Disney Sci-Fi Film 'Bicentennial Man' Becomes a Streaming Hit

Twenty-seven years after its theatrical run, Disney's 1999 sci-fi film Bicentennial Man has reemerged as a streaming favorite, ranking among Tubi’s most popular films. The movie, which was an expensive box-office flop on release, is being rediscovered by modern audiences.

Inspired by Isaac Asimov and Robert Silverberg's 1992 novel The Positronic Man, the film stars Robin Williams as Andrew, an android designed for household chores who bonds with the Martin family’s youngest child, Little Miss. That relationship sparks sentience: Andrew explores emotion, seeks legal recognition as a person, works to appear fully human, falls in love and, over a 200-year evolution, experiences loss.

Production was troubled, with a budget nearing $100 million and waning studio confidence before Sony came aboard. Released in December 1999, it grossed a little over $87 million and plans for a franchise were dropped.

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