The Untouchables Just Dropped on a New Free Streaming Service

If you love tense gangster shootouts, sharp suits, and some seriously over-the-top Chicago accents, here’s something to put on your calendar: 'The Untouchables' – yeah, that 80s Prohibition epic with more A-list talent than most Oscar nights – is finally coming back to streaming, and you won’t even have to pay a dime.

'The Untouchables' Lands (For Free!) on Tubi

After being frustratingly MIA from streaming (seriously, it’s been nowhere for a while), 'The Untouchables' will be free to watch on Tubi starting May 1. If you’ve never seen it – maybe you were waiting for the gods of free streaming to smile down, or maybe you’re just overdue for some cinematic gunfights – this is your moment.

The Movie: Not Exactly a History Lesson (But Still a Classic)

So, here’s the setup: released back in June 1987, 'The Untouchables' was a huge hit. Brian De Palma directs, Kevin Costner broods as Eliot Ness, and you get dropped into a stylized version of 1930s Chicago where good guys and bad guys have a lot more gunfights than in the real world. The story follows Ness, a federal agent who recruits a small gang of honest cops to take down Al Capone, played with wild-eyed menace by Robert De Niro. Let’s be honest, most history teachers would have a heart attack if you tried to pass this movie off as a report – it’s 'inspired by actual events' in the way that pizza rolls are inspired by Italian cuisine. But it’s wildly entertaining, and that’s the whole point.

The film had a budget of $25 million, then turned around and made a jaw-dropping $187 million worldwide. Not too shabby for a movie where the solution to every problem basically boils down to ‘assemble the squad and shoot it out'.

The Cast: Heavyweights Only

Let’s talk about this lineup. 'The Untouchables' easily belongs in the conversation about all-time great ensemble casts. Here’s who’s who for your next round of movie trivia:

• Kevin Costner as Eliot Ness: clean-cut, determined, and maybe the only man in Chicago who doesn’t want a bribe.
• Sean Connery as Jimmy Malone: the tough old Irish cop (with Connery’s accent wandering somewhere between Glasgow and Lake Michigan), and arguably the heart of the whole movie.
• Robert De Niro as Al Capone: all swagger, rage, and baseball bats.
• Charles Martin Smith as Oscar Wallace: the nerdy Treasury agent who comes up with the 'get Capone on his taxes' idea. Spoiler: things get rough for him, and it just makes Ness that much more fired up.
• Andy Garcia as George Stone: the sharpshooter rookie who’s always first into the action, and who steals one of the film’s best (and craziest) shootout scenes at the train station.
• Billy Drago as Frank Nitti: Capone’s terrifying, barely-speaking hitman. Just his stare does half the violence.

That’s a murderers’ row of acting talent, no pun intended. Plenty of movies have big casts, but these guys all show up and deliver.

Sean Connery: The Unexpected Oscar Winner

Here’s a bit of trivia for you: Connery’s turn as Malone not only stole scenes, it nabbed him his only Oscar win ever. That’s right — despite decades as James Bond and all sorts of legendary roles, this was the one that got him the gold. He’d been acting in movies since the mid-1950s, so it's kind of shocking the Academy finally woke up for this one, but hey, better late than never. Connery passed away in 2020, but his performance here still jumps off the screen.

'He brings real grit and heart, and gets some of the movie’s best lines. If you only know Connery from the Bond movies, he’s got a whole different edge here.'

Verdict: Not Historically Accurate, But Absolutely Entertaining

If you’re looking for a documentary, move along. But if you want big drama, memorable characters, set pieces that only De Palma could direct, and wall-to-wall entertainment, 'The Untouchables' still delivers. Thanks to Tubi, you can check it out without laying down your hard-earned cash. Mark May 1 on your calendar – it’s a classic worth revisiting, or finally catching up with for the first time.