PLOT: The origin story of the so-called Wicked Witch of the West. While the citizens of Oz are celebrating her death, Glinda the Good (Ariana Grande) remembers how the two started out as friends while they were roommates at Shiz University and learning their magical craft.

REVIEW: First – I must make a confession: I’ve never seen Wicked on stage. Heck, not being a particular enthusiast of Broadway musicals, I would be hard-pressed to name one song from the popular soundtrack, or even really explain anything beyond the fact that it’s supposed to be a deconstruction of The Wizard of Oz. Yet, the play is a full-on phenomenon, with the movie (the first of two) set to become a blockbuster when it comes out later this week.

While some may raise eyebrows at the fact and say that JoBlo should have had a fan watch the movie instead, I’d wager that a huge chunk of our readership hasn’t seen the play either and is more interested in whether Wicked stands on its own as a film. While I’ll admit that there were a handful of moments where I felt I was missing some kind of in-joke for fans of the play, overall, I had a pretty good time with Jon M. Chu’s Wicked – Part I.

Certainly, it’s one of the better modern versions of The Wizard of Oz, far more entertaining than Sam Raimi’s largely forgotten Oz: The Great and Powerful. Chu seems to have a knack for movie musicals, and with Universal clearly pumping a pretty penny into it, it feels like the kind of big, broad fantasy epic that should be able to crossover beyond its core audience of Broadway enthusiasts. 

Cynthia Erivo is terrific as Elphaba, our future Wicked Witch of the West, who’s an outcast in her family due to her green skin. She’s sent to Shiz to keep an eye on her paraplegic sister, Nessarose (Marissa Bode), the future Wicked Witch of the East, only for her superior magical skills to earn her a scholarship. She winds up as roommates with Ariana Grande’s Glinda, the school’s most popular student, and while they initially despise each other, their friendship blossoms over time. 

Both Erivo and Grande seem ideally cast, with the former expertly evoking both Elphaba’s anguish at constantly being judged and her deep sense of empathy. Grande, a pop superstar, is quite funny as the prissy Glinda, but she also imbues her with a surprising amount of depth, making the two of them a pretty potent pairing.

While some may raise their eyebrows at the fact that all of the students at Shiz University seem to be in their mid-to-late thirties, Chu’s done an excellent job making Wicked almost feel like Harry Potter for adults. The production design is superb, and the heightened fantasy vibe works.

Some may take issue with the fact that the Broadway show is being stretched out into two six-hour movies. While yes, the pace does occasionally drag, I appreciated the fact that some of the supporting characters get fleshed out more than they would have been otherwise. One of them is Jonathan Bailey’s Fiyero, a handsome prince who initially comes off as vacuous but turns out to have some depth as he starts to fall for Elphaba rather than his more obvious love interest, Glinda. Yet, there are long musical numbers which likely could have been axed in favour of making Wicked one truly great three-hour movie as opposed to two films that are merely “good.”

Given all the hype, viewers may be surprised to see how small of a role Jeff Goldblum has once he’s finally introduced as Oz. Still, if you read the play’s synopsis, all of the really crazy Wizard of Oz stuff, including the introduction of Dorothy, and the surprising identity of The Tin Man and The Scarecrow, all will happen in Part II. As such, Part I includes a lot of setup, but Chu’s sense of pace is spot on, and while it’s a little too long, it’s never dull.

Here’s the thing – Wicked is made with a specific audience in mind, and I wager many of us JoBlo folks aren’t among them. Even still, readers who find themselves watching the movie at behest of someone in their lives may find Wicked goes down a lot easier than they’re expecting. I had a surprisingly good time watching it, and I’m totally on-board to watch Part II when it hits theaters next year. 

Wicked

GOOD

7

The post Wicked Review: A Broadway adaptation that’s way better than you might be expecting appeared first on JoBlo.

PLOT: The origin story of the so-called Wicked Witch of the West. While the citizens of Oz are celebrating her death, Glinda the Good (Ariana Grande) remembers how the two started out as friends while they were roommates at Shiz University and learning their magical craft.

REVIEW: First – I must make a confession: I’ve never seen Wicked on stage. Heck, not being a particular enthusiast of Broadway musicals, I would be hard-pressed to name one song from the popular soundtrack, or even really explain anything beyond the fact that it’s supposed to be a deconstruction of The Wizard of Oz. Yet, the play is a full-on phenomenon, with the movie (the first of two) set to become a blockbuster when it comes out later this week. While some may raise eyebrows at the fact and say that JoBlo should have had a fan watch the movie instead, I’d wager that a huge chunk of our readership hasn’t seen the play either and is more interested in whether Wicked stands on its own as a film. While I’ll admit that there were a handful of moments where I felt I was missing some kind of in-joke for fans of the play, overall, I had a pretty good time with Jon M. Chu’s Wicked – Part I.

