Benoit Blanc is not the “main character” in ‘Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery’
Rian Johnson is ready for another chapter of A Knives Out Mystery. So is Benoit Blanc. But what if Netflix were to tell you he’s not the main character in Wake Up Dead Man? And that he, in fact, was never the protagonist of the previous films?
While that’s enough to turn viewers’ world upside down, it turns out it’s actually true. As Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery prepares to woo film festivals ahead of its now-set theatrical and streaming arrivals, the director of the franchise, Johnson, throws it back to the past. Despite giving in to a more contemporary tone in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, the upcoming film traces back the literary inheritance of whodunits.
Speaking of his forthcoming creation with Tudum, Johnson unexpectedly broke the ice on Blanc’s arc. As the only character to have returned in all three films, it’s natural to hail him as the protagonist. But Blanc appears in Wake Up Dead Man as an “outsider” to the story’s crux. If you observe in the previous films, he always was.
This time, Blanc is about to make room for another equally important character, at least for this instalment, to shine. “The secret to each one of these movies is that Benoit Blanc is not the main character of these films. There’s always a protagonist who has some real stakes and skin in the game,” Johnson explains.
For those wondering who this “main character” is, it’s Rev Jud Duplenticy, portrayed by Josh O’Connor. The actor plays a young priest who’s sent to help the local priest, Monsignor Jefferson Wicks. Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is rooted in the religious depths of faith, morality, and belief, where mystery almost sounds like an outcast. But the setting itself makes the stakes higher when an impossible murder upheavals the town.
Commenting on Johnson’s take on the murder mystery genre with the Knives Out films, Daniel Craig explained, “what Rian’s movies do best is subvert the genre. You start off thinking you’re watching an old-fashioned sort of Agatha Christie-type mystery, but then it shifts, and you realise you’re watching something entirely different.”
While fans already knew the star-studded ensemble was never just for show, now they’ve another reason to watch out for them. So, be prepared for Jud while Blanc sharpens his knives for a banging return.