Aubrey Plaza has been a budding star for years now, but with her recent performance on The White Lotus, she's become part of water cooler talk. Due to timing and great reviews, it’s no suprise that her latest film, Emily the Criminal, is having enormous Netflix success, and trended on the top 10 list. Alhough, one person was surprised, and that was Plaza, who couldn’t be happier that the small independent film is finding its audience.
In a recent interview with Playlist, the Parks and Rec alum opened up about her success, and some of her own projects that she is most proud of. One of these is Emily the Criminal, a low budget passion project that is now doing great numbers on Netflix. Plaza was surprised that such a small film was receiving so much attention, and was so excited that it is finally being seen. She expressed:
Yes, yes! I love to hear it. I'm shocked. Man, it's everything you could ask for such a small movie to be ... I mean, I don't know what the other top four movies are, but we were number two last week in between Bullet Train and Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio. And I'm looking at it going, 'Our movie was so small.' And the fact that it's broken through the noise is, it's just ... Honestly, it's like a dream come true. I mean, I can't believe it.
I’m sure it's not very often that an independent film made for $2 million dollars is spoken in the same breath as a major summer blockbuster like Bullet Train, or such an auteur driven creative masterpiece like Pinocchio. This is a huge accomplishment, and hopefully encourages more movie stars to lend their talents to low budget films with a lot to say. Plaza has always been a champion of the independent world, and has expressed her love for the theater-going experience.
For those who have seen Emily the Criminal, they know that the success is extremely well deserved. The film is about a young, broke college graduate who falls into student loan debt. Her desperation lends her in the midst of a fraudulent credit card ring, that she participates in to pay off her debts. The film tackles big ideas like what people do when they feel hopeless, and the student debt crisis. Critics and audiences all are having great reactions to the film, so Plaza certainly had a winner on her hands.
In the wake of one success after another, Plaza continues to diversify her filmography. She is starring in an action drama by Guy Ritchie titled Operation Fortune: Ruse de guerre, a bigger, sleeker film than she has done before. She also clearly has a desire to continue working on director driven projects. For example, she has been cast in Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis, which the director has had in the works for a while. Both are very different films, so I’m glad we are getting to see even more range from the actress.
You can catch Aubrey Plaza in Emily the Criminal which is currently streaming with a Netflix subscription. For more information on other films arriving in theaters and streaming in the near future, make sure to check out our 2023 movie release schedule.
