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Steve Carell is back, but not in the way you’d expect. Before Mountainhead even hits HBO, it’s already stirring up buzz, and not just because it reunites us with Jesse Armstrong. The film, a razor-sharp satire of tech billionaires navigating an AI-driven meltdown, has landed a strong 82% on Rotten Tomatoes, and it's easy to see why critics are intrigued.
Set against the eerie quiet of a secluded alpine estate, the film pits Carell, Jason Schwartzman, Ramy Youssef, and Cory Michael Smith against each other in a high-stakes, paranoia-laced power play. Directed by the mastermind behind Succession, Mountainhead trades Manhattan boardrooms for a secluded Utah compound, where four tech billionaires gather to “retreat” while the world outside teeters on the edge of an AI-driven crisis.
Slated to premiere on HBO and Max on May 31, the film is already being praised. Mountainhead is shaping up to be one of 2025’s most talked-about debuts, and not just because Carell’s character might be the most likable billionaire we’ve ever met.
More details on Mountainhead's plot
Mountainhead drops us into a stark, cold mountainside mansion where four ruthless tech moguls retreat while their own inventions wreak havoc on the world outside. Hugo, played by Jason Schwartzman, aka ‘Souper,’ is anxiously waiting for his friends to arrive, hoping one of them will invest a billion dollars in his latest wellness app. But the stakes are much higher than apps and money.
Venis, played by Cory Michael Smith, the richest of the bunch and a clear Elon Musk parallel, has just unleashed a new generative AI on his social platform, and it’s spreading misinformation and real-world violence on an alarming scale. Alongside is Jeff, whose character is portrayed by Ramy Youssef, a new star with a spark of morality, who has a superior AI that can bring an end to the chaos but will not turn it over to his longtime nemesis, Venis. And finally we have Randall, played by Steve Carell, a tech mogul with terminal cancer who's fixated on attaining "transhuman" immortality.
Within the gray, concrete bunker, tension brews, friendships fray, and tech-bro jargon reaches new heights of cringe, all punctuated by Armstrong's cutting, acidic script. As their weekend retreat devolves into backstabbing and bitter power struggles, the billionaires show us just how empty, brittle, and perilously egotistical they truly are.
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The film is a dark, satirical portrait of wealth and power in the AI age, a chilling and often absurd look at the people behind the technologies shaping our future. It’s heavy on dialogue and sharp on commentary, a story that feels all too real in these times where tech giants seem both invincible and deeply flawed.
Mountainhead will be available to stream on HBO on May 31.
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