Back in 2006, Star Trek: Picard’s Ed Speelers starred in the forgotten fantasy film Eragon. 19 years later, the underrated movie that should’ve launched a franchise is getting a new home in the streaming era.
Hulu’s official programming reveals that Eragon will be added to its streaming library on Nov. 1. Speelers starred as the title character, a poor farmboy who finds a mysterious stone and becomes a dragon rider. Based on Christopher Paolini’s novel, Eragon is set in the kingdom of Alagaesia, ruled by the powerful and evil monarch Galbatorix (John Malkovich). When Eragon connects with his dragon, he sets out on an adventure that could finally bring peace and justice to the kingdom.
In addition to Speelers and Malkovich, Eragon also starred Jeremy Irons (Die Hard with a Vengeance) as Brom, an elderly man who was formerly a dragon rider. It also starred Tulsa King’s Garrett Hedlund as Murtagh, an archer who was the son of the traitor Morzan. Despite its star power, Eragon ended up being a box office disappointment and was universally panned by critics.
It wasn’t just Hollywood that disliked the film, even fans of Paolini’s novel slammed it for its acting, screenplay, visuals and the fact that it strayed so far from its source material’s story. Despite its criticisms, Speelers and Irons were considered to be the highlights of the film, with their performances earning meager praise from some critics.
To this day, Eragon has an underwhelming 15% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences have been more mixed with their reactions to the film, however, and it has a 46% approval rating from over 250,000 user reviews. At the box office, the film also failed to find its footing and grossed only $250 million against its $100 million budget. Due to its underwhelming performance and negative reviews, the rest of the books in Paolini’s Inheritance Cycle never made it to the silver screen, despite initial plans for the remaining films to be shot back-to-back.
Garrett Hedlund Believes Eragon Should’ve Gotten a Full Trilogy Adaptation
Boy and dragon in Eragon (2006)20th Century Fox
The fact that Eragon flopped at the box office certainly has not held back its cast from achieving greatness. Speelers went on to star in Outlander, Downton Abby, Netflix’s You, and he portrayed Jack Crusher in the third season of Star Trek: Picard. Even before starring in Eragon, Irons was an established actor and has won an Academy Award, a Tony, three Primetime Emmys and two Golden Globes. Hedlund also made a name for himself with films including Tron: Legacy, Unbroken and the Taylor Sheridan television series Tulsa King.
Still, Hedlund recently revealed how he wished that the rest of the films planned to follow Eragon could have been made. In an interview with Collider, he reflected on his journey as Murtaugh. “It’s all from the yearbook of your life,” he said. “It makes you smile when you take other things for granted. So that journey was a wonderful one. It’s a shame we couldn’t continue on with it because it came down to cash.”
Eragon will be streaming on Hulu on Nov. 1.
- Release Date
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December 15, 2006
- Runtime
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103 minutes
- Director
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Stefen Fangmeier
- Writers
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Christopher Paolini, Peter Buchman