Certainly, it’s one of the better modern versions of The Wizard of Oz, far more entertaining than Sam Raimi’s largely forgotten Oz: The Great and Powerful. Chu seems to have a knack for movie musicals, and with Universal clearly pumping a pretty penny into it, it feels like the kind of big, broad fantasy epic that should be able to crossover beyond its core audience of Broadway enthusiasts. 

Cynthia Erivo is terrific as Elphaba, our future Wicked Witch of the West, who’s an outcast in her family due to her green skin. She’s sent to Shiz to keep an eye on her paraplegic sister, Nessarose (Marissa Bode), the future Wicked Witch of the East, only for her superior magical skills to earn her a scholarship. She winds up as roommates with Ariana Grande’s Glinda, the school’s most popular student, and while they initially despise each other, their friendship blossoms over time. 

Both Erivo and Grande seem ideally cast, with the former expertly evoking both Elphaba’s anguish at constantly being judged and her deep sense of empathy. Grande, a pop superstar, is quite funny as the prissy Glinda, but she also imbues her with a surprising amount of depth, making the two of them a pretty potent pairing.

While some may raise their eyebrows at the fact that all of the students at Shiz University seem to be in their mid-to-late thirties, Chu’s done an excellent job making Wicked almost feel like Harry Potter for adults. The production design is superb, and the heightened fantasy vibe works.

Some may take issue with the fact that the Broadway show is being stretched out into two three-hour movies. While yes, the pace does occasionally drag, I appreciated the fact that some of the supporting characters get fleshed out more than they would have been otherwise. One of them is Jonathan Bailey’s Fiyero, a handsome prince who initially comes off as vacuous but turns out to have some depth as he starts to fall for Elphaba rather than his more obvious love interest, Glinda. Yet, there are long musical numbers which likely could have been axed in favour of making Wicked one truly great three-hour movie as opposed to two films that are merely “good.”

Given all the hype, viewers may be surprised to see how small of a role Jeff Goldblum has once he’s finally introduced as Oz. Still, if you read the play’s synopsis, all of the really crazy Wizard of Oz stuff, including the introduction of Dorothy, and the surprising identity of The Tin Man and The Scarecrow, all will happen in Part II. As such, Part I includes a lot of setup, but Chu’s sense of pace is spot on, and while it’s a little too long, it’s never dull.

Here’s the thing – Wicked is made with a specific audience in mind, and I wager many of us JoBlo folks aren’t among them. Even still, readers who find themselves watching the movie at behest of someone in their lives may find Wicked goes down a lot easier than they’re expecting. I had a surprisingly good time watching it, and I’m totally on-board to watch Part II when it hits theaters next year. 

Wicked

GOOD

7

The post Wicked Review: A Broadway adaptation that’s way better than you might be expecting appeared first on JoBlo.

I’m not crying. You’re crying! Dreamworks is turning the waterworks to full-blast today with the first teaser trailer for the studio’s live-action adaptation of How to Train Your Dragon. The preview gives us a front-row seat for the first meeting between Mason Thames‘ Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III and Toothless, the elusive and adorable Night Fury dragon. The highly-anticipated film soars into theaters on June 13, 2025, turning up the summer heat with dragon fire!

In How to Train Your Dragon, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III discovers dragons aren’t as terrifying as the stories would have him believe. Hiccup is an outsider, so people will likely brush his opinions aside. Still, when he proves to them that dragons are misunderstood and potentially friendly, he ushers in a new era where Vikings and dragons work together to build a shared society.

Today’s How to Train Your Dragon teaser trailer depicts the story beats leading up to Hiccup and Toothless’ fateful meeting. In the preview, Hiccup experiences pressure to honor his father by becoming the Viking horde’s next dragon slayer, but Hiccup doesn’t have the stomach to do the deed. He discovers that not only are dragons friendly, but joining forces with them will give his people the upper hand in any battle. Hiccup must convince his father and his people that the generations-old myth about dragons being their enemy is false. Good luck, Hiccup. You’re going to need it.

