"Where did the $320 million dollars go exactly?"— Netflix’s most expensive movie 'The Electric State' leaves fans divided with mixed reviews

Netflix's latest project, The Electric State, was released on the streaming platform on March 14, 2025. With a budget of $320 million, the film is touted as Netflix's most expensive film as of yet. Despite its huge budget, the sci-fi movie has been panned by critics and audiences for its lackluster plot and execution.

Fans shared their frustration on social media platforms, with one X user commenting:

"Electric State is terrible with every sense of the word, there’s some genuinely interesting world building occasionally. But the movie’s weak and unimaginative script does not allow it to explore the movie’s world at all. Where did the $320 million dollars go exactly?"

Many people criticized the film's huge budget, wondering why the millions of dollars could not be put to better use in the film.

"When the $80 million The Creator (shot on a camera you can buy at Best Buy) looks better than the movie that costs 4x as much, you know you’re in huge trouble," mentioned one user.

"320 million went everywhere but into this movie lmao," joked one X user.

"All that money went to Chris Pratt's wig," wrote another X user.

But other X users disagreed with the harsh criticisms and shared how much they enjoyed the movie by praising certain aspects of the film's story and characters.

"I watched it for Mr peanut I loved Mr peanut in the movie I’m his biggest fan I love him I loved how he was I loved what he did I like Mr peanut a lot," wrote one fan.

"And with what we know on how to use technology, we often abuse it. The Electric State has a lot of heart, it made me tear up in plenty of moments, and I'm still tearing up as I write this as the credits roll and the music plays. Thank you, Russo brothers and the entire team," wrote another.

"Nowhere near as bad as everyone has been saying, but is still an overproduced $320 million mess," said one user.

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What is the plot of The Electric State?

The film is set in an alternate 1990s timeline where the war between humans and robots ravaged the world. After emerging victorious, the humans stored the bot survivors away in a secure territory called the Electric State.

During the war, an unfortunate car accident killed Michelle's parents and younger brother, Christopher, leaving her orphaned. But when Michelle receives undeniable signs that Chris is alive, she embarks on a dangerous journey to find her brother. The former war veteran, Keats, and the sentient robot, Cosmo, become her companions as she crosses war-torn landscapes to reunite with her baby brother.

Furthermore, Michelle discovers that Ethan Skate, CEO of the Sentre corporation, had kidnapped Chris for his superior intellect and has held him against his will at the company's headquarters. His plan was to integrate the young boy's consciousness with the company's Neurocaster technology. The technology enables humans to transfer their minds into drone robots and was crucial in defeating robots in the civil war.

Michelle is heartbroken to find Chris in a comatose state and realizes that he yearns to be set free. But she is aware that she cannot rescue him or revert him to his old self, so Michelle unplugs the system to let his physical body die in peace. After his death, Skate and his company are exposed for their evil actions, and the company stops its operations for good.

At the film's end, Cosmo is revealed to be carrying a part of Christopher's consciousness, thus allowing the siblings a happy ending.

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Cast and crew of The Electric State

The brothers Anthony and Joe Russo directed the film from a screenplay written by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely. The film's plot is loosely adapted from Simon Stålenhag's 2018 illustrated novel of the same name. Furthermore, The Electric State is produced by Russell Ackerman, Chris Castaldi, Mike Larocca, Patrick Newall, as well as the Russo Brothers.

The film stars Millie Bobby Brown as Michelle Greene, Woody Norman as Christopher 'Chris' Greene, Chris Pratt as Staff Sgt. John D. Keats, and Stanley Tucci as the antagonist Ethan Skate. Moreover, the Oscar winner Ke Huy Quan stars as Dr. Clark Amherst, Giancarlo Esposito as Col. Marshall Bradbury, Marin Hinkle as Ms. Sablinsky, Jason Alexander as Ted Finister, etc.

The Electric State has been widely panned by critics for being "formulaic" and currently holds a 16% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 81 critics' reviews.

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Viewers can watch The Electric State on Netflix.