Where to watch
Each link opens a search on that service. Checked 13 October 2026.
Streaming data from JustWatch
Free Willy
MEANRANK
65/100
Where it ranks
- Mean Score #3241
- IMDb #4380
- Google retired #514
- Rotten Tomatoes #3058
- Metacritic #1242
- Letterboxd #3744
+8 more
- Rotten Tomatoes Critics #2714
- Rotten Tomatoes Audience #4003
- Metacritic Critics #772
- Metacritic Audience #2548
- Criticker #3706
- Kinopoisk #920
- AlloCiné #3332
- Trakt #3759
Every rating
Split
Lowest is Criticker on 26, highest is Google on 94. Critics average 75, everyone else 63.
See the films the platforms disagree about most →A rebellious young boy, living in a foster home, forms an unexpected bond with a captive orca whale named Willy at a rundown marine park. He discovers the whale is depressed and refuses to perform. The boy commits to a secret plan to help his gigantic friend, aiming to teach Willy tricks that could prove he is capable of returning to the open ocean, all while evading the park's management who see the animal only as a valuable asset.
Details
- Director
- Simon Wincer
- Writers
- Corey Blechman, Keith Walker
- Released
- 16 July 1993
- Country
- United States, France
- Language
- English
- Runtime
- 112 min
- Rated
- PG
- Budget
- $20.0M
- Box office
- $153.7M
- Awards
- 7 wins, 4 nominations
This title elsewhere
Cast
Full cast (24) →
Awards & nominations
See all 11 →7 wins from 11 nominations across 7 ceremonies
| BMI Film & TV Awards 1994 | BMI Film Music | Basil Poledouris | Winner |
| Environmental Media Awards 1994 | Feature Film | Free Willy | Winner |
| Genesis Awards 1994 | Feature Film | Free Willy | Winner |
| Golden Screen Awards 1994 | Golden Screen | Free Willy | Winner |
| Kids' Choice Awards 1994 | Favorite Film | Free Willy | Nominee |
| Kids' Choice Awards 1994 | Favorite Movie Actress | Lori Petty | Nominee |
| MTV Movie Awards 1994 | Best Kiss | Jason James Richter and Keiko | Nominee |
| MTV Movie Awards 1994 | Breakthrough Performance | Jason James Richter | Nominee |
Awards from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA.
More like this
Beyond the numbers
All lists →
9 October 2026
Sitcoms rated highest by Google users: our preserved scores
Twenty-five historical five-star records, with ties and recorded counts retained. An archive of collected responses, not Google's final official chart.
9 October 2026
Highest-rated sitcoms by Metacritic users: scores with the samples attached
Twenty-five stored user scores. Small tallies stay visible, ties stay ties, and the recommendations concern the comedy rather than voter stereotypes.
9 October 2026
Highest-rated sitcoms on Metacritic: the stored critic scores
Twenty-five Metascores from the catalogue, with review counts and a clear distinction between a season, a whole series and an approval percentage.
9 October 2026
The highest-rated sitcoms on Rotten Tomatoes: twenty-five critic favourites
The saved Tomatometer scores, what their ties conceal, and the comedy each show actually offers.
9 October 2026
The highest-rated sitcoms on IMDb: twenty-five saved favourites
The ratings in their own units, the ties that matter, and a practical guide to choosing among very different comedies.
9 October 2026
Sitcoms with higher recorded critic scores than audience scores
Fifteen comedies whose stored measures lean towards the critic side, from The Larry Sanders Show to Detectorists. Lower does not mean disliked.
Just released
See all →
Coming soon
Trailer — Free Willy
×Full cast — Free Willy
×
11 awards — Free Willy
×| Best Youth Actor Leading Role in a Motion Picture: Drama | Jason James Richter | Winner |
| Outstanding Family Motion Picture: Drama | Free Willy | Winner |
| Best Song From a Movie | " Will You Be There " by Michael Jackson | Winner |
| Best Kiss | Jason James Richter and Keiko | Nominee |
| Breakthrough Performance | Jason James Richter | Nominee |
| BMI Film Music | Basil Poledouris | Winner |
| Feature Film | Free Willy | Winner |
| Feature Film | Free Willy | Winner |
| Golden Screen | Free Willy | Winner |
| Favorite Film | Free Willy | Nominee |
| Favorite Movie Actress | Lori Petty | Nominee |