Is ‘The Lesson’ Streaming? When Will it be Available to Watch on Paramount+ with Showtime?
Life is full of hard lessons, and learning them could cost you your very life. That’s what young Liam Sommers finds out in “The Lesson,” which hit theaters in the United States on Friday, July 7.
Sommers gets an opportunity he thinks is once-in-a-lifetime; the opportunity to move in with his idol, the writer J.M. Sinclair at his family’s estate while Liam works at a tutoring position. But Liam soon discovers he’s stumbled into a dark web of family secrets, resentment and revenge. The Sinclair family all hides a horrifying secret, one that threatens to envelop Liam as well.
The movie currently sits at 82% on Rotten Tomatoes, good enough to earn it a “Certified Fresh” rating. Critics say the tense drama and top-notch performances from the actors will give you chills, no matter how hot the weather outside might be.
Watch a Trailer for ‘The Lesson’:
If the film’s dark plot has you feeling like you may want to hide behind a blanket during certain parts, you may be hoping “The Lesson” is streaming now. Alas, at the moment the film is only available to watch by heading to your local theater and buying a ticket.
“The Lesson” is being distributed by Bleeker Street, which is an independent film company. Fortunately, Bleeker Street agreed to an exclusive home-distribution deal with Showtime in 2022, encompassing both broadcast and streaming rights. Since the streamer SHOWTIME was merged with Paramount+ on June 27, the deal means “The Lesson” will stream on Paramount+ with Showtime once Bleeker has gotten enough revenues from digital purchases of the movie on premium/transactional video-on-demand platforms.
But when will that be? Paramount movies usually don’t take as long as some other studios to reach streaming, but this case could be an exception. One of Bleeker’s most recent releases was “Mafia Mamma,” a crime satire starring Toni Collette and Monica Bellucci. The film was released on April 14 — 91 days ago as of the time of this writing — and while it is available to rent or purchase on Prime Video and via physical media, it hasn’t been released to streaming yet.
Because it’s a smaller production house, Bleeker will likely give “The Lesson” as long a period to bring in revenue on digital purchase platforms as it can. That means users shouldn’t expect to see the movie on Paramount+ sooner than 120 days from its July 7 release. That would bring it to streaming around November 4, though since it’s a thriller, it might head to Paramount+ just a few days early to capitalize on Spooky Season around Halloween.
Paramount Plus
Paramount+ is a subscription video streaming service that includes on-demand access to 40,000+ TV show episodes from BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr. and more. Get free access with a Walmart+ subscription.
Paramount+ includes “1883,” “Tulsa King,” “Star Trek: Discovery,” “SpongeBob SquarePants,” and “PAW Patrol.” Subscribers can watch the NFL, college football, The Masters, college basketball, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa, Serie A, and NWSL. The service also offers the option to watch your live CBS affiliate. The upgraded ad-free package includes premium movies and shows from Showtime.