Saltburn climbs – Jacob Elordi’s era of dark, high-intensity roles may be ramping up for HBO Max, but it’s Barry Keoghan’s ‘Saltburn’ that’s doing the heavy lifting—already climbing the charts after premiering on November 17, 2023, with a 131-minute runtime and a fan-fueled rep
For anyone who remembers the “in-between time” when Jacob Elordi starred in a thriller that felt even more erotic than the Margot Robbie romance people wouldn’t stop talking about, HBO Max has brought them back to that mood. Only this time, the obsession belongs to someone else.
Saltburn—premiered in 2023 and now climbing the charts on HBO Max—is a darkly Gothic story set in the mid-aughts starring Barry Keoghan as Oliver. an intrusive student with bleach-damaged hair and eyebrow piercings. Keoghan’s Oliver is built for creeping into spaces he doesn’t belong in. and the film leans hard into the comparison audiences keep making: Saltburn is described as an even deadlier version of The Talented Mr. Ripley.
The plot traces a con that turns intimate fascination into something lethal. Co-starring with Barry Keoghan is Jacob Elordi as Felix, the object of Oliver’s fascination. Oliver and Felix meet at Oxford, and their relationship quickly becomes tense and filled with sexual frustration. Oliver, a scholarship student, wants to be accepted by any means. Felix is popular, rich, and lights up the room. Oliver ingratiates himself with Felix, especially after Felix tells the more affluent student about his father’s death.
Felix eventually invites Oliver to his homestead, the titular Saltburn, for the summer. The house itself becomes the film’s cruel mirror—pointing out the hypocrisy of the rich. Even with the ridiculous and casual cruelty on display, Oliver still wants in. But as obsession takes over, Felix resists his friendship harder. Oliver’s lies unravel, and it all culminates on the night of his birthday party.
Just like The Talented Mr. Ripley. the story makes clear that Oliver’s desire—to be like Felix and perhaps even be with him—turns into murder. Felix’s American cousin. Farleigh (played by Archie Madekwe). is the only one who sees Oliver for who he truly is. but Farleigh gets outplayed in the end. in a way that’s directly compared to how Ripley outplays Dickie Greenleaf’s girlfriend. Marge.
Emerald Fennell helms and co-writes Saltburn. The director has a track record for spinning familiar tropes into something sharper: her feature film debut Promising Young Woman was a story of revenge. and Wuthering Heights was an attempted adaptation of the beloved novel. In Saltburn. she builds a truly Gothic story about a young man who cons his way into the home of a rich family—and keeps tightening the noose as the summer turns into a countdown.
It’s the film’s tone, not just its plot, that’s fueling the conversation. The runtime is 131 minutes, and the drama doesn’t ease up—pushing the content to the brink. The homoeroticism isn’t presented as vague subtext. It’s described as very much textual. The infamous bath drain scene is singled out as one that likely won’t be forgotten anytime soon. The story climaxes in a long scene involving a gravesite.
There’s also the way Saltburn frames longing itself. It’s described as the embodiment of yearning. and it’s positioned against what Wuthering Heights could have had more of in the classic tale of Cathy and Heathcliff. For HBO Max viewers, that push—whether audiences love it or not—is part of what makes it prime programming.
Saltburn’s rise comes with hard details attached: it premiered on November 17. 2023; it’s directed and written by Emerald Fennell; and it stars Barry Keoghan as Oliver alongside Jacob Elordi as Felix. with Archie Madekwe appearing as Farleigh. Now. as it climbs the charts on HBO Max. the film’s obsession-driven story is pulling viewers in—and refusing to let them look away.
Saltburn HBO Max Barry Keoghan Jacob Elordi Emerald Fennell Archie Madekwe Felix Oliver The Talented Mr. Ripley 131 Minutes November 17 2023