Knives Out
Knives Out is a 2019 American mystery film written and directed by Rian Johnson, who also serves as a co-producer. It follows master detective Benoit Blanc investigating the death of the patriarch of a wealthy, dysfunctional family. The film features an ensemble cast which includes Daniel Craig as Blanc, with Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, Toni Collette, LaKeith Stanfield, Katherine Langford, Jaeden Martell, and Christopher Plummer, in his final on-screen role filmed before his death.
| Knives Out | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Rian Johnson |
| Written by | Rian Johnson |
| Produced by |
|
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Steve Yedlin |
| Edited by | Bob Ducsay |
| Music by | Nathan Johnson |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Lionsgate |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 130 minutes[1] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $40 million[2] |
| Box office | $311.9 million[3] |
Johnson conceived Knives Out in 2005 and decided to make the film after completing Looper in 2012. However, he did not write the screenplay until 2017 due to his involvement in Star Wars: The Last Jedi. The project was officially announced in 2018 and sold to distributors during the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival. Filming ran from October to December 2018.
Knives Out premiered at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival on September 7, 2019, and was theatrically released in the United States on November 27 by Lionsgate Films. It received universal acclaim, particularly for its screenplay, direction, and acting, and grossed $311.9 million worldwide on a $40 million budget. It was named one of the top ten films of 2019 by the National Board of Review and the American Film Institute. It received three nominations at the 77th Golden Globe Awards, including Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, and received Best Original Screenplay nominations at the 73rd British Academy Film Awards and 92nd Academy Awards.
In March 2021, Netflix paid $469 million for the rights to two sequels written and directed by Johnson, with Craig reprising his role. The first was Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, released in 2022.