Kevin James is taking on a completely new role: the villain in a horror movie. The Kings & Queens comedy actor will be the central convict at play in the home-invasion thriller Becky. Along with its upcoming release on VOD this Friday, James’ latest role will also premiere in almost 50 drive-in theater screens this weekend.
Becky stars Annabelle: Creation’s Lulu Wilson is a 13-year-old who is brought to a lake house by her father (Community’s Joel McHale) in an attempt to reconnect with her. As Kevin James’ relentless Dominick infiltrates the house in search for something, Becky pulls Home Alone-type antics, but amped up to an R-rated level.
As a select number of drive-in theaters nationwide start to open their doors to the public (with social distancing restrictions), Becky will be one of the few new releases available to view with an audience in some time. Many theaters are still playing films like Bloodshot, Bad Boys For Life, Sonic the Hedgehog and Jumanji: The Next Level on their screens – releases that are now months old.
Drive-ins in 14 states are participating in showing Becky, with overwhelming support from Ohio theaters, via Bloody Disgusting. Becky comes from Quiver and Redbox studios, and is directed by Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion of 2017’s Bushwick starring Dave Bautista, and 2014’s Cooties starring Elijah Wood. The script was written by newcomers Nick Morris, Ruckus Skye and Lane Skye.
Kevin James’ turn to horror comes on the heels of his frequent co-star Adam Sandler’s recent praise for Uncut Gems. The Safdie Brothers drama and a couple other Sandler flicks have been dominating Netflix this past week – even giving recent release The Lovebirds a run for its money. David Spade has also found success on streaming with comedy The Wrong Missy, which debuted at No. 1.
If Kevin James dominates with Becky, maybe Grown-Ups 3 will be in the works next? The indie horror flick finds itself in an interesting position this weekend being one of the few new movies to hit some theaters just as drive-ins are making a comeback. As the health crisis has continued to dominate global health concerns, drive-in theaters have become an alternative some are turning to. One couple even held their wedding at a Texas drive-in, and it looked adorable.
Another recent horror flick to hit drive-ins is called The Wretched, which just made box office history for topping the domestic box office five weekends in a row – the fifth movie ever to do so and the first since 1997’s Titanic.
Check out Becky in select drive-ins and VOD on June 5, and stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more news on upcoming movie releases. Here’s our 2020 release schedule.
