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The Social Network

The Social Network

You don't get to 500 million friends without making a few enemies.

2010120 minPG-13Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films
Director
David Fincher
Starring
Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Armie Hammer, Justin Timberlake

In 2003, Harvard undergrad and computer programmer Mark Zuckerberg begins work on a new concept that eventually turns into the global social network known as Facebook. Six years later, Mark is one of the youngest billionaires ever, but his unprecedented success leads to both personal and legal complications when he ends up on the receiving end of two lawsuits, one involving his former friend.

Where to watch

Where can I watch The Social Network?

As of October 24, 2026, MovieCove lists The Social Network streaming on MGM+ via Prime Video, The Criterion Channel and Tubi (free) and to rent or buy on Apple TV and Prime Video.

Your rating, lists and review

Highlights

What stands out about The Social Network?

The Social Network earns 13 badges, led by Modern classic and Top 5% of films.

Show 5 more
  • Rank
  • Reception
  • Craft and mood
  • Awards and box office
  • Cast

Reception

Is The Social Network worth watching?

The Social Network's Midcredits score is the 97th percentile of all films, from 3.7M ratings across 6 sources. 85% liked it (rated it 7 or higher out of 10).

Midcredits score

How well it was received

97th percentile

Better received than 97% of films

95th percentile among Biography97th percentile among 2010s
Acclaim (how much people like it)95th
Approval (how many liked it)95th

79 /100

95th percentile of all films

96th percentile among Biography95th percentile among 2010s

Critics 95 · Audience 77

Critics liked it more than audiences did.

Rating distribution

Most people land high, with a thin tail of low scores from those it didn't reach.

85% liked it

95th percentile of all films

92nd percentile among Biography95th percentile among 2010s
85% rated it 7–1015% rated it 1–6

Critics 96% · Audience 87%

On Rotten Tomatoes, a bigger share of critics approved than audiences.

Awards

0 Oscars won · 0 Oscar noms · 56 wins / 44 noms overall

  • WonGolden Globes· Best Director - Motion Picture
  • WonGolden Globes· Best Original Score - Motion Picture

99th percentile

3.7M ratings across platforms

99th percentile among Biography99th percentile among 2010s
TMDB popularity, last 37 days to Oct 26Down 2% in 30 days

Box office

Budget$40M
Opening weekend$22M
Domestic gross$97M
Worldwide gross$225M

Returned 5.6× its budget — 98th percentile earner in its genre.

What reviewers say

Common ground

Both camps agree that The Social Network is a technically masterful, fast-paced drama about an unsympathetic genius who betrays friends building a social network that defined a generation.

Fans praised

  • razor-sharp, rapid-fire Sorkin dialogue
  • Fincher's sleek, propulsive direction and visual style
  • Eisenberg's nuanced, unsympathetic but compelling performance as Zuckerberg

Detractors panned

  • all characters are unlikable, making it emotionally cold
  • overwrought, contrived dialogue that feels performed rather than real
  • sacrifices truth for dramatic effect, distorting real events

What stands out

DialogueDivisive88

fast, witty, overlapping Sorkin trademark exchanges

ActingDivisive81

Eisenberg's cold, mannered Zuckerberg; Garfield's emotional weight

Sound and musicDivisive80

Reznor/Ross score: brooding, electronic, integral to tone

CinematographyDivisive78

sleek, moody, digitally shot with cool palette

PacingDivisive73

relentlessly brisk, almost breathless momentum

Plot and storyDivisive70

non-linear lawsuit framing sustains tension through familiar story

CharactersDivisive42

deliberately unlikable, morally ambiguous, no clear hero

Emotional impactDivisive38

intellectually engaging but many find it emotionally cold

Preferred by

Women vs men

Preferred by Men

Men scored it 21 points higher than women.

No notable difference between the other groups: each pair ranks it within 10 percentile points.

  • Under-30s vs over-30s 5 points apart
  • Critics vs users 6 points apart
  • US vs non-US 3 points apart

Watch experience

What is The Social Network like to watch?

Conclusions only — categories and positions, no plot detail.

Tense and gripping: browse every movie of this kind

Watch this when you are ready to pay close attention and feel heavy feelings, and you want something tense that holds you to the end.

It is intense, has a few laughs and leaves you bittersweet. Skip it when you want an easy night or you can only half-watch.

ToneFeelDemandwhat the answer rests onexact position · filled zone: the category

What it asks of you

Your full attention and room for heavy feelings.

What it feels like

Tense and gripping.

