Toronto’s crisp autumn breeze carried whispers of anticipation through the Princess of Wales Theater lobby. Rian Johnson’s latest mystery had just unspooled, and the buzz was electric. “Wake Up Dead Man” – less Christie, more Poe – marks an unexpectedly gothic turn for the Knives Out franchise, and thank goodness for that.
The film’s two-hour-plus runtime flies by in what feels like moments. Johnson, sporting his trademark thick-rimmed glasses and easy smile, introduced the screening with characteristic humility. “This is my favorite place to be in the world,” he told the crowd, before launching into a brief evolution of his mystery trilogy. From cozy manor houses to Mediterranean yachts, and now – somewhat improbably – to shadowy church crypts.
Josh O’Connor steals scenes as Father Jud Duplenticy, a young priest whose crisis of faith forms the story’s emotional backbone. His delivery of “young, dumb, and full of Christ” drew nervous laughter from the premiere crowd – the kind of laugh that comes when something’s both funny and uncomfortably true.
Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc doesn’t show up for a good thirty minutes (a bold choice that pays off beautifully). When he finally appears, declaring himself a “heretic” while standing in a centuries-old church, the audience collectively leaned forward. Craig’s post-screening quip about managing his co-stars being “literally like herding cats” felt particularly apt given the powerhouse ensemble.
Speaking of which – what a cast. Josh Brolin brings menacing charm to Monsignor Wicks, while Glenn Close’s Martha provides the film’s moral center. Kerry Washington’s fierce turn as lawyer Vera proves she’s still criminally underused in Hollywood. The way these veterans weave through Johnson’s labyrinthine plot feels less like acting and more like a masterclass in character work.
The film tackles heavy themes – disinformation, blind faith, manipulation – without getting preachy. Andrew Scott’s MAGA-adjacent author (complete with an honest-to-god moat) could’ve been cartoonish. Instead, he’s disturbingly believable. Maybe that’s what makes the film so unsettling – how familiar these extremes feel in 2025.
But here’s the thing: despite the darker territory, Johnson hasn’t forgotten how to entertain. The mystery clicks along with precise timing, each revelation landing like a well-timed punch. There’s something almost musical about how he orchestrates the chaos, never losing sight of the human drama at the core.
When “Wake Up Dead Man” hits select theaters November 26 (before its December Netflix debut), audiences might be surprised by its ambition. This isn’t just another whodunit – it’s a meditation on belief itself. What makes people accept the unacceptable? How does truth become negotiable? Heavy stuff for a franchise that started with Chris Evans in a sweater.
Johnson has done something remarkable here. By marrying Poe’s gothic sensibilities with modern anxieties about truth and manipulation, he’s created something that feels both timeless and urgently current. The result? A mystery that doesn’t just ask who committed the crime, but makes us question what we’re willing to believe – and why.
Not bad for a movie that includes a chase scene through a church bell tower.