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The general population has been given two key directives on how to help slow down the spread of the coronavirus: wash your hands frequently and social distance/quarantine from others as much as possible. When it comes to the latter, the folks behind marketing Rian Johnson’s latest movie, Knives Out, have been informing people how important it is not to get too close to anyone in these difficult times in their own special way.
Last week, the official Knives Out social media account shared a clip of Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc “gently” requesting that the members of the Thrombey family stay put while he conducts his investigation, while Lakeith Stanfield’s Detective Lieutenant Elliot orders them to stay put. Now viewed through the COVID-19 pandemic lens, this clip takes on a new context.
Now the Knives Out social media team is back at it again by posting the below edited poster promoting the merits of social distancing.
While the original version of this Knives Out posts had all of the main cast members assembled together, nowadays having so many strangers that close to one another is a recipe for disaster. So for the Social Distancing Cut of Knives Out, only Daniel Craig, Ana de Armas and Chris Evans’ characters remain in the room. Hey, sometimes you gotta make sacrifices for public health.
Channeling the clamor for unreleased cuts of major motion pictures that may or may not exist, like Justice League, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and even Cats, this Knives Out poster is a good bit of fun to briefly put a smile on our faces as the coronavirus continues to bombard daily life. A commenter on the tweet also noted that Ana de Armas’ Marta Cabrera had “the right idea,” sharing a screenshot from the movie where Marta is standing one of the Thrombey mansion’s balconies looking down at the family. Yep, that’s great social distancing!
Coming up with the basic concept for Knives Out after finishing 2005’s Brick, Rian Johnson finally started working on the whodunnit after completing Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Inspired by all sorts of mystery thrillers and comedies, including the works of Agatha Christie, Knives Out opened at the Toronto Film Festival last September and then was theatrically released in late November.
Knives Out proved to be both a critical and commercial smash success, with the movie ranking at 97% among critics on Rotten Tomatoes and earning an A- grade on Cinemascore, and collecting over $312 million worldwide off a $40 million budget. Among its numerous accolades was Rian Johnson earning a Best Original Screenplay Oscar nomination.
Given how well Knives Out performed, it’s hardly surprising that Lionsgate gave the green light to a sequel in February, a month after Rian Johnson said he was writing Knives Out 2. Daniel Craig is expecting to reprise Benoit Blanc, but because he’ll be investigating a brand-new mystery, the rest of the cast will be comprised of new faces.
Knives Out is now available on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital. Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for continuing coverage on how Knives Out 2 is coming along, but for now, look through our comprehensive guide of all the movies that have been delayed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
