How to Watch The Substance Online in 2025
The Substance is a sensational, suspense-filled film from visionary director Coralie Fargeat. The movie took the Cannes Film Festival by storm and quickly became one of the most talked-about releases of 2024.
This body thriller shines a light on the toxic beauty culture that drives so many of us to try and look younger, thinner, and less like ourselves. Its thought-provoking social commentary has quickly made it a must-watch for audiences everywhere and it’s widely available to stream on Mubi.
Before you get your popcorn popping, be sure to connect to PIA VPN. Whether you want to watch The Substance when traveling abroad or during downtime in the office, PIA gives you reliable, secure access to your streaming accounts.
Table of Contents
How to Watch The Substance Movie OnlineHow a VPN Helps You Stream The Substance
Why PIA Is the Best VPN for Watching The Substance
What is The Substance About?
The Cast of The Substance
The Substance Movie Reviews
FAQ
How to Watch The Substance with PIA VPN
Experience the pulse-quickening suspense of The Substance on any network.
- Download PIA VPN on your favorite streaming device.
- Connect to a server in your home country.
- Stream The Substance without buffering or interruptions.
How to Watch The Substance Movie Online
The Substance is available to stream on select platforms worldwide. Here’s how to watch The Substance at home, wherever you are.
Watch The Substance on Mubi in the US, UK, and More
Mubi is a global platform dedicated to showcasing unique and critically acclaimed films. The platform is a cinephile’s dream, with more than 750 movies that range from must-see cult classics to groundbreaking, thought-provoking modern masterpieces.
Although Mubi is available in 190 countries around the world, you unfortunately can’t stream The Substance in all of them. The movie is only available to viewers in the US, the UK, Ireland, Canada, Austria, Germany, Turkey, India, and Latin America.
It’s free to create an account and browse all of the content that Mubi has to offer in your country – just provide a valid email address and password to get started. When you’re ready to watch The Substance, simply subscribe to the service for ad-free viewing.
When you’re traveling abroad but still want to stream The Substance on Mubi, connect to a PIA VPN server back home. PIA masks your IP address to make it look like you’re watching from your usual spot on the couch, so you can enjoy your favorite movies, wherever you go.
Watch The Substance on Stan in Australia
Viewers Down Under can stream The Substance via Stan. This Australia-only platform offers three subscription plans: Basic, Standard, and Premium.
All three packages offer unlimited access to ad-free shows and movies, but your video quality and the number of simultaneous streams you’re allowed will vary.
How a VPN Helps You Stream The Substance
A VPN encrypts your internet connection so you can access streaming platforms on restricted networks and enjoy seamless, secure streaming.
Using a VPN when you stream The Substance helps you get around network restrictions at work or school. VPN encryption hides your activity, enabling you to access services like Mubi, Stan, and Amazon Prime Video as normal.
This encryption can also help you maximize your internet speeds at home. It prevents your ISP from seeing what you’re doing online, meaning it can’t selectively slow your connection speeds when you access streaming sites or apps.
A VPN also comes in handy when you travel abroad. It masks your IP address with one from a location of your choice. This can make it appear as though you’re browsing from your home country, meaning you can access your favorite streaming platforms like you never left home.
Why PIA Is the Best VPN for Watching The Substance
PIA’s network of 10-Gbps servers in 91 countries means you can get a speedy VPN connection for top-quality streaming no matter where you are. Streaming-optimized servers in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, and other key locations give you reliable access to your streaming accounts, whether you need to bypass network restrictions to watch from work or you want to stream The Substance while on vacation abroad.
PIA’s fast VPN speeds ensure a great streaming experience, even when watching The Substance in UHD. You don’t have to worry about getting cut off from the drama, as with PIA VPN, there are no data caps or bandwidth restrictions.
PIA’s robust VPN encryption helps you avoid streaming slowdowns and interruptions caused by content-based ISP throttling. Our encryption also secures your connection so you can stream safely on any network, including public Wi-Fi.
To top it all off, the 30-day money-back guarantee gives you the opportunity to try PIA VPN risk-free.
What is The Substance About?
The Substance is a body horror film directed by Coralie Fargeat. It follows Elisabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore), an aging actress who’s dismissed from her long-running aerobics TV show because of her age. Desperate to regain her youth, she starts using a black-market serum known only as “The Substance.”