How to Train Your Dragon franchise director Dean DeBlois (Lio & Stitch, Micronauts) shot Dreamworks’ live-action adaptation of How to Train Your Dragon from his script. Mason Thames (The Black Phone) plays Hiccup, while Gerard Butler plays the Viking leader Stoick. Julian Dennison plays Fishlegs, Gabriel Howell plays Snotlout, Harry Trevaldwyn pays Tuffnut, Bronwyn James plays Ruffnut, Nico Parker plays Astrid, Nick Frost plays Gobbler, and Ruth Codd plays Phelgma.

Today’s How to Train Your Dragon teaser trailer has the live-action version of the classic book series and animated film franchise looking amazing. Mason Thames appears to have nailed Hiccup’s timid and kind-hearted nature, while Toothless resembles a one-to-one version of his animated counterpart. While I’m unsure how much we need a live-action adaptation of How to Train Your Dragon, it’s great to see such care taken with the property.

What do you think about Dreamworks’ How to Train Your Dragon teaser trailer? Let us know in the comments section below.

The post Toothless and Hiccup form an unbreakable bond in the first teaser trailer for the live-action adaptation of How to Train Your Dragon appeared first on JoBlo.

After making three successful and action-packed films in the Has Fallen franchise (Olympus Has Fallen, London Has Fallen, Angel Has Fallen), the political conspiracy thriller series is shaking things up by bringing the fight to the small screen. The latest installment of the Has Fallen franchise, Paris Has Fallen, is a TV series coming to Hulu, starring franchise newcomers Tewfik Jallab (The Marches, Paradise Beach, Le convoi) and Ritu Arya (The Umbrella Academy, Polite Society, Red Notice). Hulu debuted a Paris Has Fallen trailer on Tuesday, giving action fans something to look forward to before Thanksgiving madness finds the entertainment industry hitting the snooze button for a few days.

Here’s the official synopsis for Paris Has Fallen courtesy of Hulu:

“When a terrorist group led by the villainous Jacob Pearce (Sean Harris) attacks a high-profile embassy reception, with the French Minister of Defence as their target, protection officer Vincent (Tewfik Jallab) finds himself working with street-smart MI6 operative Zara (Ritu Arya) to save the day. But when events take an increasingly dark turn, Vincent and Zara soon realize that the plan extends far beyond just one politician. With suspicions that one of their colleagues in the security services is feeding information to Pearce, Vincent and Zara soon come to rely on each other more than either would have ever imagined. Increasingly isolated and with Pearce always one step ahead, can this unlikely pair stop Paris from falling to a man hell-bent on vengeance?”

The series, adapted from the Has Fallen movie franchise, was written by Howard Overman and produced by Julian Murphy and Johnny Caps for URBAN MYTH FILMS. Oded Ruskin, alongside Hans Herbots, is the lead director of Paris Has Fallen.

Today’s Paris Has Fallen trailer teases the 8-episode series, coming to Hulu on December 6, 2024. In the trailer, Tewfik Jallab and Ritu Arya let their action chops out of the bag for a fast-paced thriller fueled by double-crosses, political subterfuge, and vengeance served cold. We’ve seen Ritu Arya f**k s**t up in The Umbrella Academy, and we can’t wait to see her do her thing alongside Tewfik Jallab, who looks to fill the shoes left behind by the Has Fallen movie franchise lead Gerard Butler.

What do you think about Hulu’s Paris Has Fallen trailer? Let us know in the comments section below.

The post Tewfik Jallab and Ritu Arya must stay one step ahead of the enemy to thwart a deadly conspiracy in Hulu’s Paris Has Fallen trailer appeared first on JoBlo.

When The Equalizer 3 was released last year, it was promoted as being the final chapter in the film franchise – even though director Antoine Fuqua let it be known that he was interested in going back and telling the origin story of Robert McCall, the ex-Marine and DIA officer played by Denzel Washington in the trilogy. There’s no word on whether or not one them will actually end up being an origin story, but Washington has now revealed that he has agreed to come back for both The Equalizer 4 and The Equalizer 5!

Washington dropped the news during an interview with Esquire, saying, “I told them I would do another Equalizer, and we’re doing four and five. More people are happy about that – people love those daggone Equalizers. But I’ve come to realize that the Equalizer films are for me, too, because they’re for the people. They want me to go get the bad guys. ‘We can’t get them, so you go get them.’ And I say, Okay, I’ll get them! Just wait right there. I’ll be right back!“

The Equalizer film franchise is based on the spy thriller television series that originally ran on CBS from 1985 to 1989. On the show, the retired intelligence agent McCall was played by Edward Woodward. Concurrent to the Denzel Washington movies, CBS has been airing a new version of The Equalizer that stars Queen Latifah as Robyn McCall, “a divorced single mother and former CIA operative who acts as a street vigilante for justice.”

