Ambulance movie: release date, reviews, trailer and everything we know about the Jake Gyllenhaal action movie

Jake Gyllenhaal with a gun in Ambulance movie
Jake Gyllenhaal in Ambulance (Image credit: Universal Pictures)

Movie fans will get a summer blockbuster experience in early spring as Ambulance, directed by Michael Bay and starring Jake Gyllenhaal, is on its way to theaters.

This will actually be the first Michael Bay movie to come to movie theaters since 2017, making it a highly anticipated 2022 movie for action junkies.

Here is everything that you need to know about Ambulance.

When is the Ambulance release date?

Ambulance is out now in the UK and a number of other international markets. US audiences will be able to see Ambulance as soon as April 8 in theaters.

The original plan for Ambulance’s release was for it to debut in the US on February 18, but it shifted to April 8 US release following the Brad Pitt action movie Bullet Train vacating the date.

Ambulance will share the big screen with Sonic the Hedgehog 2, which also releases on April 8.

Ambulance reviews — what the critics are saying

What are the critics saying about Ambulance? What to Watch's review of the movie dubs it one of Michael Bay's best movies in his career and calls out some of its action scenes as the best since Mad Max: Fury Road.

The consensus for Ambulance (as of April 6) has the movie scoring a 70% "Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes and an even 50, which designates it as "mixed," on Metacritic.

What is the Ambulance plot?

Helicopters chasing an ambulance in LA river in Ambulance movie

A chase scene from Ambulance (Image credit: Universal Pictures)

Ambulance is a remake of the 2005 Danish movie Ambulancen. Here is the synopsis for the American version:

"Over one day across the streets of L.A., three lives will change forever. In this breakneck thriller from director-producer Michael Bay, decorated veteran Will Sharp, desperate for money to cover his wife’s medical bills, asks for help from the one person he knows he shouldn’t — his adoptive brother Danny. A charismatic career criminal, Danny instead offers him a score: the biggest bank heist in Los Angeles history: $32 million. With his wife’s survival on the line, Will can’t say no.

"But when their getaway goes spectacularly wrong, the desperate brothers hijack an ambulance with a wounded cop clinging to life and ace EMT Cam Thompson onboard. In a high-speed pursuit that never stops, Will and Danny must evade a massive, city-wide law enforcement response, keep their hostages alive, and somehow try not to kill each other, all while executing the most insane escape L.A. has ever seen."

Ambulance trailer

The Ambulance trailer has just but all you could want from a Michael Bay action movie, including the plenty of explosions and slick camera movement. Check it out for yourself directly below: 

Another Ambulance trailer, released on March 24, reveals how Jake Gyllenhaal's Danny and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II's Will attempt to stay calm amid all of the action —  belting out Christopher Cross' "Sailing."

Fans can also get a behind-the-scenes look at how Michael Bay and crew pulled off some of the impressive drone shots that you'll see in the movie:

Who is in the Ambulance cast?

Jakes Gyllenhaal grabs Yahya Abdul-Mateen II's arm in Ambulance movie

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Jake Gyllenhaal in Ambulance (Image credit: Universal Pictures)

Jake Gyllenhaal and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II are at the center of Ambulance as robbers and adoptive brothers Danny and Will Sharp, respectively.

Gyllenhaal is an Oscar-nominated actor (Brokeback Mountain) who is best known for his work in Donnie Darko, Nightcrawler, Prisoners and Spider-Man: Far From Home. He most recently was in the 2021 Netflix original movie The Guilty.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is also familiar with getting some awards recognition for his work, earning an Emmy win for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series for Watchmen. He’s also no stranger to big-budget action movies, having starred in The Matrix Resurrections, Aquaman and is returning for Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. Other credits include Candyman and The Trial of the Chicago 7.

Rounding out the main trio for Ambulance is Eiza González as the EMT they take hostage, Cam Thompson. González will be familiar to movie fans from her work in Godzilla vs Kong, Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw and Baby Driver, among others.

Eiza Gonzalez in a bloody T-shirt holding her arm in Ambulance movie

Eiza González in Ambulance (Image credit: Universal Pictures)

The rest of the Ambulance cast features Garret Dillahunt, Moses Ingram, Keir O’Donnell, Jackson White, Olivia Stambouliah and Wale. Full cast list is available via IMDb.

Ambulance director Michael Bay

Michael Bay directing Ambulance movie

Michael Bay behind the scenes of Ambulance (Image credit: Universal Pictures)

Michael Bay is one of the most prolific action movie directors working in Hollywood — the man loves to make things explode.

After getting his start in music videos, Bay broke out in the mid 90s with Bad Boys, The Rock and Armageddon. So far in the 2000s Bay has been best known for shepherding the Transformers movie franchise, directing five of them, though he will not be behind the camera for the next planned outing, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.

Bay’s last movie, 6 Underground, was a Netflix original that played exclusively on streaming, so Ambulance will mark Bay’s return to movie theaters for the first time since 2017.

Michael Balderston

Michael Balderston is a DC-based entertainment and assistant managing editor for What to Watch, who has previously written about the TV and movies with TV Technology, Awards Circuit and regional publications. Spending most of his time watching new movies at the theater or classics on TCM, some of Michael's favorite movies include Casablanca, Moulin Rouge!, Silence of the Lambs, Children of Men, One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest and Star Wars. On the TV side he enjoys Only Murders in the Building, Yellowstone, The Boys, Game of Thrones and is always up for a Seinfeld rerun. Follow on Letterboxd.