastwood-judges-the-system-harshly)
- **Time Out**, Dan Jolin (4/5): The critic praises Eastwood for returning to form with a smart, morally complex courtroom drama that offers a thought-provoking spin on the genre and a ripe moral quandary. It singles out Nicholas Hoult's slow-burn embodiment of intensifying guilt and the convincing, satisfying ending for praise. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/juror-2-2024)
- **Vulture** (80/100, inferred): Eastwood's stripped-down legal thriller emphasizes the emotional cost of guilt and innocence through long close-ups and internalized torments rather than genre thrills. It is a fine, generous entry in the director's career that suggests the justice system can fail through ordinary mistakes. [Read](https://www.vulture.com/article/juror-no-2-review-the-system-has-failed-clint-eastwood.html)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Robert Abele (75/100, inferred): Eastwood’s modest drama probes moral responsibility and guilt through a juror’s inconvenient dilemma in a small-town murder trial. It singles out the unfussy, character-driven direction and strong cast for delivering a gently probing tale of seriousness. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2024-10-31/juror-2-review-clint-eastwood-nicholas-hoult-toni-collette)
- **Variety**, Peter Debruge (75/100, inferred): Eastwood’s modest moral drama engages with guilt, justice, and the law’s limitations through a juror who realizes he may be responsible for the crime. It stands out for its quiet, self-reflective style and respect for the audience’s intelligence in an ambiguous ending. [Read](https://variety.com/2024/film/reviews/juror-2-review-clint-eastwood-1236191801/)
- **Radio Times**, Max Copeman (7.0/10): The critic describes an old-fashioned and thorny legal thriller presenting a moral dilemma through Eastwood's direction at age 93. It singles out the robust supporting cast, led by JK Simmons and Toni Collette, for energizing the drama despite the terse script. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-k10wgk/juror-2/)
- **IndieWire**, Christian Zilko: Eastwood delivers a layered character study and one of the best studio films of 2024 with this throwback legal thriller. The film explores how people are never fully defined by their mistakes while showcasing the director's longevity. [Read](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/juror-2-review-clint-eastwood-1235060535/)
- **Screen Daily**: The critic sees the film as modest, comfy crime that tweaks Eastwood's usual themes of ordinary men doing right, with Nicholas Hoult conveying conflicting guilt and conscience. It singles out the brisk pacing and dependable supporting work from Toni Collette and JK Simmons while noting its appeal to fans of law-and-order TV dramas. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/juror-2-review/5198549.article)
- **Sight and Sound**, Guy Lodge: The critic finds Eastwood's courtroom thriller a sober throwback to grown-up studio entertainment that subverts expectations by revealing its hand early and focusing on morality and conscience rather than suspense. It singles out Toni Collette's chilly, crumbling performance as the grasping prosecutor for praise amid the film's minimalist intensity. [Read](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/juror-2-eastwoods-courtroom-thriller-throwback-era-straightforwardly-grown-studio-entertainment)
- **The Guardian**, Ryan Gilbey: The critic describes a courtroom thriller pitting justice against self-preservation in which a juror realises he may be the guilty party. It offers cosy pleasures in the jury-room scenes and strong casting, and would be a fitting farewell for the veteran director. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/oct/30/juror-2-review-clint-eastwood-nicholas-hoult-court-dilemma)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Justin Lowe: Eastwood focuses on the protagonist's moral dilemma in this courtroom drama rather than procedural elements, resulting in an effective if understated addition to his career. The strong ensemble cast, particularly Nicholas Hoult and Toni Collette, excels in conveying internal conflict and intensity. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/juror-2-review-clint-eastwood-nicholas-hoult-toni-collette-1236046091/)
- **The New York Times**, Manohla Dargis (Critic’s Pick): Eastwood delivers a low-key, genuine shocker and ethical showdown that casts a skeptical eye at the criminal justice system. The film is stronger than his recent work, with a lean mystery that puts justice itself on trial. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/31/movies/juror-2-review-clint-eastwood.html)
- **The Telegraph**: The critic calls it a riveting moral thriller and comforting throwback to 1990s courtroom drama, praising Eastwood’s forensic seriousness, shrewd casting and a punchy ending while noting some convenient plot points. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/juror-2-review-clint-eastwood-nicholas-hoult-toni-collette/)
- **The Times** (★★★☆☆): The critic finds it a flawed but typically well-constructed story and absorbing possible swansong, full of moral certitude despite an unlikely premise. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/film/article/juror-2-review-clint-eastwood-nicholas-hoult-znbj26ng2)
- **Deadline**, Pete Hammond (90/100, inferred): The critic hails Eastwood’s film as his best since American Sniper and one of the year’s strongest pictures, praising its riveting suspense, moral complexity, family drama and strong ensemble including a standout Nicholas Hoult turn. [Read](https://deadline.com/2024/10/juror-2-review-riveting-courtroom-drama-could-be-clint-eastwoods-final-film-afi-fest-1236159610/)
- **Film Stories**, Ryan Lambie (85/100, inferred): The critic praises Eastwood's precise and understated direction of a strong moral dilemma in this courtroom thriller, noting it as one of his best recent films. Excellent performances by Nicholas Hoult and Toni Collette stand out in the well-cast ensemble. [Read](https://filmstories.co.uk/reviews/juror-2-review-all-rise-for-clint-eastwoods-superb-courtroom-thriller/)
- **/Film**, Jeremy Mathai (8/10): The critic hails it as vintage Eastwood and one of the year's best theatrical experiences, a tense morality play on justice and change delivered with scalpel-sharp direction. The watertight screenplay and Hoult's haunted performance are praised. [Read](https://www.slashfilm.com/1701753/juror-2-clint-eastwood-movie-review/)
- **HeyUGuys**, Linda Marric (80/100, inferred): The critic calls it Eastwood's best film in two decades, a taut and morally ambiguous thriller with gorgeous acting that explores personal integrity and moral duty. Hoult's performance as the conflicted juror is highlighted as exquisite. [Read](https://www.heyuguys.com/juror-n2-review/)
- **Paste**, Jesse Hassenger (7.3/10): The critic calls it an engaging throwback legal thriller and morality play with a strong hook and moral weight, highlighting Hoult's nuanced lead performance and the effective ensemble, while noting some contrivances in the premise. [Read](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/clint-eastwood/juror-no-2-clint-eastwood-movie-review-2024-nicholas-hoult)
- **The Wrap**, Michael Ordoña (65/100, inferred): The critic calls the film a taut, understated courtroom drama that overcomes its premise through unsentimental direction and a fine lead performance from Nicholas Hoult, but faults the abrupt and unsatisfying ending that feels like a mistrial. [Read](https://www.thewrap.com/juror-2-review-clint-eastwood-nicholas-hoult/)
- **Collider**, Jeff Ewing (50/100, inferred): The critic praises the strong performances, especially from Hoult, Collette, and Simmons, along with some directorial and cinematographic choices, but criticizes the film's many plot contrivances, implausible details, and lack of believability that undermine its exploration of justice. [Read](https://collider.com/juror-no-2-review-clint-eastwood/)
- **The Playlist**, Lena Wilson (D): The critic argues the premise stretches credulity with glaring plot holes and a mismanaged justice system depiction, resulting in an uninspiring film despite solid acting from Collette and others. Humdrum visuals and overwrought drama are singled out for complaint. [Read](https://theplaylist.net/juror-2-clint-eastwoods-courtroom-drama-stretches-credulity-beyond-a-reasonable-doubt-review-20241206/)