The answer rests on this: Moods
TenseMelancholicColdCathartic
Heaviest: late
Wry humor: Amused and slightly dry about it.
Register
Satirical · 5% of filmsCynical · 1% of filmsCold and cerebral · 4% of films: Detached and precise; keeps the viewer at arm's length.
Told as
Nonlinear · 6% of films: Events shown out of chronological order.Frame story · 5% of films: A story told inside another — someone is recounting it.
ToneThe film holds its material with a wry, analytical distance, presenting the ambition and betrayals with a cool, precise detachment that matches its protagonist's personality.
The rideThe film sustains a cool, brittle tension throughout, with the emotional weight hitting hardest in the final deposition and the lonely ending.
StructureThe story unfolds through deposition hearings intercut with flashbacks, creating a nonlinear narrative that builds tension through overlapping timelines.

How it leaves you

what you carry away

Bittersweet.

BittersweetThought-provoking
Why it leaves you this wayThe film leaves a lingering sense of the personal cost of success, mixing admiration for the achievement with sorrow for the broken bonds, and provoking reflection on ambition and integrity.
How it ends · evidence
Bittersweet ending

Story archetype

where it sits among all films
Monster — 21% of films. A threat menaces the hero's world and must be defeated.Rags — 3% of films. A rise from lowliness to fortune, status, or recognition.Quest — 10% of films. A journey toward a defined objective, with companions and obstacles.Voyage — 4% of films. Into a strange world and back again, changed.Comedy — 11% of films. Confusion and cross-purposes resolved into harmony.Tragedy — 9% of films. A flaw or fixation drives the protagonist to ruin.Rebirth — 13% of films. A stalled or darkened life reopened and renewed.Mystery — 7% of films. A question drives the story — who did it, what happened, what is real — until it is answered.No archetype — 22% of filmsPredator — 6% of films. A creature or killer hunts the protagonists (Jaws, Alien).Tyrant — 6% of films. A human villain holds power over the hero's world (Die Hard).Invasion — 2% of films. An external force attacks the home or world (Independence Day).Oppressive state — 2% of films. A government, its agencies or a secret faction inside them is the monster (V for Vendetta).Corporate villainy — 1% of films. A company or its bosses are the monster (Erin Brockovich).Institutional injustice — 1% of films. A court, prison, police force, school or church is itself the enemy (Spotlight).Class system — under 1% of films. The gap between rich and poor, or a rigid hierarchy, is the monster (Parasite).Technology turns — under 1% of films. Technology people rely on becomes the threat (The Terminator).Inner demon — 1% of films. The monster is within — addiction, illness, a dark double.Underdog triumph — 2% of films. Rise through competition or contest (Rocky).Social ascent — under 1% of films. A climb in class or status (Pretty Woman).Fame and fortune — under 1% of films. An artistic or showbiz rise (A Star Is Born).Rise and fall — under 1% of films. Wealth or power gained, self lost (Scarface).Hidden worth revealed — under 1% of films. The protagonist's true value finally recognized.Treasure hunt — 1% of films. Retrieve an object of value (Raiders of the Lost Ark).Rescue — 4% of films. Retrieve or save a person (Saving Private Ryan).Mission — 5% of films. Accomplish or destroy a defined objective (Mission: Impossible).Journey home — under 1% of films. The goal is getting back (Finding Nemo).Pilgrimage — 1% of films. The journey itself transforms; the destination is symbolic.Portal fantasy — under 1% of films. Transported into another world (The Wizard of Oz).Fish out of water — 2% of films. Displaced into an unfamiliar social world (Elf).Survival ordeal — 1% of films. Trapped in a hostile environment, fighting back (Cast Away).Time displacement — under 1% of films. Unstuck in time (Back to the Future).Descent — 1% of films. A night-journey into an underworld or subculture (After Hours).Romantic comedy — 4% of films. Lovers kept apart by confusion, united at last.Comedy of errors — 3% of films. Mistaken identity or misunderstanding drives the plot.Farce — 2% of films. Escalating absurd chaos and coincidence (The Hangover).Buddy comedy — 1% of films. A mismatched pair forced together (Rush Hour).Comedy of manners — 1% of films. Social codes and class satirized (Clueless).Hubris — 1% of films. Pride or ambition invites the fall (There Will Be Blood).Obsession — 2% of films. A fixation consumes the protagonist (Black Swan).Corruption arc — 2% of films. Step-by-step moral decay (The Godfather).Doomed love — 2% of films. Love destroyed by circumstance (Brokeback Mountain).Crushed by fate — 3% of films. Destroyed by forces beyond the protagonist's control.Redemption — 3% of films. Moral reawakening of a hardened soul (A Christmas Carol).Healing — 5% of films. Recovery from grief or trauma (Good Will Hunting).Liberation — 2% of films. Breaking free of a confining life (Room).Second chance — 2% of films. A stagnant life re-opened to love or purpose (Groundhog Day).Puzzle — 1% of films. A clue-by-clue puzzle you can try to solve before the reveal (Knives Out, Clue).Investigation — 5% of films. A long pursuit of the truth that may never be fully solved (Zodiac, Memories of Murder).Enigma — 2% of films. The mystery is what is real, or what is actually happening (Mulholland Drive).Rags
Every story archetype, clockwise from the top
  • Monster 21%: Predator 6% · Tyrant 6% · Invasion 2% · Oppressive state 2% · Corporate villainy 1% · Institutional injustice 1% · Class system under 1% · Technology turns under 1% · Inner demon 1%
  • Rags 3% (this title): Underdog triumph 2% · Social ascent under 1% · Fame and fortune under 1% · Rise and fall under 1% (this title) · Hidden worth revealed under 1%
  • Quest 10%: Treasure hunt 1% · Rescue 4% · Mission 5% · Journey home under 1% · Pilgrimage 1%
  • Voyage 4%: Portal fantasy under 1% · Fish out of water 2% · Survival ordeal 1% · Time displacement under 1% · Descent 1%
  • Comedy 11%: Romantic comedy 4% · Comedy of errors 3% · Farce 2% · Buddy comedy 1% · Comedy of manners 1%
  • Tragedy 9%: Hubris 1% · Obsession 2% · Corruption arc 2% · Doomed love 2% · Crushed by fate 3%
  • Rebirth 13%: Redemption 3% · Healing 5% · Liberation 2% · Second chance 2%
  • Mystery 7%: Puzzle 1% · Investigation 5% · Enigma 2%
  • No archetype 22%

