Netflix’s Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery had its world premiere at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival. Following the premiere, the film was described as “Rian Johnson’s gothic mystery masterpiece.”
On X, Matt Neglia (@TIFF) wrote: “Rian Johnson has done it again! Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is the darkest, most layered, and most emotional entry in the series yet. Daniel Craig’s ever-hilarious and razor-sharp Benoit Blanc returns, but this third installment truly belongs to Josh O’Connor, who carries the film on his priest’s guilt-ridden back with warmth, charm, and empathy. The ensemble is once again cast to perfection, with Glenn Close and Josh Brolin delivering standout performances.”
According to THR‘s review of Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, “The new film promises a return from the exhausting Greek Island excesses of Glass Onion to the more compact pleasures of the first movie, swapping the country house for a small Catholic church and rectory in upstate New York.”
According to Joey Magidson, “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is the best one yet. It has heavier themes yet is also the funniest entry. Daniel Craig and Rian Johnson should never stop making Benoit Blanc tales. Josh O’Connor steals the movie. What a good time!”
Here are the plot details for Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery:
This time, Johnson riffs on the dark, gothic elements of Edgar Allan Poe’s The Murders in the Rue Morgue — a seemingly impossible locked-room scenario involving a corpse — while still incorporating many of the series’ signature elements.
Set in a small town and focusing on its local church, Wake Up Dead Man is packed with stars, including Connor as the younger cleric to Josh Brolin’s autocratic, abrasive priest; Glenn Close as his right-hand person; plus Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Cailee Spaeny, Jeremy Renner (whose likeness had a memorable appearance in Glass Onion), and Mila Kunis as a local cop who is as determined as Blanc to solve this seemingly insoluble case. And there’s a murder that presents itself as an impossible crime. All that, and Craig delivers perhaps his best Blanc yet.
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery Cast Details:
- Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc, a private detective/investigator
- Josh O’Connor as Rev. Jud Duplenticy, a priest
- Glenn Close as Martha Delacroix
- Josh Brolin as Msgr. Jefferson Wicks, a priest
- Mila Kunis as Geraldine Scott, a police chief
- Jeremy Renner as Dr. Nat Sharp
- Kerry Washington as Vera Draven
- Andrew Scott as Lee Ross
- Cailee Spaeny as Simone Vivane
- Daryl McCormack as Cy Draven
- Thomas Haden Church as Samson Holt
Directed by Johnson, it is a standalone sequel to Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022) and the third installment overall in the Knives Out film series. The film is produced by Johnson and his partner, Ram Bergman, through T-Street Pictures and will be distributed by Netflix.
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery will hit theaters on November 26 and will be released on Netflix on December 12, 2025.
