Pillion has secured a perfect Rotten Tomatoes score ahead of its release. A24’s new erotic movie stars Harry Helling, who is best known for playing Dudley Dursley, the boy wizard’s insufferable cousin, in the Harry Potter films from 2001 to 2010.
Now, following its premiere at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, Pillion has secured a 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie has 73 reviews at the time of writing, so it could lose its perfect score as more are published. It doesn’t yet have an audience score, though one should start to take shape once it releases in theaters in the United States on February 6.
Pillion was released in theaters in the United Kingdom on November 28, where it already grossed $1.5 million, exceeding its small $1 million budget.
Written and directed by Harry Lighton in his debut, based on the 2020 novel Box Hill by Adam Mars-Jones, Pillion stars Harry Helling as a shy gay man who becomes infatuated with a mysterious and strikingly handsome biker (played by Alexander Skarsgård), and the two eventually start a BDSM relationship.
In addition to the Harry Potter alum and the Emmy-winning Alexander Skarsgård (Big Little Lies), the cast also includes Douglas Hodge, Lesley Sharp, Jake Shears, Anthony Welsh, Paul Tallis, Mat Hill, Nick Figgis, Zoe Engenrer, Jake Sharp, Jacob Carter, Cristina Carty, Zamir Mesiti, Rosie Sheehy, Miranda Bell, and Monica Purcell.
In ScreenRant‘s Pillion review, Graeme Guttmann gave the film eight out of 10 stars and writes, “Alexander Skarsgård has never been better than in Harry Lighton’s sexy feature debut centering [on] BDSM… For a first feature, it’s a startlingly confident, overwhelmingly sexy debut for Harry Lighton.”
Pillion was nominated for 3 BAFTA Awards for Outstanding British Film of the Year, Outstanding Debut by a British Writer or Director, and Best Screenplay (Adapted) for Harry Lighton.
Overall, critics are calling Pillion an offbeat romance elevated by its open-minded approach and standout performances, and an impressive directorial debut for Harry Lighton. Reviews praise the film’s humor, tenderness, and refusal to judge – noting how it balances discomfort, eroticism, and warmth while treating queer kink with empathy and intelligence throughout.
Across the board, critics single out Harry Melling and Alexander Skarsgård for their fearless and finely tuned performances that deepen over the runtime. They highlight Harry Lighton’s deft tonal control – blending comedy, melancholy, provocation and sweetness – resulting in a surprisingly uplifting and humane film that audiences didn’t know they needed until now. Pillion has undoubtedly earned its perfect Rotten Tomatoes score.
- Release Date
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February 6, 2026
- Runtime
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107 minutes
- Director
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Harry Lighton
- Writers
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Harry Lighton, Adam Mars-Jones
- Producers
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Andrew Lowe, Ed Guiney, Emma Norton, Lee Groombridge
