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In 2024, Welsh actor Luke Evans starred alongside Rory Culkin in an action thriller that, in the pre-streaming age, would have gone directly to DVD. But in our current era, “5lbs of Pressure” — named for the amount of force needed to fire a standard handgun — has found an audience on Netflix after a very limited theatrical run. The film’s streaming success is almost certainly due to the fact we can’t help but be tempted by anything new that hits the “recently added” category. But many viewers surely also recall a time when Evans helped bring a J. R. R. Tolkien classic to life on the big screen.
In the early 2010s, Evans was best known for his role in Ridley Scott’s “Robin Hood” (a historical action flop that deserves a second chance) and for playing Apollo in Louis Leterrier’s “Clash of the Titans” remake. Then, when Peter Jackson cast him as Bard the Bowman in his three-film adaptation of Tolkien’s 1937 novel “The Hobbit,” he became part of one of the most beloved cinematic franchises of the modern age. Evans played the Smaug slayer in 2013’s “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” and 2014’s “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.” His star was clearly on the rise.
In more recent years, Evans has branched out, releasing an album in 2019 while taking a role in Hulu’s “Nine Perfect Strangers” and starring in the 2026 Broadway production of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” He even appeared alongside “Yellowstone” star Kelly Reilly in the 2018 abduction thriller “10×10,” which hit Netflix in 2026. Now, Evans is back to dominate the Netflix charts with his otherwise overlooked thriller “5lbs of Pressure,” and it appears as though the film might just take the top spot on the streamer’s current most-watched movies chart.
5lbs of Pressure is a Netflix hit
“5lbs of Pressure” is directed by Phil Allocco, who made his feature directorial debut with 2017’s “The Truth about Lies.” Luke Evans stars in the film as Adam, an ex-con who returns to his old neighborhood in New York (Manchester, England, of all places, stands in for the Big Apple) after serving a 16-year sentence for murder. There, he tries his best to reconnect with his son, who grew up without Adam in his life and is wary about granting forgiveness. Elsewhere, Eli (Zac Adams), the brother of the man Adam murdered, isn’t thrilled to see him back on the street, while Eli’s best friend Mike (Rory Culkin) is desperate to escape from his drug-dealing uncle (Alex Pettyfer).
The movie’s 57% Rotten Tomatoes score isn’t all that flattering, but it’s also not the worst possible outcome. Both “top critics” reviews on the website are positive as well, with Catherine Bray of The Guardian awarding the film three stars and deeming it “decent.” Variety’s Dennis Harvey was even more complimentary, writing, “‘5lbs’ weaves an engaging-enough web of misunderstandings, grudges, and doomed trajectories amongst various shady types.” It might not be the best action thriller on Netflix, then, but it’s certainly captured people’s attention.
“5lbs of Pressure” was given a simultaneous theatrical and digital release by Lionsgate in 2024, but only made $32,070 in theaters internationally. (Its domestic gross is unavailable.) Now, the film has hit Netflix, debuting on the streamer on June 21, 2026, and, per FlixPatrol, arriving at number four on the United States movie charts. As of June 23, 2026, it’s hit number three. Whether Evans can shoot his way to the top remains unclear, but it’s a solid debut for a film that would have otherwise been entirely forgotten.
