Remarkably Bright Creatures is a 2026 mystery drama film, adapted from the best-selling book by Shelby Van Pelt, directed by Olivia Newman, and released on 8 May 2026 by Netflix. It is a story about an odd friendship between a very old aquarium cleaner, who recently lost her husband and a gargantuan Pacific octopus.
In Remarkably Bright Creatures, Sally Field plays the character of Tova Sullivan, and Alfred Molina voices the octopus Marcellus, who lives his life observing the people who surround him and quietly goes about his business.
Lewis Pullman, Joan Chen, Kathy Baker and Sofia Black-D’Elia feature alongside her in the film. Despite its initial focus on loneliness and grief, the story develops as a heartfelt story about family, healing, and acceptance.
Note: Spoilers ahead for Remarkably Bright Creatures; viewer discretion advised.
At the end, Marcellus is released into the ocean by Tova near the end of the film, allowing the aging octopus to spend his final days freely in his natural habitat.
What happens in Remarkably Bright Creatures?
Remarkably Bright Creatures tells the story of Tova Sullivan, an aging woman working as a cleaner at an aquarium in the small town of Sowell Bay. Since the death of her son Erik several years previously, Tova has led a lonely, isolated life, despite having friends and an established routine.
The film demonstrates that despite this, she tends to conceal most of her emotions from others and finds it difficult to truly relate to those around her. At the aquarium, Tova creates a strange connection with one of the exhibits: a giant Pacific octopus named Marcellus, who languidly observes everyone around him from inside his tank.
Marcellus quietly emerges in connection with the emotional core of the tale. The story shifts gears when a young drifter named Cameron, played by Lewis Pullman, shows up in the town and starts working at the aquarium in the aftermath of Tova’s injury.
Cameron comes into Sowell Bay with questions to provide for his questions on who his father is. For most of the film, this takes the form of the owner of a developer, Simon Brinks.
In fact, as the story develops, it transpires that Simon was never really Cameron’s father. Simon had merely been passing himself off as dating Daphne, Cameron’s mother, as both families wished to keep his sexuality from the outside world. The real father was Erik Sullivan, Tova’s son.
A key piece of evidence comes from a ring Cameron has, which has the initials EELS. This later turns out to be a handy mnemonic to help remember the full name Erik Ernest Lindgren Sullivan.
Through this, Cameron is linked to Tova, learning he is her grandson. The disclosure dramatically alters Tova’s emotional journey. Tova, who up until then had experienced Erik’s death with a mixture of remorse and mystery, was led to believe her son was murdered.
Yet, through further knowledge of he and Daphne’s history and the personal possessions hidden beneath her floors, Tova realized that her son’s death was a tragic accident.
Tova and Cameron become closer, and her relationship with Cameron becomes more of a point of connection rather than the sole source of her interactions. Rather than packing up and leaving the town for the nursing home, she chooses to stay in Sowell Bay to be close to the life she has.
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What happens to Marcellus at the end of Remarkably Bright Creatures?
As the movie progresses, it seems more and more likely that the octopus’s life is coming to an end. Giant Pacific octopuses only live a few years, and Marcellus often thinks about how much time he has left.
The employees of the aquarium have started to make arrangements for after his death by introducing another octopus to replace him. Although Tova is confused by this, she realises that she may not be able to keep him shut up in the tank any longer.
Midway through Remarkably Bright Creatures, Marcellus collects the ring thrown into the wolf eel tank, leading to the revelation of Cameron’s true identity. Shortly afterward, Tova spots Marcellus waiting just outside of the aquarium door that leads to the ocean.
In one of the film’s most touching scenes, the decision is made to let him go back into the sea. He would have been confined within the aquarium for the rest of his life, rather than being released back to the open sea where he belongs.
While the film makes it clear that Marcellus is rapidly running out of time, his resolution is relatively peaceful rather than tragic. His release echoes many of the major themes of the film: grief, liberation and the acceptance of transition.
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Remarkably Bright Creatures is available to stream on Netflix.
Edited by Sakshi Singh
