Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

Payback

Play trailer 2:20 Poster for Payback R Released Feb 5, 1999 1h 41m Action Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
56% Tomatometer 78 Reviews 69% Popcornmeter 50,000+ Ratings
Porter (Mel Gibson) is a thief betrayed by both his wife, Lynn (Deborah Kara Unger), and his partner, Val (Gregg Henry), when he is shot in the back after a heist. Slowly, Porter recovers from his wounds and begins a search for Val, intent on recovering his share of the money they stole together. With the aid of prostitute Rosie (Maria Bello), Porter captures Val but still cannot find his cash. For this, Porter will have to challenge an imposing crime syndicate called the Outfit.
Watch on Fandango at Home Stream Now

Where to Watch

Payback

Payback

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Sadistic violence and rote humor saddle a predictable action premise.

Read Critics Reviews

Critics Reviews

View More (78)
Jeff Strickler Minneapolis Star Tribune Demonstrates why Mel Gibson is a movie star: He can take mediocre material and through sheer willpower -- not to mention oodles of charm -- make it work. Nov 6, 2002 Full Review Mick LaSalle San Francisco Chronicle A higher class of thriller. Rated: 4/4 Jun 18, 2002 Full Review Liam Lacey Globe and Mail It quickly slides into a Lethal Weapon without Danny Glover, complete with blowups and wisecracks, gratuitous torture scenes and Gibson in familiar form as the twinkling rascal who makes a virtue out of viciousness. Rated: 2/4 Mar 22, 2002 Full Review David Nusair Reel Film Reviews ...a somewhat erratic yet predominantly engrossing endeavor... Rated: 3.5/4 Mar 13, 2024 Full Review Rob Gonsalves Rob's Movie Vault Aside from Gibson, "Payback" is a wonderfully wretched hive of scum and villainy. Rated: B Sep 2, 2022 Full Review Mike Massie Gone With The Twins Unrelentingly paints a picture of murder, mayhem, and retribution that is both bold and entertaining. Rated: 8/10 Sep 24, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View More (1000+)
Noel L This felt like John Wick meets The Equalizer. I'll be honest, I kind of didn't want Mel Gibson to win. But all in all a good action thriller Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 08/26/25 Full Review Dustin S There is actually 2 different versions of this film Director's Cut which I find the ending not quite as good, and then there is the standard version with a different ending to the Directors Cut. The Standard Version is much more interesting ending to the film. If your going to watch this movie try and find the standard version not the director's cut I feel it loses something with that ending. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 08/19/25 Full Review Steven M Point Blank, which runs a similar line, is better…much better. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 05/25/25 Full Review steve d Fun little movie. Not spectacular but i definitely don't regret watching it. Prime Mel Gibson. I liked the vibe Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/05/25 Full Review Lanfranco C A no bad dark crime movie Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/20/25 Full Review Brad M It's worth watching. Not spectacular, but fun. I like the early 90"s vibe. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 12/07/24 Full Review Read all reviews
Payback

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW
Conspiracy Theory 57% 64% Conspiracy Theory Watchlist Enemy of the State 71% 78% Enemy of the State Watchlist TRAILER for Enemy of the State The Jackal 24% 51% The Jackal Watchlist The Assignment 62% 62% The Assignment Watchlist Cradle 2 the Grave 27% 52% Cradle 2 the Grave Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis Porter (Mel Gibson) is a thief betrayed by both his wife, Lynn (Deborah Kara Unger), and his partner, Val (Gregg Henry), when he is shot in the back after a heist. Slowly, Porter recovers from his wounds and begins a search for Val, intent on recovering his share of the money they stole together. With the aid of prostitute Rosie (Maria Bello), Porter captures Val but still cannot find his cash. For this, Porter will have to challenge an imposing crime syndicate called the Outfit.
Director
Brian Helgeland
Producer
Bruce Davey
Screenwriter
Donald E. Westlake, Brian Helgeland, Terry Hayes
Distributor
Paramount Pictures
Production Co
Icon Entertainment International
Rating
R
Genre
Action, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Feb 5, 1999, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 1, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA)
$81.5M
Runtime
1h 41m
Sound Mix
SDDS, Dolby Digital, DTS, Surround
Most Popular at Home Now