## Details

- **Director:** Clint Eastwood
- **Director:** Clint Eastwood
- **Writer:** Jonathan A. Abrams
- **Cinematography:** Yves Bélanger
- **Editor:** Joel Cox, David S. Cox
- **Music:** Mark Mancina
- **Production design:** Ronald R. Reiss
- **Costume design:** Deborah Hopper
- **Producer:** Matt Skiena, Jessica Meier, Tim Moore
- **Cast:** Nicholas Hoult as Justin Kemp; Toni Collette as Faith Killebrew; J.K. Simmons as Harold; Chris Messina as Eric Resnick; Gabriel Basso as James Michael Sythe; Zoey Deutch as Allison Crewson; Cedric Yarbrough as Marcus; Leslie Bibb as Denice Aldworth
- **Runtime:** 1h 54m
- **Certificate (MPA):** PG-13
- **Release (the US):** 1 November 2024
- **Genres:** Drama, Thriller
- **Budget:** $30 million
- **Box office:** $21 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czYUXo0R0oA

## Where to watch in the US

- HBO Max: streaming, uhd
- Hulu: add-on, hd
- The Roku Channel: add-on, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: add-on, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: rent $4.99, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy $14.99, uhd

*Checked 2026-09-10.*

Also available in: AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, ID, IE, IN, IS, IT, JP, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, SK, TH, TR, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *12 Angry Men* (1957), Fi1m 91: The jury-room film this one is arguing with; hot, cramped and still persuasive. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/12-angry-men.md)
- *A Separation* (2011), Fi1m 93: An Iranian family, a fall down the stairs, and nobody entirely telling the truth. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/a-separation.md)
- *The Third Murder* (2017): Kore-eda’s courtroom film, in which the confession keeps changing and the truth stays out of reach.
- *The Verdict* (1982), Fi1m 84: Paul Newman as a drunk lawyer handed one last case; slow, sad and steady. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-verdict.md)
- *Mystic River* (2003), Fi1m 82: Eastwood’s darkest film about guilt, and a neighbourhood that would rather not know. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/mystic-river.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/juror-2