Netflix has dropped another one of those clean, high-concept thrillers that feels built to catch people the second they open the app. Apex has a starry cast, a stripped-down survival hook, and the kind of “just one more scene” momentum that tends to travel well on streaming. That formula is already paying off. While the film only just debuted on April 24, it is already charting across multiple Netflix territories, which has given the streamer its newest chart-topping action blockbuster.
The movie is a stunningly shot action throwback, which makes great use of the rugged landscapes of New South Wales, Australia. Directed by Baltasar Kormákur, Apex stars Charlize Theron (The Old Guard, Mad Max: Fury Road) as Sasha, a grieving woman who heads into the Australian wilderness and finds herself hunted by a ruthless killer, played by Taron Egerton (Kingsman: The Secret Service, Carry-On) as Ben. The film also stars Eric Bana (Munich, Troy) as Tommy. The official, brief synopsis notes:
A grieving woman seeks solace in the wilderness only to become ensnared in a deadly game of cat and mouse with a serial killer.
Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Survival Quiz Which Sci-Fi World Would You Survive? The Matrix · Mad Max · Blade Runner · Dune · Star Wars
Five universes. Five completely different ways the future went wrong — or sideways, or up in flames. Only one of them is the world your instincts were built for. Eight questions will figure out which dystopia, galaxy, or desert wasteland you’d actually make it out of alive.
💊The Matrix
🔥Mad Max
🌧️Blade Runner
🏜️Dune
🚀Star Wars
01
You sense something is deeply wrong with the world around you. What do you do? The first instinct is often the truest one.
02
In a world of scarcity, what resource do you guard most fiercely? What we protect reveals what we believe survival actually requires.
03
What kind of threat keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you’re honest about what you’re actually afraid of.
04
How do you deal with authority you don’t trust? Every dystopia has a power structure. Your approach to it determines everything.
05
Which environment could you actually endure long-term? Survival isn’t just tactical — it’s physical, psychological, and very much about where you are.
06
Who do you want in your corner when things fall apart? The company you keep is the clearest signal of who you actually are.
07
Where do you draw the line — if you draw one at all? Every survivor eventually faces a moment that tests what they’re actually made of.
08
What would actually make survival worth it? Staying alive is one thing. Having a reason to is another.
Your Fate Has Been Calculated You’d Survive In…
Your answers point to the world your instincts were built for. This is the universe your temperament, your survival instincts, and your particular brand of stubbornness were made for.
The Resistance, Zion
The Matrix
You took the red pill a long time ago — probably before anyone offered it to you. You’re a systems thinker who can’t help but notice the seams in things.
You’re drawn to understanding how the system works before figuring out how to break it.
You’d find the Resistance, or it would find you — your instinct for spotting constructed realities is the machines’ worst nightmare.
You function best when you have access to information and the freedom to act on it.
The Matrix built an airtight prison. You’d be the one probing the walls for the door.
The Wasteland
Mad Max
The wasteland doesn’t reward the clever or the well-connected — it rewards those who are hard to kill and harder to break. That’s you.
You don’t need comfort, community, or a cause larger than the next horizon.
You need a vehicle, a clear threat, and enough fuel to outrun it — and you’re good at all three.
You are unsentimental enough to survive that world, and decent enough — just barely — to be something more than another raider.
In the wasteland, that distinction is everything.
Los Angeles, 2049
Blade Runner
You’d survive here because you know how to exist in moral grey areas without losing yourself completely.
You read people accurately, keep your circle small, and ask the questions others prefer not to answer.
In a city where humanity is a legal designation rather than a feeling, you hold onto something that keeps you functional.
You’re not a hero. But you’re not lost, either.
In Blade Runner’s world, that distinction is everything.
Arrakis
Dune
Arrakis is the most hostile environment in the known universe — and you are precisely the kind of person it rewards.
Patience, discipline, and political awareness are your core strengths — and on Arrakis, they’re survival tools.
You understand that the long game matters more than any single victory.
Others come to Dune and are consumed by it. You’d learn its logic and earn its respect.
In time, you wouldn’t just survive Arrakis — you’d begin to reshape it.
A Galaxy Far, Far Away
Star Wars
The galaxy far, far away is vast, loud, and in a constant state of violent political upheaval — and you wouldn’t have it any other way.
You find meaning in being part of something larger than yourself — a cause, a crew, a rebellion.
You’d gravitate toward the Rebellion, or the fringes, or whatever pocket of the galaxy still believes the Empire’s grip can be broken.
You fight — not because you have to, but because standing aside isn’t something you’re capable of.
In Star Wars, that willingness is what makes all the difference.
Why Did Charlize Theron Star in ‘Apex’?
“This movie really fired up my brain,” Theron told Netflix. “When I read the script, I couldn’t put it down and it stayed with me. It felt very pure but with great impact. The bite and the kick were so strong in what it was trying to accomplish without bells and whistles, and I loved that.”
Meanwhile, Egerton couldn’t hide his excitement about being in the film, and took great delight in seeing how demented his character was:
“The extremity of the role really appealed to me. When I was offered the chance to play Ben, who is just about the most fucked‑up character I’ve ever played, there was something delicious and irresistible about it.”
Even Egerton’s director was surprised by his performance. “I’d been following his career and knew he was an incredibly talented young man,” Kormákur said. “Even so, he managed to surprise me with how unexpected his choices were, how he gave his character, Ben, a whole new life.”
Apex is streaming now on Netflix. Stay tuned to Collider for all the latest updates on Netflix and streaming.