Rags to riches: A rise from lowliness to fortune, status, or recognition. · Rise and fall: Wealth or power gained, self lost (Scarface).

3% of films fit this archetype

Why this archetypeThe film follows Mark Zuckerberg's ascent from Harvard student to billionaire founder of Facebook, tracing his strategic maneuvering and the relationships he sacrifices along the way. It fits the rags-to-riches archetype in its dark 'rise and fall' form, where success comes at a severe personal cost.

What it's about

7 groups · 53 themes
Bonds — 27% of filmsSelf — 22% of filmsPower — 7% of filmsMorality — 16% of filmsSurvival — 15% of filmsSociety — 9% of filmsIdeas — 5% of filmsRomantic love — 15% of filmsMarriage — 2% of filmsFamily bonds — 21% of filmsParenthood — 2% of filmsFriendship — 9% of filmsLoyalty — 4% of filmsIdentity — 14% of filmsComing of age — 5% of filmsAging — under 1% of filmsSelf-worth — 7% of filmsAmbition — 7% of filmsPurpose — 9% of filmsMemory — 3% of filmsObsession — 3% of films. A fixation consumes the protagonist (Black Swan).Power — 2% of filmsCorruption — 3% of filmsGreed — 3% of filmsClass — 3% of filmsOppression — 4% of filmsFreedom — 5% of filmsJustice — 13% of filmsDuty — 2% of filmsRevenge — 4% of filmsGuilt — 3% of filmsRedemption — 6% of films. Moral reawakening of a hardened soul (A Christmas Carol).Forgiveness — 1% of filmsSacrifice — 4% of filmsBetrayal — 5% of filmsDeception — 9% of filmsSurvival — 17% of filmsWar — 1% of filmsViolence — 4% of filmsMortality — 2% of filmsGrief — 6% of filmsTrauma — 7% of filmsMental illness — 1% of filmsAddiction — 1% of filmsIllness and disability — under 1% of filmsCommunity — 14% of films. Consequences reach a town, institution or group.Isolation — 5% of filmsPrejudice — 3% of filmsDisplacement — 1% of filmsFaith — 3% of filmsTradition vs change — 2% of filmsFame — 3% of filmsLegacy — 4% of filmsFate — 1% of filmsFree will — under 1% of filmsTruth — 4% of filmsHope — 5% of filmsNature — 2% of filmsArt — 4% of filmsTechnology — 1% of filmsSelfBetrayalMorality
Every theme, clockwise from the top
  • Bonds 27%: Romantic love 15% · Marriage 2% · Family bonds 21% · Parenthood 2% · Friendship 9% · Loyalty 4%
  • Self 22%: Identity 14% · Coming of age 5% · Aging under 1% · Self-worth 7% · Ambition 7% (this title) · Purpose 9% · Memory 3% · Obsession 3%
  • Power 7%: Power 2% · Corruption 3% · Greed 3% · Class 3% (this title) · Oppression 4% · Freedom 5%
  • Morality 16% (this title): Justice 13% · Duty 2% · Revenge 4% · Guilt 3% · Redemption 6% · Forgiveness 1% · Sacrifice 4% · Betrayal 5% (this title) · Deception 9%
  • Survival 15%: Survival 17% · War 1% · Violence 4% · Mortality 2% · Grief 6% · Trauma 7% · Mental illness 1% · Addiction 1% · Illness and disability under 1%
  • Society 9%: Community 14% · Isolation 5% · Prejudice 3% · Displacement 1% · Faith 3% · Tradition vs change 2% · Fame 3% · Legacy 4%
  • Ideas 5%: Fate 1% · Free will under 1% · Truth 4% · Hope 5% · Nature 2% · Art 4% · Technology 1%

