Movie theaters soared already in 2022 with a movie about fighter pilots, now moviegoers can take to the skies again with Devotion, a based-on-a-true-story tale about two Korean War pilots who became legends.
Of course the first movie we're talking about was Top Gun: Maverick, the Tom Cruise-led sequel that has become the biggest hit of the year and one of the biggest US hits of all time. That's a high bar to clear, but Devotion has some things in its corner that could make it a potential crowd-pleaser — an inspirational true story, two rising stars and a holiday weekend release date.
Here is everything that you need about Devotion.
Devotion release date
Devotion is now playing exclusively in movie theaters in the US (sorry if you were hoping to stream the movie, as that is going to be a little bit). To see where and when it is playing near you, check your local movie theater websites or Fandango.
At this time, there is no UK release date for Devotion. We'll update this page if/when that changes.
Devotion plot
Based on the book Devotion: An Epic Story of Heroism, Friendship and Sacrifice by Adam Makos, here is the official synopsis for Devotion:
"Devotion, an aerial war epic based on the bestselling book of the same name, tells the harrowing true story of two elite US Navy fighter pilots during the Korean War. Their heroic sacrifices would ultimately make them the Navy's most celebrated wingmen."
Those two pilots are Lieutenant Tom Hunder, a white New Englander, and Ensign Jesse Brown, the navy’s first Black carrier pilot.
The Devotion script was written by Jake Crane and Jonathan Stewart.
Devotion reviews — what the critics are saying
Devotion has had a nice reception, earning a "Fresh" score of 77% on Rotten Tomatoes from critics, with a 98% audience score on the site (as of November 23).
Here are some snippets from reviews to give you a sense of what the critics are saying about Devotion:
Katie Walsh, Tribune News Service: "A stirring story of friendship during war, and beyond, that is both rare and real."
William Bibbiani, The Wrap: "Whenever the camera is on Majors, whenever the planes soar through the deadly sky and whenever the score crescendos, J.D. Dillard's film comes pretty close to greatness. If only the rest of the movie didn't get in the way."
Rafer Guzman, Newsday: "A well-intentioned but underwhelming war drama."
Devotion cast
Playing Brown and Hudner are two of the biggest rising stars in Hollywood, Jonathan Majors and Glen Powell.
Majors has seen his career sky-rocket in recent years, starting with a breakout performance in The Last Black Man in San Francisco, followed up with Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods, HBO’s Lovecraft Country and then landing the role of the MCU’s next big bad, Kang the Conqueror, appearing in Loki and set to appear in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
For Powell, he's no stranger to a fighter jet's cockpit after playing Hangman in Top Gun: Maverick. Powell also started popping up on people's radars after roles in Everybody Wants Some, Scream Queens, Hidden Figures and Set It Up.
Also set to star in Devotion are Christina Jackson (The Good Fight) as Daisy Brown, Thomas Sadoski (The Newsroom) as Dick Cevoli and Joe Jonas, of The Jonas Brothers, as Marty Goode.
Devotion trailer
The trailers for Devotion show off the chemistry between Majors and Powell, as well as some high-flying sequences depicting their characters’ actions during the Korean war. Check them out below.
How long is Devotion?
Devotion has a runtime of two hours and 18 minutes.
What is Devotion rated?
Devotion is rated PG-13 in the US for "strong language, some war action/violence and smoking."
Devotion director
J.D. Dillard is an up and coming director whose previous movie credits include 2016's Sleight starring Jacob Latimore and Storm Reid and 2019's Sweetheart starring Kiersey Clemons.
Dillard has also directed a handful of TV episodes for popular shows, including the limited series The Outsider, Jordan Peele’s rebooted The Twilight Zone and Utopia.
