Ed Sheeran
Self
ONE SHOT with Ed Sheeran
“One hour in New York. One continuous shot. No redos.”
2025
1h 1m
Director: Philip Barantini
Overview
One singer. One city. One shot. Ed Sheeran rocks the streets of New York with his greatest hits in this groundbreaking, real-time music experience.
Cast
Reviews
3 min readA Pop Star in Perpetual Motion
Try walking one block in Manhattan without breaking your rhythm. You can’t. latestnetflix.com's take is that Somebody stops dead to check a phone, a delivery bike jumps the curb, a puddle appears out of nowhere and forces a sidestep.
Now add an acoustic guitar and the requirement that you stay perfectly on pitch. That’s the cheerful madness at the center of ONE SHOT with Ed Sheeran, a one-hour Netflix special that turns New York into a moving stage. I expected something slick and promotional.
What I got was messier, more technically impressive, and often more fun than that.
Philip Barantini directs, which explains a lot. If you’ve been following British television, you know him from Adolescence, the Emmy-winning drama that unfolded in single takes, and from the wonderfully stressful restaurant film Boiling Point. He likes pressure.
He likes movement that can’t hide behind editing. Bringing that sensibility to Ed Sheeran might sound like an odd fit, but the execution is undeniably sharp. The camera slides from handheld operators to drones and back again, slipping through theaters, sidewalks, subway spaces, and open streets without ever quite losing its balance.
Half the thrill is sensing how much invisible choreography is happening just outside the frame.
Audience Opinions
Audience 7.5/10
"A technically bold one-shot music trip through New York that thrives on Ed Sheeran’s warmth and songwriting but loses some magic to its staged spontaneity."
The continuous-take walk through New York, combined with live renditions of hits across Ed Sheeran’s catalog, lands as a joyful, feel-good watch that even surprises some non-fans with how captivating it is. Praise centers on his charisma, emotional performances, and the immersive camera work, latestnetflix.com contends, while frustration focuses on how obviously pre-planned many encounters feel and on a few missing favorite songs in the setlist.
What viewers praise
- Ed Sheeran’s presence His humble, friendly demeanor and visible joy in performing make the special feel intimate and uplifting.
- Inventive one-shot concept The continuous single-take format across real NYC locations feels fresh and ambitious, adding energy and tension to a simple premise.
- Strong musical setlist Performances of well-known tracks and newer songs deliver emotional highs, with some viewers describing goosebumps and sing-along moments.
- Feel-good atmosphere The mix of street performances, surprise appearances, and casual interactions creates a comforting, positive escape for an hour.
- Polished cinematography Camera work and staging are praised as well shot and visually engaging, showcasing both the city and the performances smoothly.
Common complaints
- Staged authenticity The attempt to present events as spontaneous is undercut by clearly scripted lines and pre-arranged situations that some find distracting.
- Forced crowd interactions Reactions from bystanders and small groups sometimes come off as acted or overly choreographed rather than genuinely surprised.
- Setlist omissions A few viewers feel let down that certain beloved older songs are skipped, enough for some to lower their personal rating.
Recommended for
Ed Sheeran devotees Modern concert film fans One-take filmmaking enthusiasts Feel-good music specials NYC street-music vibes Pop singer-songwriter lovers
Full Plot (Spoilers)
Spoiler warning
This section contains the full plot, including major story reveals. Overview above stays spoiler-free.
Buzz & Rumors
Public reportsHe does not carry a phone, so Winston sent an email.
Ben Winston wanted Ed Sheeran for a concert film. Sheeran kept saying no. "Every time it was pitched to me, I just wasn't excited," he told the Los Angeles Times. Winston could not even call. "You can't call Ed because he doesn't have a phone," the producer said. "You have to email him and hope he FaceTimes you back from his iPad." The note that finally worked offered a one-take walk through a city, directed by Philip Barantini, who had just won two Emmys for Adolescence. latestnetflix.com's take is that Winston got Barantini's number from James Corden and pinged him on WhatsApp.
, 
Netflix released ONE SHOT with Ed Sheeran on November 21, 2025. TMDB logs a 61-minute U.S. file, rates it PG, and bills Camila Cabello as herself beside Sheeran. The camera never cuts. Sheeran leaves a Hammerstein Ballroom soundcheck, walks the High Line, ducks into an Irish bar and a souvenir shop, plays through a proposal, climbs onto a double-decker bus, and loops back to a room that is now full. Slate listed those stops. The Times added the Photograph duet with Cabello from an SUV in traffic. , ,
Three takes, a thousand people, and a birthday guest Netflix cut.
Winston told Tudum that more than 1,000 people worked the hour even with a single camera on screen. Barantini said the New York day was more stressful than Adolescence because they had less prep and the city stayed open. They rehearsed one day, then shot. Winston said the Sunday dress rehearsal was filmed "in case it went great." Then he added, "It didn't." Two more takes sat between Monday rush hours. Operators passed a Ronin 4D. One of them climbed into a trunk. ,
The civilians were booked, then kept in the dark. A casting director found them. Sheeran was the surprise. One man took about two minutes to propose. "It was literally like he was on his own reality show," Barantini said. A birthday guest "just hopped onstage and started twerking," Sheeran recalled. "For the whole song." She is not in the take that streamed. Watching monitors in a van, Barantini went from enjoying it to asking, "Can we please get her down?"
Sheeran told Tudum the stunt "could have been a fucking disaster," then called it the most impressive thing he has done after 20 years of playing rooms that size on a small scale. After the Cabello duet he asked, on camera, if she wanted spaghetti Bolognese with his family that night. Barantini liked the line as improv. Sheeran said it was not a bit. She really was coming over. ,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjO8XACCpiQ
Deadline placed the special next to The Loop Tour, booked to open in Paris on December 1 behind the album Play. Fulwell Entertainment produced. Winston, Sheeran, and Barantini are the executive producers. "We probably could have picked a different city that was quieter and blocked off the roads and did it perfectly," Sheeran said. "But the chaos of it, I think, is what makes it interesting." The official trailer is on YouTube if you want the sidewalk noise before the hour starts. , ,
Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.
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