The original series was created by Michael Sloan and Richard Lindheim. All three of the Equalizer movies starring Denzel Washington have been directed by Antoine Fuqua and written by Richard Wenk. Washington didn’t tell Esquire whether or not Fuqua and Wenk will also be back for The Equalizer 4 and The Equalizer 5, but it’s likely that they’ll at least be consulted.

Are you glad to hear that Denzel Washington is on board to come back for two more Equalizer sequels? Share your thoughts on this news, and let us know what you’d like to see in The Equalizer 4 and The Equalizer 5, by leaving a comment below.

The post Denzel Washington reveals that The Equalizer 4 and 5 are on the way appeared first on JoBlo.

Early this year, it was announced that Zac Efron (The Iron Claw) had signed on to star in the A24 thriller Famous for director Jody Hill, and it was revealed that he’ll be playing dual roles in the film, which is based on a novel by Blake Crouch. Phoebe Dynevor (Bridgerton) has since joined the cast, and now that production is underway in Los Angeles, a press release confirms that Nicholas Braun (Succession), Stephanie Koenig (Lessons in Chemistry), Debby Ryan (Insatiable), Mekki Leeper (Jury Duty), and Cory Michael Smith (Saturday Night) also have roles in the film.

Scripted by Chad Hodge, who created the short-lived, Crouch-inspired TV series Wayward Pines back in 2015, Famous has the following synopsis: Lance Dunkquist has one asset that’s about to change his life – he has the face of a movie star. And not just any movie star – Lance is the spitting image of a Hollywood icon, James Jansen. Lance is about to travel to Los Angeles to make his dream come true. Lance is going to be famous, no matter what it takes… The film aims to be a “provocative and highly entertaining Los Angeles-set thriller that explores the dark side of celebrity, and the lengths people will go to attain it.”

Efron is playing both overzealous fan Lance Dunkquist and Hollywood heartthrob James Jansen.

Copies of Crouch’s novel can be purchased at THIS LINK. It has the following description: “My name is Lancelot Blue Dunkquist, and the best thing about me is, when you doll me up right, I look just like the movie star, James Jansen.” Meet Lance. 38-years-old. Works a meaningless job. Still lives above his parents’ garage. By all accounts, a world-class loser. Except for one glaring exception… He has a million-dollar face. Lance has been mistaken twenty-eight times for the Oscar-winning movie star, James Jansen, and for the last 10 years, he’s saved his money, studied Jansen’s films, his moves, his idiosyncrasies, even the way he speaks. Now, after an unceremonious termination from his job, Lance has decided that the time has come to go after his dream. From New York’s ridiculous avant-garde, off-off Broadway scene, to the surreal glitter of Los Angeles, follow Lance on his madcap journey of self-abandonment to become his likeness. Part comedy, part human tragedy, and part suspense, the world through the eyes of Lancelot Blue Dunkquist is like none you’ve ever seen.

Mr. Robot creator / Leave the World Behind director Sam Esmail is producing Famous with Chad Hamilton for Esmail Corp. The company’s Nick Krishnamurthy serves as executive producer. Black Bear will be presenting Famous to potential international distributors at the upcoming European Film Market, while CAA Media Finance and WME Independent represent the U.S. rights.

Jody Hill’s previous directing credits include The Foot Fist Way, Observe and Report, The Legacy of a Whitetail Deer Hunter, and episodes of Eastbound & Down, Vice Principals, The Righteous Gemstones, and Peacemaker.

Are you interested in Famous? What do you think of Nicholas Braun, Stephanie Koenig, Debby Ryan, Mekki Leeper, and Cory Michael Smith joining Zac Efron and Phoebe Dynevor in the cast? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

The post Famous: Nicholas Braun, Debby Ryan, Cory Michael Smith, & more join Zac Efron thriller appeared first on JoBlo.

Do you have what it takes to survive the challenges of Squid Game? You’re about to find out when Netflix launched Squid Game: Unleashed, a violent party royale mobile game based on the sensational Korean thriller. Squid Game: Unleashed launches on the Netflix app on December 17, and pre-registration is open! In addition to unveiling the Squid Game: Unleashed release date, Netflix shared a bloody and goofy trailer for the competitive multiplayer mayhem.

