After 15 years away from directing, James L. Brooks returned with “Ella McCay,” a film that has somehow become one of the most ill-reviewed releases of 2025. In the U.S., critics panned it outright: 23% on Rotten Tomatoes and 39 on Metacritic, and a worldwide gross of just $3M against a $35M budget.
The great Albert Brooks, a cast member and longtime friend of James, speaks with Letterboxd about the film’s reception and why it felt like a miracle to see it reach theaters at all.
It got clobbered pretty hard for not being about today, or whatever. I liked the movie. I love Jim, and I think Jim, in his sleep, is better than 90 percent of people. But it came out in a time when that kind of movie is not playing in theaters. That is what’s playing on streaming, and it’s unfortunate.
Brooks then reflected on the U.S. backlash, trying to understand why critics were so hostile:
I read some of the negative reviews to get a sense of what the issues are, and maybe it was that it feels earnest, but I couldn’t really make heads or tails of it. I think it’s right there with what he does so well… You’re allowed to say, ‘We don’t really want something like that.’ But to get violently angry, I didn’t get it.
Ella McCay stars Emma Mackey as a young politician navigating the demands of family and career, supported by a stellar ensemble including Rebecca Hall, Jamie Lee Curtis, Woody Harrelson, Ayo Edebiri, Albert Brooks, Kumail Nanjiani, Jack Lowden, and Spike Fearn.
For fans of Brooks’ previous work—“Terms of Endearment,” “As Good as It Gets,” “Broadcast News”—“Ella McCay” delivers the director’s trademark mix of heart, humor, and human observation. According to Albert Brooks, the greatest tragedy isn’t the film itself, but that, despite being far more grounded in reality than a comic book movie, critics still accused it of implausibilities.
“There was a scene in that movie that I loved that some people didn’t think was deserved… I bought it. But I read people going, ‘That would never happen!’ It’s funny. That would never happen, but Batman can fly across America.”
Brooks makes some fair points here, but seems to be giving “Ella McCay” way more credit than it deserved. The film was a mess: tonally, on the written page, and directing-wise.
Hey, at least the French love the film, much like most of Brooks’ latter career works, including “How Do You Know.” In France, where the film’s theatrical release, originally set for January 7, was abruptly canceled by Disney, critics have embraced “Ella McCay” with near-universal praise since its streaming debut . The film holds a 4.1/5 average rating on AlloCiné. Even the legendary Cahiers du Cinéma described it as a “harmonious delight,” contributing a glowing 5-star review.