After injecting the serum, Elisabeth spawns Sue (Margaret Qualley), a younger version of herself. The two bodies share one mind and, according to the rules that accompany The Substance, must alternate consciousness between them every seven days. As Sue’s popularity soars, tensions rise, leading to a misuse of the medication and dramatic, unforeseen consequences.
The film confronts societal beauty standards, forcing viewers to think about our fear of aging and obsession with youth. It combines satirical elements with grotesque special effects to critique the entertainment industry’s fixation on appearance.
The Cast of The Substance
A cast of familiar and lesser-known faces bring the unsettling narrative of The Substance to life:
- Demi Moore as Elisabeth Sparkle: An aging actress who resorts to a black-market drug in a desperate bid to reclaim her youth and save her career.
- Margaret Qualley as Sue: The younger, more vibrant version of Elisabeth, brought into existence through the mysterious substance.
- Dennis Quaid as Harvey: Elisabeth’s producer, whose decision to fire her due to her age sets the story in motion.
- Edward Hamilton-Clark as Fred: A significant figure in Elisabeth’s life, whose role becomes more complex as the plot unfolds.
The Substance Movie Reviews
The Substance has been lauded for its bold narrative and compelling performances, garnering critical acclaim and getting chins wagging about potential awards since its release.
Critics have praised the film’s bold narrative and visual storytelling, with David Ehrlich of IndieWire describing it as “an epic, audacious body horror masterpiece.” This was echoed by Variety critic Owen Gleiberman who noted that Fargeat “works with the flair of a grindhouse Kubrick in a weirdly fun, cathartically grotesque fusion of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Showgirls.”
Coralie Fargeat’s innovative approach has sparked discussions about The Substance’s potential impact on the body thriller genre. It’s also seen the film be put up for multiple awards, including the Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director (Coralie Fargeat), Best Actress (Demi Moore), Best Original Screenplay, and Best Makeup and Hairstyling.
FAQ
You can watch The Substance on Mubi in the US, the UK, Ireland, Canada, Austria, Germany, Turkey, India, and Latin America. New subscribers get a 7-day free trial, but you need to enter your payment details when creating an account. The Substance is also available to rent or buy via Amazon Prime Video, Rakuten TV, or the Apple TV app in select countries.
The Substance is available to rent or buy on Apple TV in the US, the UK, and Canada, as well as select countries in Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East.
You can rent or purchase The Substance via Amazon Prime Video in select countries. You also have the option to sign up for a Mubi subscription through your Amazon account to stream it that way.
The Substance explores societal expectations around beauty and aging, particularly in regard to female celebrities. It incorporates themes of vanity, identity, and the dark consequences of altering your natural self in pursuit of beauty through the story of Elisabeth Sparkle, an aging actress who uses an unknown serum in an attempt to hang onto her youth.
You can rent The Substance on Apple TV, Amazon Prime Video, and Rakuten TV, however, it’s only available in certain countries. Whichever platform you use, you’ll have access to the movie for 30 days from the rental date.
The Substance isn’t currently streaming on Netflix. If you’re looking to watch this “epic, audacious body horror masterpiece” (in film critic David Ehrlich’s words) you can stream it on Mubi. Alternatively, you can rent it through Apple TV or Amazon Prime Video.
You can stream The Substance online for free via Mubi when you take advantage of the platform’s 7-day free trial. Simply sign up for Mubi by providing a valid email address and payment method to unlock Mubi’s entire library of cinematic gems, including The Substance. Just be sure to cancel before the trial ends if you don’t want to continue with your subscription.
The Substance isn’t currently available to stream in South Africa. If you’re traveling to South Africa and want to watch the movie on Mubi, get PIA VPN. Connect to a streaming-optimized server in the country where your Mubi account is registered to get an IP address that works with the platform, so you can watch movies like The Substance as usual.
You can’t currently watch The Substance online in the Philippines. The movie is available to stream on Mubi, but only in certain countries. If you’re traveling to the Philippines, you can use PIA VPN to maintain access to your usual selection of films on Mubi. Just download PIA VPN on your device and connect to a server in your home country to get a working IP address.
Can I use a VPN to watch streaming content from a different country?
Some streaming fans may connect to a VPN server in a country where certain content is available in order to watch from a different country. While we don’t snoop on our users’ online activity, this is against our terms of service and is not acceptable.
Rest assured that CyberGhost VPN never logs your browsing data and your activity is always private, but you should always comply with all relevant terms and applicable law, including copyright.