Zachary Levi’s New Drama Sarah’s Oil Becomes a PVOD Streaming Hit After Bombing in Theaters

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Zachary Levi’s first movie in the DC Universe, Shazam!, was a hit, but the 2023 sequel and other films like Harold and the Purple Crayon didn’t perform as well in theaters. While the sequel struggled initially, it’s now gaining popularity on streaming and on-demand platforms just a few months after its release.

According to FlixPatrol, the movie Sarah’s Oil, featuring Naya Desir-Johnson and Levi, is quickly climbing the charts on streaming and VOD platforms just weeks after its theatrical release. Currently, it’s the fourth most popular movie on Amazon Prime Video in the US, and the ninth most popular film available for rent or purchase on the Apple TV Store.

The film, directed by Cyrus Nowrasteh and co-written with Betsy Giffen Nowrasteh, is based on Tonya Bolden’s 2014 book, Searching for Sarah Rector: The Richest Black Girl in America. It tells the story of Sarah Rector, a young girl who became incredibly wealthy in the early 1900s after oil was discovered on her family’s previously unproductive land in Oklahoma.

In Sarah’s Oil, Naya Desir-Johnson plays the young Sarah Rector, and Zachary Levi portrays Bert Smith. The movie features supporting performances by Sonequa Martin-Green, Garret Dillahunt, Mel Rodriguez, Jonathan Lipnicki, Bridget Regan, Stelio Savante, Kenric Green, and Adyan Copes.

When Sarah’s Oil came out in November 2025, it received very positive feedback from both critics and viewers. Currently, the film has a remarkable 98% “Verified Hot” rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on over 500 user reviews. It also earned an 83% “Fresh” rating from 12 verified critics.

Although Sarah’s Oil received a lot of positive attention, it wasn’t a financial success in theaters. It only earned about $12 million at the box office, despite costing $18 million to make.

How Sarah’s Oil Star Zachary Levi Feels About His Other Big Box Office Flop

Okay, let’s talk about Levi’s latest, Sarah’s Oil. It’s not exactly setting the box office on fire, and honestly, it’s part of a pattern. He’s been pretty open about how his previous film, while a total flop in theaters, actually had a surprisingly positive response from viewers who really enjoyed its fun, superhero vibe.

Look, the general audience still seems to be enjoying it, but the critics… well, their scores were surprisingly harsh, and honestly, a bit mean-spirited. I’ve seen enough movies to know that things are rarely perfect, and while Shazam! Fury of the Gods isn’t going to be compared to a classic like Citizen Kane, it’s a perfectly good, fun movie. They definitely missed some things in their assessment, in my opinion.

Released in 2023, Shazam! Fury of the Gods continued the story of Billy Batson, played by both Asher Angel and Zachary Levi as Shazam, following the 2019 film Shazam! Despite a positive audience score of 85% on Rotten Tomatoes (based on over 2,500 reviews), the movie wasn’t a financial success, earning only $134.1 million worldwide on a $125 million budget. Critical reviews were also poor, leading to the likely end of the character’s appearances in future films.

His next film also struggled with critics, earning a very low 27% approval rating. However, audiences enjoyed it much more, giving it an 89% score. Despite the positive audience response, the film wasn’t a financial success, earning only $32.2 million at the box office while costing $40 million to make.

Sarah’s Oil is currently available for streaming on Prime Video and via video-on-demand on Apple TV.

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2026-01-06 00:08