It’s happened before, and it will happen again. Sometimes, a movie plays a film fest, gets picked up by a studio, and is changed. That’s exactly what happened to Boy Kills World, a movie I saw (and enjoyed) at TIFF’s Midnight Madness. The film had a pretty dire opening at the box office this weekend, barely cracking the top 10. But the cut folks saw (or didn’t) this weekend was not the same as what I saw originally at TIFF back in September.

So what’s different? If you’ve seen the movie, you’ll know that the entire film is narrated by Bill Skarsgard’s “Boy” character (who is deaf and mute) via his interior monologue. However, Skarsgard himself doesn’t provide the voice-over, which H. Jon Benjamin of Archer fame does. The conceit is that the narration is the last voice “Boy” heard before going deaf, being the voice of an over-the-top 80s-style arcade game. In the version that I saw originally, this idea was dropped, with Skarsgard narrating the whole film himself in an unaffected voice. I believe there’s yet another cut out there where Skarsgard himself does the video game voice, which was teased in a promo trailer that leaked months before the movie played TIFF.

So, how does the change affect the finished film?

For one thing, the first act of the film now plays a lot more comedically, although having seen the new cut, I did notice that as the film goes on there’s a lot less narration than there was originally. This makes the more dramatic second half of the film land a bit differently.

To be fair, I enjoyed both versions of Boy Kills World. I was originally dead-set against the idea of Benjamin doing a silly narration job, as it felt like a slight against Skarsgard’s terrific performance. Still, it works decently well in the film itself, so this isn’t a case where the original cut is some masterpiece and this a hack job. Both versions of the film are good. With the film opening so modestly at the box office, it’ll be interesting to see if any original cuts ever surface. Maybe somewhere down the line, a cult company like Arrow will give this a 4K release with some of the original cuts included.

Boy Kills World hits theaters on April 26th.

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As expected, Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers scored an easy win this weekend, with a $15 million weekend, just a touch softer than we predicted earlier this week. The tennis-cantered love triangle was no doubt boosted by Zendaya’s star power, with her hotter than ever in the wake of Dune: Part Two’s blockbuster showing this winter. IMAX screens were dominated by Zendaya in one form or another, with both Challengers and Dune 2 playing in the format this weekend thanks to the latter’s re-release. 

Notably, the film posted Guadagnino’s best box office opening to date, with the weekend total more than doubling the total take of his previous biggest opener, Bones and All. It’ll be interesting to see if Challengers can hold up in the coming weeks, with The Fall Guy opening next weekend and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes opening the weekend after. With the summer movie season kicking off, one wonders whether the Euphoria star’s fans will come out to see Challengers on the big screen, with it an Amazon-MGM production that will eventually run on Prime Video. Some folks may opt to wait out its streaming release, where it will no doubt become much-memed in the way their last really racy movie, Saltburn, did when it hit the streaming service over the Christmas holidays.

In second place, the Christian music biopic Unsung Hero had a mild $7.7 million opening. But, the film also posted an A+ CinemaScore, so it’s possible the targeted Christian audience may turn this into a word-of-mouth hit, similar to the recent Jesus Revolution. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire also held up quite well in its fifth week of release, making $7.2 million, declining a mere 25% from last weekend. With a running North American total of $181 million, this will easily crack the $200 million mark (maybe more). A24’s Civil War dropped to fourth place with just over $7 million, losing its IMAX screens to Challengers. It now has a North American total of $56 million, making it A24’s second-biggest grosser of all time behind Everything Everywhere All At Once. It seems unlikely that this film will beat that total of $77.2 million, but nevertheless, this is a great showing for Alex Garland’s speculative war flick.

Radio Silence’s Abigail came in fifth with a $5.2 million weekend. The good news is that it only dropped 49% from last weekend, but the bad news is that the opening was widely considered a huge disappointment. With a total of $18 million, it seems unlikely this will end with much over $25 million domestically, making it a film that will likely find more of an audience when it hits Peacock several weeks from now.