Morality

Betrayal · 5% of filmsAmbition · 7% of filmsClass · 3% of films
Interrogates its theme: Questions its theme without settling the answer.Societal stakes: Consequences reach a whole social order.Single lead
How it treats its themeThe film explores how relentless ambition and social insecurity corrode every meaningful bond — friendship, partnership, and even the possibility of romantic connection.
StanceThe film examines ambition and betrayal without celebrating or condemning them — it observes how success is built on broken relationships.

The world

ContemporaryUrbanInstitutionalRealistic
ElectronicOrchestral modernForeground music · original score
SettingHarvard University and Palo Alto startup scene during the founding of Facebook

Content guide

Is The Social Network okay for kids?

PG-13

The Social Network is rated PG-13: “Rated PG-13 for sexual content, drug and alcohol use and language” (MPAA). As of October 3, 2026, Midcredits content scores put its violence at minimal (8/100), sexual content at moderate (50/100), language at moderate (58/100), drug and alcohol content at intense (66/100) and frightening material at mild (23/100). Overall it is heavier than 74% of PG-13-rated films.

Ratings in 38 other countries
  • UK12A
  • CanadaPG
  • AustraliaM
  • Germany12
  • FranceTP
  • Ireland12A
  • New ZealandM
  • JapanPG12
  • South Korea15
  • Brazil14
  • Argentina13
  • Austria12
  • Belgium16
  • CLY7
  • Czechia12+
  • DenmarkA
  • FinlandK-13
  • Greece13
  • Hong KongIIB
  • Hungary16
  • ItalyT
  • KP15세 이상 관람가
  • LTN-13
  • MexicoB-15
  • MYPG-13
  • Netherlands12
  • NorwayA
  • PE14
  • PhilippinesR-13
  • Poland16
  • PortugalM/12
  • RO12
  • Russia12+
  • SingaporeNC-16
  • Spain7
  • Sweden7
  • Switzerland16
  • Taiwan輔12
Overall
Moderate · all five categories
Heavier than 45% of all filmsHeavier than 74% of PG-13-rated films
Violence & Gore
None / Minimal
light for a PG-13-rated film
heavier than 7%
Sex & Nudity
Moderate · audience split: No severity level holds a majority of voters
heavy for a PG-13-rated film
heavier than 90%
Profanity
Moderate
heavy for a PG-13-rated film
heavier than 86%
Alcohol & Drugs
Intense
heavy for a PG-13-rated film
heavier than 98%
Frightening / Intense
Mild · audience split: No severity level holds a majority of voters
light for a PG-13-rated film
heavier than 20%

Point along a line to see a well-known title at that level.

The reason to think twice is drug and alcohol content.

Source: Midcredits content scores, 0 (none) to 100 (severe) per category, with each standing ranked against other films that have them.

What content warnings does The Social Network have?

Not screened for content warnings yet.

Cast and crew

Who is in The Social Network?

Cast

Jesse Eisenberg
as Mark Zuckerberg
Oscar nominee: Academy Award nomination — Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading RoleTop draw: One of the 3 biggest draws in this cast: billing here weighted by career star power.
Andrew Garfield
as Eduardo Saverin
Globe nominee: Golden Globe nomination — Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion PictureTop draw: One of the 3 biggest draws in this cast: billing here weighted by career star power.
Armie Hammer
as Cameron Winklevoss
SAG nominee: Screen Actors Guild Award nomination — Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion PictureTop draw: One of the 3 biggest draws in this cast: billing here weighted by career star power.
newcomer then · star now
Justin Timberlake
as Sean Parker
SAG nominee: Screen Actors Guild Award nomination — Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
Rooney Mara
as Erica Albright
newcomer then · star now
Max Minghella
as Divya Narendra
SAG nominee: Screen Actors Guild Award nomination — Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
Brenda Song
as Christy
Josh Pence
as Tyler Winklevoss
Screen debut: No prior film or television role.
Rashida Jones
as Marylin Delpy
John Getz
as Sy

Crew

More like this

What are movies like The Social Network?

Movies like The Social Network include Molly's Game (2017), Steve Jobs (2015) and Hacker (2016). Of the 12 closest matches, several are films set at a tech startup, and half are biopics.

Balanced: every group counts the same, and production only breaks ties.

Aaron Sorkin wrote 4 of these 12. Those cards say what else they share.

Explore by

What else shares a premise, people or place with The Social Network?

2.2K other films share the rarest tag below, follows: scientist. Each tag opens Browse with the films that share it.