Reports Claim That The Pentagon Is Furious With War Movie On Netflix

The Pentagon wants everyone—especially service members—to know something right off the bat: the new Netflix thriller A House of Dynamite is not real. But the timing of the warning, and the energy behind it, is raising eyebrows.

The Missile Defense Agency sent out an internal memo to staff earlier this month, flagging the film as potentially misleading. The memo, first reported by Bloomberg News, doesn’t just clarify that the movie is fiction—it urges personnel to actively correct what it calls “false assumptions” about the U.S. missile defense system.

That might seem like an unusual move for a Hollywood drama. But then again, this isn’t your average popcorn flick.

Directed by Kathryn Bigelow—the same filmmaker behind Zero Dark Thirty—the movie plays out in a high-stakes, nail-biting scenario. A single intercontinental ballistic missile is detected flying over the Pacific. No one knows who fired it or why. American defense officials scramble to respond.

Within minutes, two U.S. interceptors are launched from Fort Greely, Alaska. One fails. The other misses. The missile keeps coming.

According to the movie, America is now out of options.

And that’s the problem.

The Department of Defense has taken issue with this central moment in the story. In the memo, officials point out that real-world interceptor systems have posted near-perfect accuracy in tests for several years. The movie, however, portrays them as unreliable and unstable. That, according to the Pentagon, could erode public trust in a system designed to keep the nation safe.

It also doesn’t help that the film claims those interceptors cost the U.S. $50 billion—a figure the Department disputes.

Throughout the movie, tension builds as military leaders debate the next steps. The fictional defense secretary (played by Jared Harris) says the odds of a successful intercept are basically a coin flip. His deputy compares it to “hitting a bullet with another bullet.” And with every second ticking down, the pressure mounts on everyone from field agents to the fictional President—portrayed by Idris Elba.