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Merv: Release date & time, where to watch, and what to expect

The unique holiday romantic comedy Merv, starring Charlie Cox and Zooey Deschanel, releases this December on a streaming platform. Meet the stars and learn all about the release date, plot, and more.
posted by Anirban Sarkar
Monday 12/8/2025 at 9:45AM EST
  • CULVER CITY, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 04: (L-R) Roma Downey, Jessica Swale, Victoria Blade, Charlie Cox, Zooey Deschanel, Patricia Heaton, David Hunt and Matthew Baer attend the Los Angeles screening of Amazon Prime Video's "Merv" at The Culver Theater on December 04, 2025 in Culver City, California. (Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images)
    CULVER CITY, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 04: (L-R) Roma Downey, Jessica Swale, Victoria Blade, Charlie Cox, Zooey Deschanel, Patricia Heaton, David Hunt and Matthew Baer attend the Los Angeles screening of Amazon Prime Video's "Merv" at The Culver Theater on December 04, 2025 in Culver City, California. (Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images)

    Merv is set in a very unique yet soothing mood setting. The film is directed by Jessica Swale and written by Dane Clark and Linsey Stewart. The romantic drama stars Charlie Cox and Zooey Deschanel. The movie revolves around the story of an ex-couple who share a dog.

    The story gains more inertia when the couple unwillingly gets pulled back to share more time. The romantic comedy is only meant to be released on a streaming platform. The film's distributors are Amazon and MGM Studios/Prime Video.

    Release date for Merv

    Merv is scheduled to be released on Prime Video on December 10, 2025 (Wednesday).

    It is expected to be available for streaming at midnight for global time zones.

    Meet the cast of Merv

    Merv showcases a brief but powerful cast of actors. The lead characters include Charlie Cox as Russ Owens, who can be seen taking his depressed dog on a boys' trip to Florida. Zooey Deschanel as Anna Finch, who is the estranged partner of Russ. They are not living together but used to share a dog. The dog is actually named Gus, but in the film, he is called Merv, the same as the title.

    Chris Redd can be seen as the vice principal of Desmond. Patricia Heaton plays the character of MJ Owens, the mother of Russ (Charlie Cox). Reportedly, her real-life husband, David Hunt, would appear in the same film as Jack Owens, the father of Russ.

    Additionally, Ellyn Jameson as Jocelyn and Wynn Everett as Gaia. Jasmine Mathews as Rebekah, Joey Slotnick as Dr Zubrovsky, and Jessica Swale herself will appear as the ice-cream lady.

    What is Merv all about

    Merv is a distinctive romance comedy film. Charlie Cox and Zooey Deschanel can be seen exhibiting tremendous acting skills as usual. Charlie Cox is apparently displaying his acting skills in a rom-com movie. The movie's plot is simple yet elegant. Merv's storyline gets traction as a couple breaks up. Who (Russ and Anna) shared a dog earlier and now seem to be taking turns spending time with him. Russ Owens (Charlie Cox) is affected more by the looks of the trailer, and he is having a hard time processing the breakup.

    The only thing that keeps him going is the dog, Merv. The taking-turns thing works out fine for some time until one day the dog gets depressed. Russ and Anna take the dog to a vet. She immediately points out that breakups can be a hard thing for the shared pet. The idea makes them guilty. They have great affection for the dog and start scratching their heads to cheer him up.

    Finally, Russ decides to take Merv on a boys' trip to Florida. Anna feels reluctant but lets them go anyway. Russ does everything to cheer up the dog and tries more than ever to make him his old self again. The story gets a twist when Anna joins them, surprisingly. Russ can be seen upset by this gesture, but calls it a Hail Mary and still tries for the sake of Merv. They both try to bury their differences and start doing what's best for the dog.

    The emotional roller coaster tells you if they succeed in cheering the dog up in the end or not. For that, the audience has to watch Merv on Amazon Prime Video on December 10, 2025, at 12 am (midnight) globally.

    Stay tuned for more updates.

    TOPICS: Merv, Charlie Cox, Zooey Deschanel