It Was Just an Accident

Play trailer

1:55

It Was Just an Accident

PG-13

2025

1h 45m

Drama

Mystery & Thriller

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

97%

Tomatometer

197 Reviews

92%

Popcornmeter

50+ Verified Ratings

What begins as a minor accident sets in motion a series of escalating consequences.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Stream Now

Critics Consensus

Perhaps the most bluntly political film by Jafar Panahi yet, It Was Just an Accident is a defiant rebuke of authoritarianism that still delivers the entertainment value of a gripping thriller.

Read Critics Reviews

Roxana Hadadi

Pop Culture Happy Hour (NPR Podcast)

1d

It is absolutely a political thriller. It is absolutely a character study. It is also hilarious.

Go to Full Review

Donald Clarke

Irish Times

Dec 20

5/5

As ever, Panahi works with amateur actors to secure a connection with everyday realities. The huge moral dilemmas spin out from the personal concerns of fleshy, believable human beings.

Go to Full Review

Mark Kermode

Kermode and Mayo's Take (YouTube)

Dec 8

It feels very real.

Go to Full Review

Aisha Harris

Pop Culture Happy Hour (NPR Podcast)

1d

I think it's both a great political film, but it's also a very great character study. And I cannot recommend this movie enough.

Go to Full Review

Glen Weldon

Pop Culture Happy Hour (NPR Podcast)

1d

This film does a good old-fashioned favor to cinema, a huge service to cinema. Because it digs into something that's been treated so glibly by filmmakers forever, which is the question of vengeance.

Go to Full Review

Khanaphot Saengchai

Bangkok Post

1d

The 2025 Cannes winner proves its worth by blending entertainment with thought-provoking substance, inviting viewers to grapple with whether breaking the cycle of violence is an act of denying justice or reclaiming humanity.

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

Advait

Jan 13

Brilliant movie about the dissidents of the Iranian regime and what they had to go through,many thanks to the director

See more

Donald T

Nov 15

Great film. Brilliant.

See more

Starla C

Nov 14

didn't enjoy the story at all...

See more

roya

Nov 11

An excellent movie full of meaning and connotations!

See more

CA voter

Nov 10

Storyline twisted to reveal Iranian history - the ensemble actors all well cast

See more

John D

Nov 2

Movie was crazy well acted and paced. Long shots were long without seeming show-y or film school-y

See more

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Jafar Panahi

Director

Vahid Mobasseri

Vahid

Ebrahim Azizi

Eghbal

Mariam Afshari

Shiva

Hadis Pakbaten

Golrokh

Majid Panahi

Le marié

Monster

97%

90%

Monster

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Monster

Last Breath

79%

91%

Last Breath

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Last Breath

Dark Waters

89%

95%

Dark Waters

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Dark Waters

The Salesman

96%

85%

The Salesman

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Salesman

The Eternal Daughter

95%

44%

The Eternal Daughter

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Eternal Daughter

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Wicked For Good, One Battle After Another, Frankenstein Named Top Films of 2025 by AFI

One Battle After Another Takes Best Film at the New York Film Critics Circle Awards

It Was Just an Accident: Trailer 1

1:55

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

What begins as a minor accident sets in motion a series of escalating consequences.

Director: Jafar Panahi
Producer: Jafar Panahi
Screenwriter: Jafar Panahi
Distributor: NEON
Production Co: Les Films Pelléas
Rating: PG-13 (Thematic Elements|Strong Language|Smoking|Violence)
Genre: Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: Persian
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 15, 2025, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 16, 2025
Box Office (Gross USA): $1.8M
Runtime: 1h 45m
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

Most Popular at Home Now