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What Do I Do If the Movie I Rented on Apple Won't Play?

Dec 9, 2022

Apple TV has opened up streaming for thousands of users, but what happens when the movie or show you want to watch doesn't work properly? What can you do if the movie you rented doesn't play? You can learn more about Apple TV by contacting customer support here, and below are steps you can take to resolve a movie that won't stream.

What To Do When Apple TV Movie Won't Play

There are several steps you can take to get your Apple TV movie to play. After each step, you can try to download or stream the movie again before moving on to the next steps.

  1. Visit the system status page or third-party provider page to see if any system interruptions may be blocking the movie from playing. If there are, you may need to wait until later to watch the video. Service interruptions include low data speeds or spotty Wi-Fi.
  2. Make sure your login credentials are working properly. You can try resetting your password or getting a new verification code to sign in.
  3. Make sure you are streaming over Wi-Fi instead of data. Data streaming is not as efficient as using a wireless Internet connection.
  4. Try to watch the movie on a different phone, table, television or computer.
  5. Make sure you haven't reached the viewer limit. If the maximum number of people are using the account, you will need to get someone to log out or wait until a spot opens.

What About Poor Video Quality?

Sometimes the video will stop playing or the quality is not as good as it should be. When this happens, do the following:

  1. Make sure your Internet connection isn't overloaded with too many users and devices. You can turn off things you aren't using or ask others to log out of the network.
  2. Restart your device to see if that clears up the quality or stops the video from pausing.
  3. Try downloading the movie to watch offline if possible.

When you rent a movie from Apple TV, you have up to 30 days to watch it, so if you cannot watch it on the first day of the rental, you still have time to resolve the issue. If you still cannot get the title to stream, you can contact Apple TV here for more information and troubleshooting.

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