The Mule poster

The Mule (2018)

Film · 1h 56m · Rated R

Crime, Drama

An octogenarian's earnest drive for money turns gritty and melancholy as he hauls drugs for a cartel.

Pulpy. A full-attention watch at a measured pace. Emotionally it is heavy. Based on true events.

Not on a US subscription service as of Oct 26, 2026.

The Mule parents guide

Nothing past what an R promises: some innuendo or implied sex and strong violence.

Scare
Not scary
Jump scares
None noted
Gore
Light gore
Some blood or injury, briefly.
Violence
Strong violence
Violence is frequent or intense.
Sex and nudity
Mild
Mild means innuendo, or sex implied off screen, with no nudity.
Language
Moderate
Some strong profanity, a few f-words.

How we rate: an AI reads what is known about each title and tags it 0 to 3; we check the tags against a hand-rated set and correct them by hand when readers tell us. Estimates, not a scene-by-scene review. Spot a mistake? Tell us.

Three questions

How gory is The Mule?
Light gore and strong violence.
What is The Mule rated, and is it OK for kids?
Strong violence and some strong language. The R is earned, so not for kids.

What is The Mule about?

Earl Stone, a man in his eighties, is broke, alone, and facing foreclosure of his business when he is offered a job that simply requires him to drive. Easy enough, but, unbeknownst to Earl, he's just signed on as a drug courier for a Mexican cartel. He does so well that his cargo increases exponentially, and Earl hit the radar of hard-charging DEA agent Colin Bates.

Does it have a happy ending? (spoiler-safe)

Bittersweet. It earns its ending, but not everyone gets what they want.

Cast and crew

Directed byClint Eastwood
StarringClint Eastwood, Bradley Cooper, Laurence Fishburne, Michael Peña, Dianne Wiest, Andy Garcia

More like The Mule

The Mule is on our Mob and gangsters and True crime lists.

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Lists with the same feel: Melancholy.

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Uses the TMDB API; not endorsed or certified by TMDB. Intensity, content, tone and pace tags are CouchRot's own.