The film had its world premiere at the AFI Fest on November 12 , 2018 . However , due to the Woolsey Fire that hit California and out of respect for the victims of the Thousand Oaks shooting , Netflix cancelled AFI Fest ’s red carpet coverage scheduled for the premiere . The film began a limited theatrical run on December 14 , 2018 , before streaming on Netflix on December 21 , 2018 . On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes , the film holds an approval rating of 63 % based on 152 reviews , with an average rating of 5.73 / 10 . The website 's critical consensus reads , " '' Bird Box '' never quite reaches its intriguing potential , but strong acting and an effectively chilly mood offer intermittently creepy compensation . " On Metacritic , the film has a weighted average score of 51 out of 100 , based on 26 critics , indicating " mixed or average reviews "
Woolsey Fire
Woolsey Fire
Bird Box (film)