Movie
Where to Watch American Splendor (2003) in the US
- 2003
- R
- 1h 41m
- 7.4IMDb
- 94%Rotten Tomatoes
- 90Metascore
American Splendor is available with a subscription or to rent in the United States.
Rent
- Apple TV StoreSD101 minRAudioEnglish$3.99Opens in a new tab.
- Apple TV StoreHD101 minRAudioEnglish$3.99Opens in a new tab.
- Prime VideoSD101 minRAudioEnglish · Spanish$3.99Opens in a new tab.
- Prime VideoHD101 minRAudioEnglish · Spanish$3.99Opens in a new tab.
- Fandango at HomeSD101 minRAudioEnglish$3.99Opens in a new tab.
- Fandango at HomeHD101 minRAudioEnglish$3.99Opens in a new tab.
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Availability last checked Oct 9, 2026.
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- Watch the movie with a subscription on HBO Max (HD).
- Rent the movie on Apple TV Store, Fandango at Home, and Prime Video.
What it's about
Harvey Pekar is file clerk at the local VA hospital. His interactions with his co-workers offer some relief from the monotony, and their discussions encompass everything from music to the decline of American culture to new flavors of jellybeans and life itself. At home, Harvey fills his days with reading, writing and listening to jazz. His apartment is filled with thousands of books and LPs, and he regularly scours Cleveland's thrift stores and garage sales for more, savoring the rare joy of a 25-cent find. It is at one of these junk sales that Harvey meets Robert Crumb, a greeting card artist and music enthusiast. When, years later, Crumb finds international success for his underground comics, the idea that comic books can be a valid art form for adults inspires Harvey to write his own brand of comic book. An admirer of naturalist writers like Theodore Dreiser, Harvey makes his American Splendor a truthful, unsentimental record of his working-class life, a warts-and-all self portrait. First published in 1976, the comic earns Harvey cult fame throughout the 1980s and eventually leads him to the sardonic Joyce Barber, a partner in a Delaware comic book store who end ups being Harvey's true soul mate as they experience the bizarre byproducts of Harvey's cult celebrity stature.
Cast and crew
- Director
- Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
- Starring
- Paul Giamatti, Shari Springer Berman, Harvey Pekar
Details
- Release date
- Sep 12, 2003
- Language
- English
- Country
- United States
- Box office
- $6,010,990
- Awards
- Nominated for 1 Oscar. 31 wins & 50 nominations total
Where to Watch American Splendor (2003) in the US — common questions
- Where to watch American Splendor in the United States?
- American Splendor is available with a subscription or to rent in the United States. Watch the movie with a subscription on HBO Max (HD). Rent the movie on Apple TV Store, Fandango at Home, and Prime Video.
- Can I stream American Splendor or do I have to rent it in the United States?
- Watch the movie with a subscription on HBO Max (HD). Rent the movie on Apple TV Store, Fandango at Home, and Prime Video.
- Can I watch American Splendor for free in the United States?
- We have not confirmed a free option for American Splendor in the United States.
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