| Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere | |
|---|---|
.png) Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Scott Cooper |
| Screenplay by | Scott Cooper |
| Based on | Deliver Me from Nowhere byWarren Zanes |
| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Masanobu Takayanagi |
| Edited by | Pamela Martin |
| Music by | Jeremiah Fraites |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | 20th Century Studios |
Release dates |
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Running time | 119 minutes[2] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $55 million[3] |
| Box office | $44 million[4][5] |
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere is a 2025 Americanbiographicalmusicaldrama film starringJeremy Allen White asBruce Springsteen. Written and directed byScott Cooper, and based on the 2023 bookDeliver Me from Nowhere byWarren Zanes, as well as some elements from Springsteen's autobiographyBorn to Run, it chronicles Springsteen's personal and professional struggles during the conception of his 1982 albumNebraska.[1] The film also starsJeremy Strong,Paul Walter Hauser,Stephen Graham, andOdessa Young.
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere had its world premiere at the52nd Telluride Film Festival on August 29, 2025, and was theatrically released in United States by20th Century Studios on October 24, 2025. The film received mixed reviews from critics, though the performances of White and Strong received praise. It has grossed $44 million worldwide on a budget of $55 million.
In 1981,Bruce Springsteen reaches the end ofThe River Tour, his latest sold-out concert tour.Jon Landau, his manager and producer, rents a house for Bruce to lie low from his growing fame, nearFreehold, New Jersey where he grew up.
Bruce's friend and mechanic Matt drives him to the house inColts Neck, and Bruce buys his first new car, aChevrolet Camaro. Playing with local bands atthe Stone Pony, he meets Faye Romano, an old classmate's younger sister. On the heels of his first top-ten song "Hungry Heart", his record label expects another hit album, and Bruce suggests trimming studio costs by preparing ademo himself.
Bruce has a troubled relationship with his father Douglas, an alcoholic battling mental health issues, which drove a young Bruce to defend his mother Adele with a baseball bat. Reading the works ofFlannery O'Connor, Bruce catches the filmBadlands on TV and is drawn to research the crime spree ofCharles Starkweather. Inspired, he writes a song in the killer's own voice, and takes Faye on a date toAsbury Park.
At the house, Bruce enlists his guitar technician Mike Batlan to turn the bedroom into a makeshift studio, with afour-track recorder to arrange the demo themselves. Growing close to Faye and her young daughter Haley, Bruce writes a collection of stark, somber songs with ablue-collar perspective, influenced by his childhood memories, especially of his father. Jon informs Bruce of other opportunities piling up, including a possiblemovie role, but Bruce is committed to his new music. Recording his new tracks unaccompanied, he makes the risky choice to embrace an imperfect, unvarnished sound quality.
Mike brings Jon the only copy of the completed demo, a single cassette tape, and Jon confides in his wife about the unexpectedly darker, deeply personal songs. Living in California, Adele calls Bruce for help with an increasingly erratic Douglas. After visiting his father, Bruce arrives in New York City to record the new album, reuniting with theE Street Band. They lay down several successful tracks, including "Born in the U.S.A.", but Bruce is unhappy with the overall full-band studio sound of the record.
After two weeks of recording, Bruce has not recaptured his acoustic vision for the album. Abandoning Faye, he insists on shelving the potential hits until he is satisfied. Jon agrees to use Bruce's raw demo, unchanged, as the new record, suspecting Bruce fears losing himself in the face of success. Using older equipment to re-create the demo tape as a vinylmaster recording, Bruce's original sound is successfully preserved for the new album,Nebraska.
Record executive Al Teller is dismayed by the stylistic departure, and the absence of the prospective hits, but Jon defends Bruce's artistic vision and decision to let the album speak for itself — no singles, tours, or press appearances, not even his face on the cover. Bruce tells Faye that he is moving to Los Angeles alone, and she tearfully accuses him of refusing to face his fears. He suffers a mental breakdown as Matt drives him across the country, but they reach his new home in LA. Contemplating suicide, Bruce reaches out to Jon, who urges him to seek professional help, and an emotional Bruce visits a therapist.
