diff --git a/Jellyfin.Api/Controllers/SubtitleController.cs b/Jellyfin.Api/Controllers/SubtitleController.cs
index c4851091c1..6721cd6c7e 100644
--- a/Jellyfin.Api/Controllers/SubtitleController.cs
+++ b/Jellyfin.Api/Controllers/SubtitleController.cs
@@ -233,18 +233,17 @@ public class SubtitleController : BaseJellyfinApiController
             format = "json";
         }
 
-        if (string.IsNullOrEmpty(format))
+        // Graphical subtitles cannot be parsed or rewritten, so they are always delivered as the raw
+        // stream for the client to render. Serve them straight from disk instead of piping them
+        // through the encoder, so that range requests keep working: clients fetch these tracks
+        // incrementally while rendering them, and they are far too large to hand over in one piece.
+        if (MediaStream.IsPgsFormat(format) || MediaStream.IsVobSubFormat(format))
         {
-            var item = _libraryManager.GetItemById<Video>(itemId.Value);
-
-            var idString = itemId.Value.ToString("N", CultureInfo.InvariantCulture);
-            var mediaSource = _mediaSourceManager.GetStaticMediaSources(item, false)
-                .First(i => string.Equals(i.Id, mediaSourceId ?? idString, StringComparison.Ordinal));
-
-            var subtitleStream = mediaSource.MediaStreams
-                .First(i => i.Type == MediaStreamType.Subtitle && i.Index == index);
-
-            return PhysicalFile(subtitleStream.Path, MimeTypes.GetMimeType(subtitleStream.Path));
+            var subtitlePath = await GetGraphicalSubtitlePath(itemId.Value, mediaSourceId, index.Value).ConfigureAwait(false);
+            if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(subtitlePath))
+            {
+                return PhysicalFile(subtitlePath, MimeTypes.GetMimeType(subtitlePath), true);
+            }
         }
 
         if (string.Equals(format, "vtt", StringComparison.OrdinalIgnoreCase) && addVttTimeMap)
@@ -456,6 +455,46 @@ public class SubtitleController : BaseJellyfinApiController
         }
     }
 
