“Kevin Costner’s Most Expensive Film in History from ‘Yellowstone’ Star Now Streaming on New Platform”
Kevin Costner’s Most Ambitious Film ‘Waterworld’ Now Streaming on Prime Video
Kevin Costner dominated Hollywood in the 1990s, especially after the massive success of Dances With Wolves. Riding high on that momentum, he embarked on his most ambitious — and costly — project: Waterworld. Inspired by a blend of Frank Herbert’s Dune and George Miller’s Mad Max series, the post-apocalyptic action film was once the most expensive movie ever produced.
Released in 1995, Waterworld was helmed by director Kevin Reynolds, who previously collaborated with Costner on Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. With a production budget that reportedly soared to $175 million — shattering the previous record held by True Lies — the film quickly became notorious for its behind-the-scenes chaos. Delays, last-minute rewrites from Joss Whedon, a scrapped musical score, and even a near-fatal incident involving Costner contributed to the ballooning costs. Though Titanic would soon eclipse its budget record, Waterworld held the title of “most expensive film” for a time.
Upon release, the film was met with a mix of curiosity and skepticism. While it brought in roughly $265 million worldwide and even earned an Oscar nomination, it failed to break even at the box office initially. Still, Waterworld eventually turned a profit — in large part thanks to theme park attractions that have kept the brand alive for years.
Critically, the film landed in mixed territory. It currently holds a 59% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with the consensus calling it “an ambitious misfire” — a visually rich sci-fi epic with moments of brilliance, but weighed down by its own excesses. Despite the early backlash, Waterworld has become something of a cult classic over the decades.
Now, nearly 30 years after its original release, Waterworld is streaming on Prime Video, inviting a new generation of viewers to dive into one of the most fascinating production sagas in Hollywood history.
