Sphere

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Sphere

PG-13

1998

2h 13m

Sci-Fi

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

12%

Tomatometer

57 Reviews

38%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

When psychologist Norman Goodman (Dustin Hoffman) wrote a report for the government on how to deal with extraterrestrial life forces, he didn't expect his recommendations to be used. Now that a secret government agency is investigating what may be an alien spaceship that has been discovered partially buried on the floor of the Pacific Ocean, Norman finds that the plan he outlined is being put into effect and that the team he named in his report has been assembled.

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Critics Consensus

Sphere features an A-level cast working with B-grade material, with a story seen previously in superior science-fiction films.

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Desson Thomson

Washington Post

Jan 8, 2018

Ultimately, the explanation we've been waiting for turns out to be just that: an explanation.

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Todd McCarthy

Variety

Aug 5, 2008

An empty shell.

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Derek Adams

Time Out

Jun 24, 2006

Three major stars being involved, it all wraps up happily but implausibly.

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Trace Thurman

Horror Queers Podcast

Feb 10, 2026

2.5/5

It starts out interestingly enough, but weak direction and sloppy editing drag this Crichton adaptation all the way down to the ocean floor.

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Joe Lipsett

Horror Queers Podcast

Feb 5, 2026

2.5/5

This Michael Crichton adaptation starts well, but between the insufferable title cards and the poor treatment of women and mental illness, Sphere overstays its welcome. A slog

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Dan DiNicola

The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)

Jan 19, 2023

B-

An undersea, sci-fi, paranoid thriller which packs tension but cannot release the powerful payoff we have a right to expect.

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Ian R

@RT23899272 Sep 14, 2026

Too preposterous to watch. Wasted cast.

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Robert P

@Superbad Sep 6, 2026

Sphere = a 1 and 1/2 star!

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Jeux T

@RT23605591 Aug 30, 2026

Not as bad as people rate it ! If you want to be taken on a late Night 90s scifi underwater adventure, Well give it a try

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Argyle T

@Argyle Jun 5, 2026

I like this film, no message no woke just a nice yarn whilst drinking a JD...better than most modern dross in 2026

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Sonofspam64 T

@RT04622880 Jun 4, 2026

Sphere had some promise, but in the end, it was a slog. I watched half of it and shut it off due to boredom, then watched the 2nd half on another day. The aliens name was "Jerry", a name we have to hear Dustin Hoffman repeat incessantly hundreds or thousands of times. "Jerry, Jerry, is that you Jerry? Where are you Jerry? Jerry. Jerry. Jerry. Talk to me Jerry, Jerry?". The ending featured no big reveal. The characters came to a conclusion, there was no evidence we got to see that supported that conclusion, then decided to "forget". I wish I had the power to forget watching this movie.

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Richard L

@KaneLives May 23, 2026

A competently made 'Abyss-like' which suffers from the exact same problem Cameron's technical masterpiece did - it takes an intriguing concept and does painfully little with it. It doesn't help that there are no real characters beside the excellent Hoffman, and the film's internal logic falls apart at the slightest scrutiny - but these things could have been forgiven had the writers (or Crichton, I suppose; I haven't read the book) really pushed the possibilities of what they had created. Instead, we are left with a whole lot of unfulfilled potential - and only Cameron's crazy enough to go far enough to make something like that watchable.

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Barry Levinson

Director

Dustin Hoffman

Dr. Norman Goodman

Sharon Stone

Dr. Beth Halperin

Samuel L. Jackson

Dr. Harry Adams

Peter Coyote

Captain Harold C. Barnes

Liev Schreiber

Dr. Ted Fielding

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Synopsis

When psychologist Norman Goodman (Dustin Hoffman) wrote a report for the government on how to deal with extraterrestrial life forces, he didn't expect his recommendations to be used. Now that a secret government agency is investigating what may be an alien spaceship that has been discovered partially buried on the floor of the Pacific Ocean, Norman finds that the plan he outlined is being put into effect and that the team he named in his report has been assembled.

Director: Barry Levinson
Producer: Michael Crichton, Barry Levinson, Andrew Wald
Screenwriter: Michael Crichton, Kurt Wimmer, Stephen Hauser, Paul Attanasio
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co: Punch Productions, Constant c Productions, Baltimore Pictures
Rating: PG-13 (Startling Images|Sci-Fi Action)
Genre: Sci-Fi
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 13, 1998, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA): $37.0M
Runtime: 2h 13m
Sound Mix: Dolby Stereo, Dolby A, SDDS, DTS, Surround, Dolby Digital, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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