Last month, it was absolutely devastating to learn about Rob Reiner’s death, which was ruled a homicide alongside his wife in the same incident on December 14, 2025. Since the actor/filmmaker's passing, Hollywood has shared a lot of tributes to Reiner, who famously helmed When Harry Met Sally, The Princess Bride, Spinal Tap and so many more movies. However, I don’t think we’ve been talking enough about one movie from his career in particular, which just dropped on a new streaming service.
Rob Reiner’s Misery Just Became Available On Peacock
In 1990, Rob Reiner directed an adaptation of Stephen King’s novel Misery starring James Caan, Kathy Bates and Lauren Bacall. The psychological horror film is about a famous romance novelist who gets held captive in a remote home by an obsessed fan of his. The movie was just added to Peacock. It’s also available to stream with a HBO Max subscription as well, but Peacock has a cheaper monthly plan starting at $7.99, whereas HBO Max is charging $10.99 for their basic plan.
Misery boasts an incredible Rotten Tomatoes score, which is at 91% from critics and a very similar 90% from audiences. Critics and fans agreeing that a movie is pretty much perfect is rather rare, so I’d say this one’s a must watch, whether it’s your first time or one you’re viewing again.
It’s A Great Time To Rewatch The Acclaimed Classic
Misery is one of those movies I’ll literally never forget. When I first saw it, it was on cable when I was too young to be the fan of horror movies I’ve since become. Kathy Bates is absolutely chilling as Annie Wilkes, and it’s considered her most iconic role ever. Apparently Stephen King loved Bates' performance so much that he wrote two more roles for her in the form of 1994's The Stand and 1995’s Dolores Claiborne.
Reiner is known and celebrated best for his comedy movies, but I love Misery for showing a different side of the late filmmaker’s skills, and ability to direct a variety of material. No wonder it seems like fans can’t seem to agree on his definitive movie, lately.
In all seriousness, I haven’t seen Misery since the first time I watched it when I was younger on cable. Now that I’ve watched a lot more of the best horror movies of all time, I’m excited to appreciate the specific way that Rob Reiner chose to contribute to the genre. And considering there were six King adaptations in 2025 alone, it’s worth your time to go back to past adaptations from other filmmakers. Oh, and Reiner also made another famous Stephen King adaptation too – 1986’s Stand By Me, which is currently streaming with a Netflix subscription.
Happy viewing!
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