Guy Ritchie’s The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare also had a hard time holding on to its audience this weekend, making a modest $3.8 million for a total of just over $15 million. As I noted last week, this movie has an oddball release, with it not playing theatrically in Canada or the UK, where Prime Video has the rights (the film hasn’t been dated yet), thus limiting its chance at making a dent at the box office. 

Seventh, eighth, and ninth place went to holdovers, with Kung Fu Panda 4 and Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire battling it out for the family audience and posting weekends in the $3 million-plus range. Against all odds, Frozen Empire held up better than anyone expected at the box office. However, it will undoubtedly finish quite a bit shy of Ghostbusters: Afterlife’s $129 million domestic result. Dune: Part Two got a bit of a boost this weekend thanks to an IMAX re-release, although it also hit digital recently, so the $1.9 million total is a touch soft. It’s a bit shy of grossing $280 million at the box office. While it will fall short of a $300 million finish, the movie is still considered a pretty major blockbuster. 

However, the outlook was much less rosy for Boy Kills World, which imploded at the box office. ComScore has this movie opening in 10th place with a $1.6 million opening. However, Deadline has the film in 11th place, with them stating that the re-release of Ridley Scott’s Alien (celebrating its 45th anniversary) actually outgrossed it with a $1.8 million weekend. Whatever this case, this is a bad result for the would-be franchise starter, which will undoubtedly make a bigger dent on streaming. Notably, the film went through some post-production drama following its TIFF Midnight Madness debut in the fall, so it’ll be interesting to see if any alternate cuts ever see the light of day in the wake of its poor box office showing.

Did you see anything in theaters this weekend? Let us know in the comments!

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PLOT: A deaf and mute warrior (Bill Skarsgård) raised by a mysterious shaman (The Raid’s Yayan Ruhian) attempts to topple a repressive regime. 

REVIEW: Last year, Bill Skarsgård played a suave villain in Keanu Reeves’ John Wick: Chapter 4, but notably stayed out of the action scenes. Had the movie been released after Boy Kills World, I think the part would have been radically reimagined, with the actor putting himself through the kind of physical transformation that changes careers. Watching the hulking, 6’3 actor blast his way through opponents in Boy Kills World, it’s hard to believe that the same guy, just a few years ago, was best known as Pennywise the Clown. Indeed, Boy Kills World is the perfect launchpad for Bill Skarsgård to become a major action hero (it bodes well for his next film – the remake of The Crow).

The movie itself is a pretty wild, dystopian action epic with heavy doses of black comedy and outrageousness mixed in. While Skarsgård’s character is mute, he narrates the film via his inner monologue, affecting the last voice he heard, being a voiceover track from an old-school arcade game. Originally, when I saw the film at TIFF in the fall, Skarsgård did the voice. In the version being released, the voiceover has been done by Archer‘s H. Jon Benjamin, which does sound more arcade-like. This mostly affects the first half-hour of the film, with it affecting a more (intentionally) comic vibe. I can’t be 100% sure, but I believe that as the movie gets more serious in the second half, there’s a lot less voiceover, which is a solid creative choice. While I was originally dead-set against the change, the finished product played relatively well. The character is also shown to be a master lip-reader, something which is used for comedy when he encounters Isaiah Mustafa (It: Chapter 2) as a particularly mumbly ally. 

The action in this movie kicks off early, with the premise being that the titular “boy” is an orphan after his family was killed by the minions of his city’s evil ruler, Hilda van der Koy (Famke Janssen). Every year, the van der Koy’s have a ritualistic “culling” where they murder civilians live on TV. The Boy has himself taken so that he can kill his way to Hilda, with him facing off with Hilda’s son Gideon (Brett Gelman) and her two daughters, Melanie (Michelle Dockery) and June 27 (Jessica Rothe). The latter is an LED-helmet-wearing badass, whose skills rival Boy’s (as does her physique, with Rothe wearing a midriff-bearing jumpsuit that shows off her shredded abs). 

The movie is absolutely jam-packed with action, with it being a mix of hand-to-hand and gunplay, most of which seems to be done by Skarsgård himself. Some of the gore has sprinklings of producer Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead worked in (perhaps). One of the most notably disgusting bits involves Boy using a box grater in a gory scrap, and another highlight is a hand-to-hand fight where his opponent keeps losing parts of his body. 

