King Cobra

Play trailer

2:11

King Cobra

2016

1h 32m

Crime

Drama

LGBTQ+

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

50%

Tomatometer

38 Reviews

32%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

It's 2006, YouTube is in its infancy, and internet porn is still behind a paywall. Taking the stage name Brent Corrigan, a fresh-faced, wannabe adult video performer is molded into a star by Stephen, a closeted gay porn mogul who runs the skin flick empire Cobra Video from his seemingly ordinary suburban home. But as Brent's rise and demands for more money put him at odds with his boss, he also attracts the attention of a rival producer and his unstable lover.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Stream Now

Kristen Lopez

Spectrum Culture

11/20/2017

1.5/5

King Cobra takes an interesting true crime and covers it in exploitative sex, pedophilic overtures and acting that would make a high school drama teacher cringe.

Go to Full Review

Matthew Lickona

San Diego Reader

11/03/2016

2/5

Though based on a true story, it's presented with none of a docudrama's ragged, lumpy oddity: the narrative is on the lean side, but as taut and burnished as the bodies it depicts.

Go to Full Review

Godfrey Cheshire

RogerEbert.com

10/29/2016

2/4

King Cobra smells more like business plan than a movie.

Go to Full Review

Joe Lipsett

The Queer Gaze (Podcast)

Jan 15

Christian Slater is the MVP in Justin Kelly's melodramatic, semi-salacious, occasionally erotic true crime adaptation. It's become difficult to watch Franco queer bait in the intervening years.

Go to Full Review

Ben Turner

The Pink Lens

09/02/2021

2/5

There is definitely a great film to be made about the gay porn industry, but unfortunately, King Cobra is not it.

Go to Full Review

Jason Adams

The Film Experience

07/06/2021

King Cobra is killer. Funny, sexy, and bottomlessly absurd, a wall-fly's view of the ass-smacks of the perfectly self-involved

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

Liam D

@Mediawatcher2003 09/26/2024

It’s got a good cast and it’s well made but it feels like exploration than an actual movie

See more

Alec B

@Alec97 01/03/2024

The film is grasping for something truthful to say, although it never quite reaches that level. The character's motivations are just too muddled.

See more

01/19/2021

bad script, more like a 1970's film than more recent one.

See more

08/10/2020

This 1 star is for Christian Slater. Not for his role in this movie but only for Mr. Robot. If you are going to make a movie about gay porn, maybe hire actual gay actors instead of James Franco who is trying to 'act gay'. The only thing believable about this film is that Christian Slater's character would get murdered (spoiler). Do not recommend, especially when you want to watch something with your parents. P.S: I have sent all the actors (except for Sir Slater) a payment request for my wasted and delicate time. No.

See more

01/31/2020

Omg this movie was so good! I have seen it many times and want to watch it again. My boyfriend and I loved it, and want to see more movies like it!

See more

01/10/2020

Trash, horrible acting

See more

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

POST RATING

Justin Kelly

Director

Garrett Clayton

Sean Paul Lockhart

Christian Slater

Stephen

Alicia Silverstone

Janette

Molly Ringwald

Amy

Keegan Allen

Harlow

The Angel

72%

69%

The Angel

Watchlist

Bad Education

88%

86%

Bad Education

Watchlist

Bwoy

86%

42%

Bwoy

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Bwoy

Beach Rats

84%

57%

Beach Rats

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Beach Rats

Fair Haven

%

82%

Fair Haven

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Fair Haven

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

King Cobra: Trailer 1

2:11

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

It's 2006, YouTube is in its infancy, and internet porn is still behind a paywall. Taking the stage name Brent Corrigan, a fresh-faced, wannabe adult video performer is molded into a star by Stephen, a closeted gay porn mogul who runs the skin flick empire Cobra Video from his seemingly ordinary suburban home. But as Brent's rise and demands for more money put him at odds with his boss, he also attracts the attention of a rival producer and his unstable lover.

Director: Justin Kelly
Producer: James Franco, Vince Jolivette, Scott Levenson, Jordan Yale Levine, Shaun Sanghani
Screenwriter: Justin Kelly
Distributor: IFC Films
Production Co: SSS Entertainment, IFC Films, Yale Productions, Rabbit Bandini Productions, Digital Ignition Entertainment
Genre: Crime, Drama, LGBTQ+
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 21, 2016, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 14, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $28.5K
Runtime: 1h 32m