Key poster art for Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery.”
Netflix
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, starring Daniel Craig, is opening in theaters before it streams on Netflix in December — and a new website can tell you where you can see the film on the big screen beginning this week.
The official summary for Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery reads, “Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) returns for his most dangerous case yet in the third and darkest chapter of Rian Johnson’s murder mystery opus. When young priest Jud Duplenticy (Josh O’Connor) is sent to assist charismatic firebrand Monsignor Jefferson Wicks (Josh Brolin), it’s clear that all is not well in the pews.
“Wicks’ modest but devoted flock includes devout church lady Martha Delacroix (Glenn Close), circumspect groundskeeper Samson Holt (Thomas Haden Church), tightly wound lawyer Vera Draven (Kerry Washington), aspiring politician Cy Draven (Daryl McCormack), town doctor Nat Sharp (Jeremy Renner), bestselling author Lee Ross (Andrew Scott), and concert cellist Simone Vivane (Cailee Spaeny).
“After a sudden and seemingly impossible murder rocks the town, the lack of an obvious suspect prompts local police chief Geraldine Scott (Mila Kunis) to join forces with renowned detective Benoit Blanc to unravel a mystery that defies all logic.”
Written and directed by Johnson, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery opens in select theaters on Wednesday, Nov. 26. Like Netflix did with Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein, however, the platform is only giving Knives Out 3 a limited theatrical run before it begins streaming.
So, for viewers who want to see Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery before it arrives on Netflix on Dec. 12, a theater finder website has been created by the platform to help fans find out where the film is playing in their area, which you can access by clicking here.
The release of Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery serves a pair of different purposes — it gives a chance for Knives Out fans a chance to see the film on the big screen in the way Johnson intended, and it qualifies the film for awards season consideration, including the Oscars. Otherwise, most Netflix releases only debut on the platform.
Rian Johnson ‘Frustrated’ That ‘Wake Up, Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery’ Isn’t Playing Everywhere
While AMC Theatres broke tradition for a Halloween weekend engagement for the streaming platform’s hit KPop Demon Hunters, the world’s largest theater chain is reverting back to its policy of not showing Netflix films with Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery when it opens on Nov. 26.
Johnson broke the news to Knives Out fans in a Nov. 20 post on X, writing, “For those asking, sadly AMC would not play the movie, it’s going to be Landmark, Alamo, and other chains. And it can absolutely stay in theaters after the 12/12 Netflix drop if there’s demand – it’s up to the theaters to decide.”
The new Knives Out movie theatrical release seems to be following the same pattern as Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein, which wasn’t shown in AMC Theatres but had an open-ended theatrical run elsewhere.
In an effort to help fans locate a theater where Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is playing, Johnson posted the theater finder website link on X.
When a fan from Oklahoma responded that he couldn’t find a theater in his area that was playing the film, Johnson wrote on X, “I’m as frustrated as you that it’s not everywhere, but new theaters will be added so keep checking – and also if you’re inclined it wouldn’t hurt to contact the manager of your local theater and (politely!) ask them if it’s coming.”
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery — the third film in Johnson’s Knives Out series — opens in select theaters nationwide on Nov. 26 before its debut on streaming on Netflix on Dec. 12.