Where to watch The Sand Pebbles(1966)

Name: The Sand Pebbles
Genre: Drama, War
Released: 1966-12-20
Duration: 196 min
Cast: Steve McQueen, Richard Attenborough, Richard Crenna, Candice Bergen, Mako

Movie · 1966 · 3h 16m · Drama, War

In the United States, The Sand Pebbles isn't included with any subscription, but you can rent or buy it on Amazon Video, Apple TV, Google Play, and YouTube.

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Where to stream The Sand Pebbles

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Data updated on October 10, 2026. Availability data from JustWatch.

The Sand Pebbles plot summary

This is the heroic story of the men on the U.S.S. San Pablo who disturbed the sleeping dragon of savage China as the threatened world watched in breathless terror.

Engineer Jake Holman arrives aboard the gunboat USS San Pablo, assigned to patrol a tributary of the Yangtze in the middle of exploited and revolution-torn 1926 China. His iconoclasm and cynical nature soon clash with the 'rice-bowl' system which runs the ship and the uneasy symbiosis between Chinese and foreigner on the river. Hostility towards the gunboat's presence reaches a climax when the boat must crash through a river-boom and rescue missionaries upriver at China Light Mission.

Details

Release date: December 20, 1966
Runtime: 3h 16m
Genres: Drama, War
Directed by: Robert Wise
Country: United States, Taiwan, Hong Kong
TMDB rating: 7.2 / 10 · 296 votes

The Sand Pebbles trailer

Cast

Steve McQueenJake Holman
Richard AttenboroughFrenchy Burgoyne
Richard CrennaCaptain Collins
Candice BergenShirley Eckert
MakoPo-han
Larry GatesJameson
Charles RobinsonEnsign Bordelles
Simon OaklandStawski
Ford RaineyHarris
Joe TurkelBronson

FAQ

Where can I watch The Sand Pebbles?

In the United States, The Sand Pebbles isn't included with any subscription, but you can rent or buy it on Amazon Video, Apple TV, Google Play, and YouTube.