Of course, the action is way over the top, with it a hard-R rated actioner by design. The cast is unique in that neither Skarsgård nor Rothe are action veterans, making them feel like fresh choices to lead a movie like this. Andrew Koji is also cast against type in a mostly non-fighting role as a motormouthed resistance member who teams up with Boy, while Sharlto Copley also shows up to chew some scenery. Everyone seems to be relishing their chance to amp up the madness, especially Dockery in a role far removed from her iconic turn on Downton Abbey. She looks like she’s having a blast. Yayan Ruhian from The Raid movies has his most prominent role in a North American movie to date as Boy’s mentor, with him participating in the film’s best fight sequence – which seems a given.

Overall, I had a total blast with this demented actioner. Director Moritz Mohr makes an impressive debut, and the film includes enough world-building that it could easily spawn a franchise (check out the short that got him the job here).  Hopefully this finds a theatrical audience, as it really is a great time on the big screen. I had a blast.

Boy Kills World

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Happy Death Day was a huge success for Blumhouse, grossing $125 million on a budget of just $4.8 million. The sequel didn’t quite hit those same numbers, but it still did well enough that fans were expecting to see Happy Death Day 3. Well, it’s been five years and not much has happened, despite writer/director Christopher Landon working on the script and star Jessica Rothe eager to return.

While speaking with ScreenGeek, Jessica Rothe gave a hopeful update regarding Happy Death Day 3.

“Well, I can say Chris Landon has the whole thing figured out,” Rothe said. “We just need to wait for Blumhouse and Universal to get their ducks in a row. But my fingers are so crossed. I think Tree [Gelbman] deserves her third and final chapter to bring that incredible character and franchise to a close or a new beginning.“

Happy Death Day and Happy Death Day 2U were both a lot of fun, and the films have gathered quite a following over the years, but time is ticking for the third movie. Christopher Landon has admitted that his idea for Happy Death Day 3 would require a bigger budget, and since the second movie didn’t perform as well as expected, it would be a tall order. “I have that movie in my head, and I know exactly what I want,” Landon said last year. “It’s actually a bigger movie than the previous two films, and that’s part of the issue, ultimately. This third movie needs a bigger budget, but since the second movie didn’t perform as well as the first, it’s a tall order. But I’m still holding out hope that Universal will give me a chance because it would be a really fun conclusion.“

Jessica Rothe can currently be seen in Boy Kills World. The post-apocalyptic action comedy stars Bill Skarsgård as a man named “Boy” who “vows revenge after his family is murdered by Hilda Van Der Koy, the deranged matriarch of a corrupt post-apocalyptic dynasty that left the boy orphaned, deaf and voiceless. Driven by his inner voice, one which he co-opted from his favorite childhood video game, Boy trains with a mysterious shaman to become an instrument of death and is set loose on the eve of the annual culling of dissidents. Bedlam ensues as Boy commits bloody martial arts mayhem, inciting a wrath of carnage and blood-letting. As he tries to get his bearings in this delirious realm, Boy soon falls in with a desperate resistance group, all the while bickering with the apparent ghost of his rebellious little sister.” You can check out a review from our own Chris Bumbray right here.

Do you want to see Happy Death Day 3 close out the franchise?

The post Happy Death Day 3: Jessica Rothe remains hopeful for sequel, just waiting for the studios to sign off appeared first on JoBlo.

It star Bill Skarsgard is out for revenge in the action thriller, Boy Kills World, which just reached theatres today (April 26th). JoBlo’s own Chris Bumbray already had the chance to see the movie, giving it an 8/10 review that you can read HERE – and we also had the opportunity to sit down for interviews with the film’s director Moritz Mohr, as well as cast members Famke Janssen (The Faculty), Brett Gelman (Stranger Things), Isaiah Mustafa (It: Chapter Two), and Andrew Koji (Warrior). To find out what they had to say about their experience of working on Boy Kills World, check out the video embedded above!

