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Paul

Play trailer Poster for Paul R 2011 1h 44m Comedy Adventure Sci-Fi Play Trailer Watchlist
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70% Tomatometer 204 Reviews 62% Popcornmeter 250,000+ Ratings
For the past 60 years, a wisecracking alien named Paul (Seth Rogen) has resided at a top-secret military base in America's UFO heartland. When Paul decides he has had enough of Earth, he escapes from the compound and hops on the first handy vehicle -- a rented RV manned by two British sci-fi nerds named Graeme (Simon Pegg) and Clive (Nick Frost). With federal agents and the father of an accidental kidnap victim on their tail, the two hatch a crazy plan to help Paul return to his spaceship.
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Paul

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Critics Consensus

It doesn't measure up to Pegg and Frost's best work, but Paul is an amiably entertaining -- albeit uneven -- road trip comedy with an intergalactic twist.

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Critics Reviews

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Jim Schembri The Age (Australia) 04/13/2011
2.5/5
Passably funny, though one suspects even diehard sci-fi buffs will find the film's wall-to-wall pop referencing tiring and a tad lazy. Doesn't anybody write genuine jokes any more? Go to Full Review Paul Byrnes Sydney Morning Herald 04/13/2011
3/5
Paul isn't as riotous as the early Pegg and Frost movies, but it does have a certain sweetness. Everyone in it is sort of innocent, except Paul, the alien wisecracker. It's likeable, if uneven, rather than hilarious. Go to Full Review Sara Michelle Fetters MovieFreak.com 03/25/2011
3/4
It is a sunny road trip comedy that had me smiling from the start, and while there are the occasional hiccups this is still as breezily a good time at the movies as I've had this year. Go to Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy Nov 20
3/4
Often lewd and crude but always more clever than expected, Paul is ultimately a sweet homage to pop culture geeks, sci-fi aficionados, and anyone who came of age on a steady diet of Spielberg blockbusters. Go to Full Review Patrick Cavanaugh The Wolfman Cometh Sep 11
4/5
Effective as both a tribute to and sendup of a number of fan-favorite sci-fi films. Go to Full Review Brian Eggert Deep Focus Review 07/31/2023
3/4
Mottola’s direction is serviceable, and the impressive cast of comedians and cameos make for consistent laughs. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Par H @Parhwy Apr 21 Paul (2011) is a 100-minute-long sci-fi comedy I saw on Prime in April 2026. Pegg, Frost and Rogen join forces in this buddy alien road trip. The casting on this movie is quite good. I always enjoy Bateman’s MIB baddy; he may be my fav character (a bold strategy, Cotton, given how much I love Pegg and Frost). Wiig’s delivery and scripting of a n00b lapsed believer is always funny. Overall, this is a mild movie with all the boxes ticked for a Hollywood funny (Pegg and Frost noted). Rewatch? Likely. Recommend? Sure. 6/10. See more TheAlpha W @TheAlphaWolf Apr 13 I loved this movie. It was a really good experience from the begging to the end and laughed a lot, mostly because of its crude humor and because the duo Simon Pegg and Nick Frost really gets along. The plot in itself is pretty basic because helping an alien to find back his friends to go back on his planet but the FBI chase them sounds pretty lame but the story with their ridiculous humor is everything. Two "geek" finding a vulgar alien, this can only lead to a fun film and in fact it was. The actors were playing so good especially Paul (he's CGI 😉). So Paul, the CGI alien in the movie is very vulgar and wants to have fun during the trip to find his friends, and he's pretty much the origin of most of the problems while the two other actors try their best to help him while also trying to have fun with him. The film is here to make you laugh and it does a really good job at this, you should definitely watch it but not with kids ;) See more Shamyrra W @Myrrathemagical Mar 9 Lowk yaoi bait 😢😢😢😢😢 See more Frans B @FransB Feb 10 Brilliant! Great story and well written. Good cinematography and visually appealing. Whole cast excels in character. Lots of bonkers action, funny haha and funny peculiar. Enough twists and suspense. Entertaining See more Leaburn O @RT35452347 Feb 8 This is a passable comedy with some good moments but you’ve seen funnier stuff. Reasonable. Watched on DVD. See more Brian S. @KINGROB41 Jan 22 Great movie and fun to watch. See more Read all reviews
Paul

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Cast & Crew

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Greg Mottola

Director

Simon Pegg

Graeme Willy

Nick Frost

Clive Gollings

Seth Rogen

Paul

Jason Bateman

Agent Zoil

Kristen Wiig

Ruth Buggs

Movie Clips

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Paul

Paul: Official Clip - The Big Guy Paul: Official Clip - The Big Guy 2:23 Paul: Official Clip - Escaping the Farm Paul: Official Clip - Escaping the Farm 2:38 Paul: Official Clip - Really Strong Weed Paul: Official Clip - Really Strong Weed 2:45 Paul: Official Clip - New to Cursing Paul: Official Clip - New to Cursing 0:45 Paul: Official Clip - Evolve This Paul: Official Clip - Evolve This 2:17 Paul: Official Clip - Dead Bird Paul: Official Clip - Dead Bird 1:31 Paul: Official Clip - Farting Buttholes Paul: Official Clip - Farting Buttholes 2:17 Paul: Official Clip - Spaceman Balls Paul: Official Clip - Spaceman Balls 2:44 Paul: Official Clip - Spaz Attack Paul: Official Clip - Spaz Attack 2:31 Paul: Official Clip - Awkward Makeout Paul: Official Clip - Awkward Makeout 1:19 View more videos

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Paul

(L-R) Kristen Wiig as Ruth, Paul, Nick Frost as Clive, Simon Pegg as Graema and Blythe Danner as Tara in "Paul." (L-R) Paul and Simon Pegg as Graeme in "Paul." (L-R) Nick Frost as Clive Gollings, Kristen Wiig as Ruth Buggs and Simon Pegg as Graeme Willy in "Paul." (L-R) Simon Pegg as Graeme Willy, Kristen Wiig as Ruth Buggs, Nick Frost as Clive Gollings and Paul in "Paul." Sigourney Weaver (left) as The Big Guy in "Paul." Blythe Danner as Tara Walton in "Paul." (L-R) Joe Lo Truglio as O'Reilly and Bill Hader as Haggard in "Paul." (L-R) Nick Frost as Clive Gollings and Simon Pegg as Graeme Willy in "Paul." (L-R) Nick Frost as Clive Gollings and Simon Pegg as Graeme Willy in "Paul." (L-R) Jane Lynch as Pat Stevens and Kristen Wiig as Ruth Buggs in "Paul." View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis For the past 60 years, a wisecracking alien named Paul (Seth Rogen) has resided at a top-secret military base in America's UFO heartland. When Paul decides he has had enough of Earth, he escapes from the compound and hops on the first handy vehicle -- a rented RV manned by two British sci-fi nerds named Graeme (Simon Pegg) and Clive (Nick Frost). With federal agents and the father of an accidental kidnap victim on their tail, the two hatch a crazy plan to help Paul return to his spaceship.
Director
Greg Mottola
Producer
Nira Park, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner
Screenwriter
Simon Pegg, Nick Frost
Distributor
Universal Pictures
Production Co
Working Title Films
Rating
R (Sexual References|Language|Some Drug Use)
Genre
Comedy, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 18, 2011, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 5, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$37.4M
Runtime
1h 44m
Sound Mix
SDDS, Dolby Digital, DTS