Anne Hathaway Movie Remake of a 1980s Classic Is a Netflix Success, 6 Years After Its Release

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The summer movie season of 2019 began a little early with the release of Avengers: Endgame on April 26th. Understandably, no other studio wanted to risk releasing a major film on the same weekend. However, over the next two weeks, some smaller films were released as alternatives. The only one with a significant budget and marketing campaign was Pokémon: Detective Pikachu on May 10th. For example, the weekend immediately following Endgame saw the release of The Intruder, Long Shot, and UglyDolls, which haven’t really stuck around in the public consciousness – although Long Shot is surprisingly enjoyable.

For a while, it looked like Chris Addison’s remake of the classic comedy Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, now called The Hustle and starring Anne Hathaway and Rebel Wilson, might not find an audience. However, the film is now trending on Netflix and gaining popularity on Instagram, suggesting it’s finally connecting with viewers. Let’s take a look at how well The Hustle is performing.

What Is The Hustle About?

In the movie The Hustle, Rebel Wilson plays Penny Rust, a con artist from Australia who tricks wealthy older men online. Anne Hathaway plays Josephine Chesterfield, a seasoned con artist who initially clashes with Penny but eventually agrees to mentor her.

The team intends to con billionaire Thomas Westerburg, but their scheme hits a snag when Josephine starts developing feelings for him. However, this con might not be as straightforward as it seems, and the true mastermind could be someone nearby, operating in the shadows.

Despite featuring a polished appearance and Anne Hathaway, The Hustle was made with a relatively small budget of $21 million. It didn’t perform well in the U.S., earning only $35.4 million. However, it found more success internationally, bringing in around $62 million for a total worldwide gross of $97.4 million.

Okay, so critics really didn’t love this one – it’s sitting at just 13% on Rotten Tomatoes. Regular audiences were a bit kinder, giving it a 44% on Popcornmeter, but it’s definitely not a masterpiece. Honestly, I thought it was a perfectly fine, lighthearted comedy for a lazy Saturday. And you know what? Anne Hathaway and Owen Wilson actually had pretty good chemistry together, which is a shame it wasn’t in a stronger movie!

From December 8th to 14th, 2025, The Hustle ranked seventh on Netflix’s global Top 10 list. This placed it higher than several other popular titles, including The Croods: A New Age, Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax, and A Merry Little Ex-Mas. It trailed behind Wake Up Dead Man, the third installment in Rian Johnson’s Knives Out series, as well as My Secret Santa, Jay Kelly, KPop Demon Hunters, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and the 2018 remake of Death Wish.

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2025-12-21 17:46