Produced by the legendary Sam Raimi, the film marks the feature directorial debut of Mohr. It was scripted by Arend Remmers (Sløborn) and Tyler Burton Smith (Kung Fury: The Movie). The story takes place in a bizarre, dark dystopian universe and centers on a deaf and mute character, Boy, who navigates this depressing world with his otherworldly imagination. Tragedy strikes when Boy’s family is brutally murdered. When his fight or flight instincts kick in, Boy finds himself on a life-threatening trek into the darkly forested jungle. There, he meets a shaman who takes Boy under his wing and launches him into a cutthroat coming of age journey where he encourages his new pupil to leave his youth behind and pick up the baton as a highly trained assassin.

Skarsgard and the actors interviewed above are joined in the cast by Jessica Rothe (Happy Death Day), Yayan Ruhian (The Raid: Redemption), Sharlto Copley (District 9), Quinn Copeland (Punky Brewster), twin brothers Cameron and Nicholas Crovetti (Big Little Lies), and Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey). Dockery plays Melanie, “the sister of the film’s Van der Koy family. Melanie is a satirical powerhouse and sociopath who tries to project a powerful cohesive family image to hide the desperation behind their decaying dynasty.” Janssen, Gelman, and Copley are also members of the antagonistic Van Der Koy family, with Janssen as matriarch Hilda, and Gelman and Copley as Gideon and Glen, respectively.

Sam Raimi and Zainab Azizi are producing Boy Kills World through Raimi Productions, Roy Lee is producing for Vertigo Entertainment, Simon Swart and Wayne Fitzjohn are producing through Nthibah Pictures, and Alex Lebovici is producing through Hammerstone Studios. Stuart Manashil and Dan Kagan are also producers. Reza Brojerdi of Ventaro Film and Andrew Childs are executive producers.

Boy Kills World has been rated R for strong bloody violence and gore throughout, language, some drug use and sexual references.

Will you be catching Boy Kills World on the big screen this weekend? Let us know by leaving a comment below – but first, check out the interviews!

The post Boy Kills World interviews with the film’s director, Famke Janssen, Brett Gelman & more appeared first on JoBlo.

Before we see It star Bill Skarsgard get revenge in The Crow remake this June, we’re going to have the chance to see him get revenge in another action thriller, Boy Kills World, which is set to reach theatres on April 26th. With that date just a few weeks away, a red band trailer for the film has arrived online – and this one is packed with positive review quotes, including a nod to the 8/10 review written by JoBlo’s own Chris Bumbray! (You can read it HERE.) Check it out in the embed above.

Produced by the legendary Sam Raimi, the film marks the feature directorial debut of Moritz Mohr. It was scripted by Arend Remmers (Sløborn) and Tyler Burton Smith (Kung Fury: The Movie). The story takes place in a bizarre, dark dystopian universe and centers on a deaf and mute character, Boy (Skarsgård), who navigates this depressing world with his otherworldly imagination. Tragedy strikes when Boy’s family is brutally murdered. When his fight or flight instincts kick in, Boy finds himself on a life-threatening trek into the darkly forested jungle. There, he meets a shaman (Ruhian) who takes Boy under his wing and launches him into a cutthroat coming of age journey where he encourages his new pupil to leave his youth behind and pick up the baton as a highly trained assassin.

Skarsgard is joined in the cast by Jessica Rothe (Happy Death Day), Yayan Ruhian (The Raid: Redemption), Andrew Koji (Warrior), Isaiah Mustafa (It: Chapter Two), Famke Janssen (The Faculty), Brett Gelman (Stranger Things), Sharlto Copley (District 9), Quinn Copeland (Punky Brewster), twin brothers Cameron and Nicholas Crovetti (Big Little Lies), and Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey). Dockery plays Melanie, “the sister of the film’s Van der Koy family. Melanie is a satirical powerhouse and sociopath who tries to project a powerful cohesive family image to hide the desperation behind their decaying dynasty.” Janssen, Gelman, and Copley are also members of the antagonistic Van Der Koy family, with Janssen as matriarch Hilda, and Gelman and Copley as Gideon and Glen, respectively.

