OSCAR winning director, Ron Howard, has clapped backed at critics of his latest work, Hillbilly Elegy.

The American drama film, which dropped last week on the popular streaming service, has already rubbed many people up the wrong way.

Hillbilly Elegy is is based on a memoir of the same name written by J. D. Vance which was published in 2016.

Many people were not happy with the film's depiction of the Appalachian family, branding it "poverty porn" and "tone deaf and offensive".

But now Howard has hit back at the critics saying the film is simply a 'relatable' family drama.

"I do feel like they're looking at political thematics that they may or may not disagree with that, honestly, are not really reflected or are not front and centre in this story," he said on CBS This Morning.

"What I saw was a family drama that could be very relatable. Yes, culturally specific, and if you're fascinated by that, I hope you find it interesting.

"If you're from the region, I hope you find it authentic because certainly that was our aim and that was our effort. But I felt that it was a bridge to understanding that we're more alike than we are different."

In the same interview, Vance also defended the film.

"I think a lot of people attach specific political significance, but these problems of family struggle, of addiction and resilience, I really do think are timeless because we still have an addiction problem in this country," he explained.

The film follows the story of a Yale law student called Vance (Gabriel Basso), whose career dreams are shattered when he has to return to his hometown of Ohio because of a family emergency.

To make things worse the film has received a measly 26% on review site Rotten Tomatoes.

There are a few familiar faces including the likes of Amy Adams who plays Bev Vance – Vance's mum, Jimmy's sister and Mamaw's daughter.

Glenn Close plays the role of Mamaw Vance – who is Vance's beloved grandmother and Bev's mum.

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