Ten months later, Bruce is back on tour with Jon's support, and is visited by his proud parents. Douglas asks the 32-year-old Bruce to sit on his lap for the first time, reconnecting with his son. An epilogue reveals thatNebraska reached number three on the charts, while the hits included on Bruce's following album,Born in the U.S.A., launched him to global superstardom, as he continued to seek treatment fordepression.
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In March 2024, the project was first announced, withBruce Springsteen and his managerJon Landau said to be actively involved with it. Producers areScott Stuber, his first project since leaving as Chief of Film atNetflix,Ellen Goldsmith-Vein,Scott Cooper, and Eric Robinson (who first identified the story and, together with Goldsmith-Vein, brought the project to Cooper), with Cooper writing and directing the adaptation of Zanes' non-fiction bookDeliver Me from Nowhere: The Making of Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska (2023). Zanes was also named an Executive Producer.Jeremy Allen White was reported to be in talks to portray Springsteen andA24 was expected to acquire the distribution rights.[7][8]
In April 2024, it was revealed that20th Century Studios had acquired the film in a heated bidding war with A24, joining the project as financier and distributor.[9][10]
In May 2024,Jeremy Strong was reported to be in talks to play Jon Landau.[11] Strong confirmed the casting in October 2024.[12] In June 2024,Paul Walter Hauser andOdessa Young joined the cast.[13] In September 2024,Stephen Graham joined the cast as Springsteen's father Douglas,[14] whileHarrison Gilbertson andJohnny Cannizzaro were added the following month, in October 2024.[15][16] In November 2024, it was announced thatMarc Maron,Gaby Hoffmann, andDavid Krumholtz had joined the cast.[17]
On October 28, 2024,principal photography began.[18][19] Filming took place primarily inNew York andNew Jersey, with additional photography inLos Angeles.[19][20]
On November 1 and 4, 2024, Springsteen made special visits to the sets inRockaway andBayonne, New Jersey, respectively, where he met with White.[21] The following month, on December 10 and 11, 2024, Springsteen also visited the sets inAsbury Park. This was followed by visits to the sets in theMeadowlands, on January 8 and 9, and then those inFreehold Borough, on January 10, 2025.[citation needed]
On January 11, 2025, filming wrapped, in Asbury Park.[citation needed]
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere had its world premiere at the52nd Telluride Film Festival on August 29, 2025, and was released theatrically by 20th Century Studios on October 24, 2025.[19][22]
As of November 24, 2025[update],Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere has grossed $23 million in the United States and Canada, and $21 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $44 million.[5]
In the United States and Canada,Deliver Me from Nowhere was released alongsideRegretting You,Shelby Oaks andChainsaw Man - The Movie: Reze Arc, and was projected to gross $9–11 million from 3,460 theaters in its opening weekend. It ended up debuting to $9.1 million, finishing in fourth.[23][24]
Deliver Me from Nowhere divided film critics. White's and Strong's performances received praise, but the film was criticized for the repetitive plot points and tropes of the musician biopics.[25] On thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, 60% of 224 critics' reviews are positive. The website's consensus reads: "Focusing on Bruce Springsteen's lowest emotional ebb, this brooding biopic too often feels like the B-sides from an extraordinary career but benefits from Jeremy Allen White and Jeremy Strong's stellar performances."[26]Metacritic, which uses aweighted average, assigned the film a score of 59 out of 100, based on 51 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[27] Audiences polled byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.[23]
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AARP Movies for Grownups Awards | January 10, 2026 | Best Director | Scott Cooper | Pending | [28] |
| Best Period Film | Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere | Pending | |||
| Camerimage | November 22, 2025 | Golden Frog | Masanobu Takayanagi | Nominated | [29][30] |
| Gotham Independent Film Awards | December 1, 2025 | Cultural Icon Tribute | Jeremy Allen White & Scott Cooper | Won | [31] |
| Hollywood Music in Media Awards | November 19, 2025 | Music Themed Film, Biopic or Musical | Scott Cooper | Nominated | [32] |
| Santa Barbara International Film Festival | February 8, 2026 | Virtuoso Award | Jeremy Allen White | Won | [33] |
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