In Squid Game: Unleashed, players create cartoonish avatars to compete for 45.6 billion Korean won by completing a series of life-threatening challenges to be the last contestant standing. In the Squid Game: Unleashed trailer, players dodge pig-shaped wrecking balls, play a game of dodgeball while avoiding buzzsaw blades, traverse an M.C. Escher-like maze, play an elaborate game of Frogger with a speeding bus, and more! Players can win prizes as they progress through the game, changing the look of their avatar to reflect their personality and game standings.

Attention players, Squid Game: Unleashed is coming December 17th. Pre-register NOW on the App Store and Google Play to unlock an exclusive skin at launch. The games are about to begin… Pre-register here: https://t.co/3RxY7wfGFG pic.twitter.com/WiT0lUKaCU

— Squid Game: Unleashed (@SquidUnleashed) November 19, 2024

Concerning gameplay, Squid Game: Unleashed is a Frankenstein’s monster of titles like Fall Guys, Wreckfest, and Gang Beasts, all with ragdoll physics.

Here’s the official synopsis for Squid Game: Unleashed courtest of Netflix:

“Three years after winning Squid Game, Player 456 gave up going to the States and comes back with a new resolution in his mind. Gi-hun once again dives into the mysterious survival game, starting another life-or-death game with new participants gathered to win the prize of 45.6 billion won.”

How long do you think you would last in a real Squid Game competition? Are you familiar with playing games on the Netflix app? The games division of the app started slow but has grown by leaps and bounds with games like The Almost Gone, Oxenfree, Reigns, Infernax, Link Twin, and more. Adding Squid Game: Unleashed to the mix can only boost the app’s popularity, especially since the game launches nine days before the premiere of Squid Game: Season 2.

You can pre-register for Squid Game: Unleashed to become one of the first players to put their skills to the test in the fight for survival and money.

The post Netflix unveils a trailer and release date for its violent party royale mobile game Squid Game: Unleashed appeared first on JoBlo.

2024 marks the 25th anniversary of the release of the Renny Harlin shark thriller Deep Blue Sea (watch it HERE) – and all these years later, one of the film’s stars is still waiting to have a rematch with the genetically engineered mako sharks at the heart of the story. That actor is LL Cool J, whose character Sherman “Preacher” Dudley was originally supposed to die in the movie (and LL Cool J has said that he nearly died for real during filming), but Harlin decided Preacher should be one of the few people to make it all the way to the end credits, which then had an LL Cool J song playing over them.

Directed by Harlin from a screenplay by Duncan Kennedy, Donna Powers, and Wayne Powers, Deep Blue Sea has the following synopsis: On an island research facility, Dr. Susan McAlester is harvesting the brain tissue of DNA-altered sharks as a possible cure for Alzheimer’s disease. When the facility’s backers send an executive to investigate the experiments, a routine procedure goes awry and a shark starts attacking the researchers. Now, with sharks outnumbering their human captors, McAlester and her team must figure out a way to stop them from escaping to the ocean and breeding.

LL Cool J was joined in the cast by Thomas Jane, Saffron Burrows, Jacqueline McKenzie, Michael Rapaport, Stellan Skarsgård, Samuel L. Jackson, and Aida Turturro.

Speaking with The Standard, LL Cool J said, “Deep Blue Sea could be a lot of fun to revise, you know to do a new Deep Blue Sea. Also, In Too Deep could be fun to do a sequel.“

Another 1999 release, In Too Deep was a crime thriller directed by Michael Rymer. It told the story of undercover cop Jeffrey Cole (Omar Epps), who’s out to take down a criminal kingpin named Dwayne Gittens and nicknamed God (that was LL Cool J’s character).

In Too Deep has never gotten a sequel, but Deep Blue Sea has received two direct-to-video sequels over the years.

Would you like to see LL Cool J come back for a new Deep Blue Sea sequel and/or a sequel to In Too Deep? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

The post LL Cool J wants to come back for a Deep Blue Sea sequel appeared first on JoBlo.

It’s hard to believe, but The Karate Kid franchise is over forty years old. Despite this fact, the franchise seems to be stronger than ever, with a new movie in the saga, Karate Kid: Legends, due out in 2025. But, before that, the series which kick-started the franchise’s return to the zeitgeist, Cobra Kai, is starting to wrap up its run on Netflix with a super-sized sixth season. The second part of the three-part season made its debut Friday (read our review here), as Sensei Daniel (Ralph Macchio), Johnny (William Zabka) and students of Miyagi-Do head to the Sekai Taikai in Barcelona to take on their arch-enemies, the students of Cobra Kai, and their sensei Kreese.

