How to watch The Sympathizer online or on TV: stream the Robert Downey Jr. thriller

Robert Downey Jr. in a cream suit in The Sympathizer
(Image credit: Beth Dubber/HBO)

Fans of thriller TV shows have another anticipated series to watch when The Sympathizer debuts on Sunday, April 14. 

Quick links

US: HBO (live TV streaming) | Max
UK:
Sky TV  (streaming later)
AU:
Binge
Watch abroad with a VPN

Based on a novel by Viet Thanh Nguyen, The Sympathizer is set during the tail end of the Vietnam war. It follows The Captain, a North Vietnam spy, who's spying on the South Vietnamese army but has to run away to the US. There, he lives with refugees from his country and continues to spy on them, while living a new life.

Hoa Xuande stars in the lead role in a show which also stars Robert Downey Jr. and Sandra Oh. It was produced by South Korean movie legend Park Chan-wood, known for Oldboy, Decision to Leave and many more thrillers.

So The Sympathizer could be your next thrilling watch, and here's how to catch the new show.

How to watch The Sympathizer in the US

You can watch The Sympathizer in the US in one of two ways.

Firstly, each episode will be released on HBO's streaming service Max weekly starting from Sunday, April 14, to watch online.

Max costs $9.99 per month for its ad-enabled tier or $15.99 for its ad-free one. There's also a $19.99-per-month tier which has no ads and also increased visual resolution and audio fidelity, but this is mainly for movies rather than TV shows.

Alternatively, you can watch The Sympathizer on TV as each episode will air on HBO from Sunday, April 14 at 9 pm ET/PT.

You can watch HBO as part of a cable subscription or as an add-on package to various live TV streaming services like Sling TV, DirecTV or YouTube TV.

Can you watch The Sympathizer in the UK?

You will be able to watch The Sympathizer in the UK, but not straight away. The show will arrive at some point in May, with an exact release date yet to be confirmed. All episodes will arrive at once, so it's likely that the UK release will be in the days following the Sunday, May 26 release of the show's final episode in the US.

To watch The Sympathizer, you'll need to sign up to either Sky TV or Now TV. On Sky, you'll only need the basic plan as the show will be coming to Sky Atlantic, which will make binging it via the video-on-demand library very easy.

This standard plan costs £29 per month, or £26 if you sign up for an 18-month contract, and sometimes you can find Sky TV deals to save you money in other ways too.

How to watch The Sympathizer in Australia

As with most other HBO-made TV shows, The Sympathizer will release in Australia on the streaming service Binge. It'll debut on Monday, 15 April, and new episodes will arrive each Monday from then.

Binge starts at just $10 per month for its basic plan, though for more simultaneous streams and higher-res watching you can opt for the $18 Standard or $22 Premium tiers instead.

How to watch The Sympathizer everywhere else

If you're going to be away from your normal TV setup but still want to watch The Sympathizer, you might run into some problems. Thankfully, you can solve this exact issue with a Virtual Private Network (VPN). 

A VPN lets you change your IP address to that of the area of what you want to watch, meaning you can tune in to your favorite shows, sports, movies or other content even if you're not there. Our favorite is NordVPN, which is the No. 1-rated VPN in the world right now according to our sister site, TechRadar.

How to use a VPN to watch any stream

  • Download the app at NordVPN
  • Choose the location of the streaming service you want to watch (UK, US, etc)
  • Navigate to the streaming service and start watching!
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NordVPN is one of the simplest and most affordable ways to watch what you want, from wherever you want to watch it.

It's straightforward and easy to use, has great security, is available on loads of streaming devices and, best of all, it comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can try it out 100% risk-free. Give it a go.

Tom Bedford
Streaming and Ecommerce Writer

Tom is the streaming and ecommerce writer at What to Watch, covering streaming services in the US and UK. His goal is to help you navigate the busy and confusing online video market, to help you find the TV, movies and sports that you're looking for without having to spend too much money.