Sam Raimi and Zainab Azizi are producing Boy Kills World through Raimi Productions, Roy Lee is producing for Vertigo Entertainment, Simon Swart and Wayne Fitzjohn are producing through Nthibah Pictures, and Alex Lebovici is producing through Hammerstone Studios. Stuart Manashil and Dan Kagan are also producers. Reza Brojerdi of Ventaro Film and Andrew Childs are executive producers.

Boy Kills World has been rated R for strong bloody violence and gore throughout, language, some drug use and sexual references.

What did you think of the red band trailer? Will you be watching Boy Kills World when it’s released later this month? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

The post Boy Kills World red band trailer sends Bill Skarsgard on a rampage of revenge appeared first on JoBlo.

Before we see It star Bill Skarsgard get revenge in The Crow remake this June, we’re going to have the chance to see him get revenge in another action thriller, Boy Kills World (watch the trailer HERE), which is set to reach theatres on April 26th. In anticipation of the Boy Kills World release, Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions have unveiled a poster for the film, along with a batch of character posters. You can check them out at the bottom of this article.

JoBlo’s own Chris Bumbray already had the chance to see Boy Kills World a few months ago, and you can read his 8/10 review at THIS LINK.

Produced by the legendary Sam Raimi, the film was scripted by Arend Remmers (Sløborn) and Tyler Burton Smith (Kung Fury: The Movie). The story takes place in a bizarre, dark dystopian universe and centers on a deaf and mute character, Boy (Skarsgård), who navigates this depressing world with his otherworldly imagination. Tragedy strikes when Boy’s family is brutally murdered. When his fight or flight instincts kick in, Boy finds himself on a life-threatening trek into the darkly forested jungle. There, he meets a shaman (Ruhian) who takes Boy under his wing and launches him into a cutthroat coming of age journey where he encourages his new pupil to leave his youth behind and pick up the baton as a highly trained assassin.

Skarsgard is joined in the cast by Jessica Rothe (Happy Death Day), Yayan Ruhian (The Raid: Redemption), Andrew Koji (Warrior), Isaiah Mustafa (It: Chapter Two), Famke Janssen (The Faculty), Brett Gelman (Stranger Things), Sharlto Copley (District 9), Quinn Copeland (Punky Brewster), twin brothers Cameron and Nicholas Crovetti (Big Little Lies), and Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey). Dockery plays Melanie, “the sister of the film’s Van der Koy family. Melanie is a satirical powerhouse and sociopath who tries to project a powerful cohesive family image to hide the desperation behind their decaying dynasty.” Janssen, Gelman, and Copley are also members of the antagonistic Van Der Koy family, with Janssen as matriarch Hilda, and Gelman and Copley as Gideon and Glen, respectively.

Sam Raimi and Zainab Azizi are producing Boy Kills World through Raimi Productions, Roy Lee is producing for Vertigo Entertainment, Simon Swart and Wayne Fitzjohn are producing through Nthibah Pictures, and Alex Lebovici is producing through Hammerstone Studios. Stuart Manashil and Dan Kagan are also producers. Reza Brojerdi of Ventaro Film and Andrew Childs are executive producers.

Boy Kills World has been rated R for strong bloody violence and gore throughout, language, some drug use and sexual references.

Will you be watching Boy Kills World in April? Take a look at the posters, then let us know by leaving a comment below.

The post Boy Kills World poster and character posters unveiled for Bill Skarsgard action thriller appeared first on JoBlo.

Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions are planning an April 26th theatrical release for director Moritz Mohr’s dystopian action thriller Boy Kills World, which stars Bill Skarsgard (It) and Jessica Rothe (Happy Death Day) – and with that release date just two months away, a trailer for the film has arrived online and can be seen in the embed above. JoBlo’s own Chris Bumbray already had the chance to see Boy Kills World a few months ago, and you can read his 8/10 review at THIS LINK.