Recently, we had the chance to sit down with Ralph Macchio and William Zabka to discuss the amazing legacy the franchise has left behind and why it’s endured for over four decades. We also dig into how the show specializes in humanizing its villains and how Johnny has become just as iconic as Daniel in his own way. We also chat with the series creators Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, and Hayden Schlossberg about their end game in wrapping up the show’s run, and how this season is inspired by some of the classic eighties fight movies like Bloodsport and Best of the Best. We also dig into how the show’s fight choreography has gotten better than ever.

Cobra Kai is now streaming on Netflix!

The post Cobra Kai Interviews: Ralph Macchio, William Zabka and the creators on why the Karate Kid legacy lives on appeared first on JoBlo.

$3.8 billion. That’s the amount of money Clint Eastwood’s films have grossed at the North American box office throughout his career. A superstar since the 1960s, Eastwood is rare in that almost all of his biggest blockbusters, including all the Dirty Harry movies, were all made for Warner Bros. It’s been his home studio since about the time he made The Outlaw Josey Wales. He’s made everything from Oscar-winners (Unforgiven, Mystic River, Million Dollar Baby) to action movies (Firefox, Sudden Impact, Best Movie You Never Saw fave The Rookie), to movies where he’s chilling with his pal Clyde the Orangutan for them, and they almost always ended up at least breaking even. Sure, he’s had a few flops, but even in his golden years, he still cranked out smash hits for them, with American Sniper making over half a billion dollars, while The Mule and Sully both made over $100 million domestically. Even when his movies didn’t do well, Eastwood keeps his budgets so low that the red ink was minimal. Even something like The 15:17 to Paris managed to make about $56 million worldwide.

With such a solid track record, you’d think that Clint Eastwood, who just made what might be his last movie for Warner Bros, Juror No 2, deserved a little better than having his movie dumped in just a handful of theaters on the way to a quick bow on streaming, with the movie now set for a December 20th bow on MAX. Indeed, with solid reviews and a pretty bankable cast, which includes Nicholas Hoult and Toni Collette re-teaming for the first time since About a Boy, you’d think Juror No 2 could have gotten a nice release fitting Clint’s legacy as a director. But no, WB’s dumped the film in so few theatres that they haven’t even been reporting its box office take.

Now, some will say that WB’s head honcho, David Zaslav, won’t give it a wide release because he thinks it’s going to lose money. He previously slammed the studio for agreeing to make Cry Macho, which he called a flop, even if it wasn’t really. Considering it came out during the pandemic and was day and date with HBO Max, its $10 million U.S. take wasn’t awful. Heck, it made more than Reminiscence, Those Who Wish Me Dead, The Many Saints of Newark, and Judas and the Black Messiah did that year, and those movies included huge stars like Hugh Jackman and Angelina Jolie. It grossed only slightly less than The Little Things, starring Denzel Washington, and no one is questioning his star power. 

Here’s the ironic part. While WB hasn’t been reporting Juror No 2’s box office take –  overseas the film has overperformed, making $10 million (so far) despite a low-key release. There’s a very good chance it would have made a decent amount of money domestically (there’s reason to believe it’s per-screen average has been quite good despite the minimal marketing). The fact is, Eastwood has always had a solid sense of what his audience wants to see. Juror No. 2 isn’t one of his best, but it’s a sturdy morality tale with terrific performances from Hoult, Collette, and supporting cast members like Kiefer Sutherland, J.K. Simmons, and Cedric Yarborough of Reno 9-11, who is powerful in an against-type part.  

I think none other than Guillermo Del Toro summed it up best when he posted on Bluesky:

“Went to the theatre to see Juror#2, Clint Eastwood’s latest film. We enjoyed it tremendously.  It’s – in some ways- his Crimes and Misdemeanors.  The film is precisely and assuredly filmed, and it’s Nicolas Hoult’s to lead.  The cast delivers beautifully, and it has an ending that sets the theatre abuzz-Its central dilemma reminded me of the quiet turmoil boiling under Dana Andrews in Preminger Noir of your choice (for me- Where The Sidewalk Ends). It wrestles with it supported by a well-paced structure and well-pondered twists.  Why was this not released widely in the States? We saw at the Grove with a significant crowd that was vocal and responsive all the way.  I truly hope WB can hold it longer.  Eastwood is a master filmmaker and the steady, unfussy craft reveals him still in great form.  Go see it on the big screen!”

Have you seen Juror No 2? Let us know what you think in the comments!

The post Juror No. 2 sets Max release date; has WB let Clint Eastwood down? appeared first on JoBlo.