+    private async Task<string?> GetGraphicalSubtitlePath(Guid id, string? mediaSourceId, int index)
+    {
+        var item = _libraryManager.GetItemById<BaseItem>(id);
+        if (item is null)
+        {
+            return null;
+        }
+
+        var idString = id.ToString("N", CultureInfo.InvariantCulture);
+        var mediaSource = _mediaSourceManager.GetStaticMediaSources(item, false)
+            .FirstOrDefault(i => string.Equals(i.Id, mediaSourceId ?? idString, StringComparison.OrdinalIgnoreCase));
+
+        var subtitleStream = mediaSource?.MediaStreams
+            .FirstOrDefault(i => i.Type == MediaStreamType.Subtitle && i.Index == index);
+
+        if (mediaSource is null || subtitleStream is null
+            || !(subtitleStream.IsPgsSubtitleStream || subtitleStream.IsVobSubSubtitleStream))
+        {
+            return null;
+        }
+
+        var path = await _subtitleEncoder.GetSubtitleFilePath(subtitleStream, mediaSource, CancellationToken.None).ConfigureAwait(false);
+        if (string.IsNullOrEmpty(path))
+        {
+            return null;
+        }
+
+        // Only a raw PGS payload or an extracted .mks can be handed over untouched. Anything else the
+        // encoder resolved to (e.g. a VobSub .idx/.sub pair, which it converts) is not a passthrough.
+        var extension = Path.GetExtension(path.AsSpan()).TrimStart('.').ToString();
+        if (!MediaStream.IsPgsFormat(extension)
+            && !string.Equals(extension, "mks", StringComparison.OrdinalIgnoreCase))
+        {
+            return null;
+        }
+
+        // Remotely hosted external subtitles have no local file to serve; those fall back to the encoder.
+        return _fileSystem.FileExists(path) ? path : null;
+    }
+
     /// <summary>
     /// Encodes a subtitle in the specified format.
     /// </summary>
diff --git a/tests/Jellyfin.Api.Tests/Controllers/SubtitleControllerTests.cs b/tests/Jellyfin.Api.Tests/Controllers/SubtitleControllerTests.cs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..77321f0b05
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/Jellyfin.Api.Tests/Controllers/SubtitleControllerTests.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,137 @@
+using System;
+using System.Collections.Generic;
+using System.IO;
+using System.Threading;
+using System.Threading.Tasks;
+using Jellyfin.Api.Controllers;
+using MediaBrowser.Controller.Configuration;
+using MediaBrowser.Controller.Entities;
+using MediaBrowser.Controller.Entities.Movies;
+using MediaBrowser.Controller.Library;
+using MediaBrowser.Controller.MediaEncoding;
+using MediaBrowser.Controller.Providers;
+using MediaBrowser.Controller.Subtitles;
+using MediaBrowser.Model.Dto;
+using MediaBrowser.Model.Entities;
+using MediaBrowser.Model.IO;
+using Microsoft.AspNetCore.Mvc;
+using Microsoft.Extensions.Logging.Abstractions;
+using Moq;
+using Xunit;
+
+namespace Jellyfin.Api.Tests.Controllers;
+
+public class SubtitleControllerTests
+{
+    private const int SubtitleIndex = 2;
+
+    private static readonly Guid _itemId = new("6e1f0a3b7c8d4e5f9a0b1c2d3e4f5a6b");
+
+    [Theory]
+    // Graphical subtitle tracks are negotiated as SubtitleDeliveryMethod.External and must be handed
+    // to the client untouched, because neither format can be parsed or rewritten.
+    [InlineData("pgssub", "pgssub", "/cache/subs/sub.sup")]
+    // FFmpeg cannot mux VobSub back into an .idx/.sub pair, so extracted VobSub is exposed as .mks
+    // while the negotiated profile format stays "vobsub".
+    [InlineData("vobsub", "dvdsub", "/cache/subs/sub.mks")]
+    public async Task GetSubtitle_GraphicalStream_ReturnsRawFileWithRangeProcessing(string format, string codec, string path)
+    {
+        var encoder = new Mock<ISubtitleEncoder>(MockBehavior.Strict);
+        var controller = CreateController(codec, path, encoder, out var fileSystem);
+        fileSystem.Setup(f => f.FileExists(path)).Returns(true);
+
+        var result = await controller.GetSubtitle(_itemId, _itemId.ToString("N"), SubtitleIndex, format, null, null, null, null, null);
+
+        var fileResult = Assert.IsType<PhysicalFileResult>(result);
+        Assert.Equal(path, fileResult.FileName);
+        Assert.True(fileResult.EnableRangeProcessing);
+        encoder.Verify(
+            e => e.GetSubtitles(It.IsAny<BaseItem>(), It.IsAny<string>(), It.IsAny<int>(), It.IsAny<string>(), It.IsAny<long>(), It.IsAny<long>(), It.IsAny<bool>(), It.IsAny<CancellationToken>()),
+            Times.Never);
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public async Task GetSubtitle_RemotelyHostedGraphicalStream_FallsBackToEncoder()
+    {
+        var encoder = new Mock<ISubtitleEncoder>(MockBehavior.Strict);
+        var controller = CreateController("pgssub", "https://example.com/sub.sup", encoder, out var fileSystem);
+        fileSystem.Setup(f => f.FileExists(It.IsAny<string>())).Returns(false);
+        encoder.Setup(e => e.GetSubtitles(It.IsAny<BaseItem>(), It.IsAny<string>(), SubtitleIndex, "pgssub", 0, 0, false, It.IsAny<CancellationToken>()))
+            .ReturnsAsync(new MemoryStream([1, 2, 3]));
+
+        var result = await controller.GetSubtitle(_itemId, _itemId.ToString("N"), SubtitleIndex, "pgssub", null, null, null, null, null);
+
+        Assert.IsType<FileStreamResult>(result);
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public async Task GetSubtitle_VobSubIdxPair_FallsBackToEncoder()
+    {
+        // A .idx/.sub pair has no raw payload the client could render: the encoder converts it.
+        var encoder = new Mock<ISubtitleEncoder>(MockBehavior.Strict);
+        var controller = CreateController("dvdsub", "/media/sub.idx", encoder, out _);
+        encoder.Setup(e => e.GetSubtitles(It.IsAny<BaseItem>(), It.IsAny<string>(), SubtitleIndex, "vobsub", 0, 0, false, It.IsAny<CancellationToken>()))
+            .ReturnsAsync(new MemoryStream([1, 2, 3]));
+
+        var result = await controller.GetSubtitle(_itemId, _itemId.ToString("N"), SubtitleIndex, "vobsub", null, null, null, null, null);
+
+        Assert.IsType<FileStreamResult>(result);
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public async Task GetSubtitle_TextStream_IsEncoded()
+    {
+        var encoder = new Mock<ISubtitleEncoder>(MockBehavior.Strict);
+        var controller = CreateController("subrip", "/media/sub.srt", encoder, out _);
+        encoder.Setup(e => e.GetSubtitles(It.IsAny<BaseItem>(), It.IsAny<string>(), SubtitleIndex, "vtt", 0, 0, false, It.IsAny<CancellationToken>()))
+            .ReturnsAsync(new MemoryStream([1, 2, 3]));
+
+        var result = await controller.GetSubtitle(_itemId, _itemId.ToString("N"), SubtitleIndex, "vtt", null, null, null, null, null);
+
+        Assert.IsType<FileStreamResult>(result);
+    }
+
+    private static SubtitleController CreateController(
+        string codec,
+        string subtitlePath,
+        Mock<ISubtitleEncoder> subtitleEncoder,
+        out Mock<IFileSystem> fileSystem)
+    {
+        var item = new Movie { Id = _itemId };
+        var subtitleStream = new MediaStream
+        {
+            Type = MediaStreamType.Subtitle,
+            Index = SubtitleIndex,
+            Codec = codec,
+            Path = subtitlePath,
+            IsExternal = true
+        };
+
+        var mediaSource = new MediaSourceInfo
+        {
+            Id = _itemId.ToString("N"),
+            MediaStreams = new List<MediaStream> { subtitleStream }
+        };
+
+        var libraryManager = new Mock<ILibraryManager>();
+        libraryManager.Setup(l => l.GetItemById<BaseItem>(_itemId)).Returns(item);
+
+        var mediaSourceManager = new Mock<IMediaSourceManager>();
+        mediaSourceManager.Setup(m => m.GetStaticMediaSources(item, false, null)).Returns([mediaSource]);
+
+        subtitleEncoder.Setup(e => e.GetSubtitleFilePath(subtitleStream, mediaSource, It.IsAny<CancellationToken>()))
+            .ReturnsAsync(subtitlePath);
+
+        fileSystem = new Mock<IFileSystem>();
+
+        return new SubtitleController(
+            Mock.Of<IServerConfigurationManager>(),
+            libraryManager.Object,
+            Mock.Of<ISubtitleManager>(),
+            subtitleEncoder.Object,
+            mediaSourceManager.Object,
+            Mock.Of<IProviderManager>(),
+            fileSystem.Object,
+            NullLogger<SubtitleController>.Instance);
+    }
+}