Produced by the legendary Sam Raimi, Boy Kills World was scripted by Arend Remmers (Sløborn) and Tyler Burton Smith (Kung Fury: The Movie). The story takes place in a bizarre, dark dystopian universe and centers on a deaf and mute character, Boy (Skarsgård), who navigates this depressing world with his otherworldly imagination. Tragedy strikes when Boy’s family is brutally murdered. When his fight or flight instincts kick in, Boy finds himself on a life-threatening trek into the darkly forested jungle. There, he meets a shaman (Ruhian) who takes Boy under his wing and launches him into a cutthroat coming of age journey where he encourages his new pupil to leave his youth behind and pick up the baton as a highly trained assassin.

Skarsgard and Rothe are joined in the cast by Yayan Ruhian (The Raid: Redemption), Andrew Koji (Warrior), Isaiah Mustafa (It: Chapter Two), Famke Janssen (The Faculty), Brett Gelman (Stranger Things), Sharlto Copley (District 9), Quinn Copeland (Punky Brewster), twin brothers Cameron and Nicholas Crovetti (Big Little Lies), and Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey). Dockery plays Melanie, “the sister of the film’s Van der Koy family. Melanie is a satirical powerhouse and sociopath who tries to project a powerful cohesive family image to hide the desperation behind their decaying dynasty.” Janssen, Gelman, and Copley are also members of the antagonistic Van Der Koy family, with Janssen as matriarch Hilda, and Gelman and Copley as Gideon and Glen, respectively.

Sam Raimi and Zainab Azizi are producing Boy Kills World through Raimi Productions, Roy Lee is producing for Vertigo Entertainment, Simon Swart and Wayne Fitzjohn are producing through Nthibah Pictures, and Alex Lebovici is producing through Hammerstone Studios. Stuart Manashil and Dan Kagan are also producers. Reza Brojerdi of Ventaro Film and Andrew Childs are executive producers.

Boy Kills World has been rated R for strong bloody violence and gore throughout, language, some drug use and sexual references.

What did you think of the Boy Kills World trailer? Will you be seeing this movie when it comes out in a couple months? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

The post Boy Kills World trailer: Bill Skarsgard is out for revenge in Sam Raimi-produced action thriller appeared first on JoBlo.

Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions announced today that they have acquired Boy Kills World, the action thriller starring Bill Skarsgård which blew away audiences at the Toronto International Film Festival last year. We’ll soon have the chance to check out Boy Kills World for ourselves as the film will be given a wide release in theaters on April 26th.

Bill Skarsgård stars as Boy, a “deaf-mute with a vivid imagination, driven by his inner voice, one which he co-opted from his favorite childhood video game, avows revenge after his family is murdered by Hilda Van Der Koy, the deranged matriarch of a corrupt post-apocalyptic dynasty that left the boy orphaned, deafened, and voiceless. Boy trains with a mysterious shaman to become an instrument of death and is set loose on the eve of the annual culling of dissidents. Bedlam ensues as Boy commits bloody martial arts mayhem, inciting a wrath of carnage and blood-letting. As he tries to get his bearings in this delirious realm, Boy soon falls in with a desperate resistance group, all the while bickering with the apparent ghost of his rebellious little sister.“

“When we saw Boy Kills World at TIFF’s Midnight Madness we were blown away by the crazy action sequences and the terrific cast. Audiences are in for a wild ride,” said Roadside Attractions Co-Presidents Howard Cohen and Eric d’Arbeloff. Sam Raimi, who is one of the producers of the movie, added, “[Director Moritz] Mohr brings a distinct visual style and an unbridled imagination to the screen, creating an original, outrageous, and visceral thrill ride. Boy Kills World‘s eclectic cast, eye-popping stunt sequences, and deranged sense of humor will blow audiences away.“

In addition to Bill Skarsgård, Boy Kills World also stars Jessica Rothe, Michelle Dockery, Brett Gelman, Isaiah Mustafa, Yayan Ruhian, Nicholas and Cameron Crovetti, Quinn Copeland, Andrew Koji, Sharlto Copley, and Famke Janssen.

Our own Chris Bumbray had a blast with Boy Kills World when he caught it at TIFF last year. “The movie is absolutely jam-packed with action, with it being a mix of hand-to-hand and gunplay, most of which seems to be done by Skarsgård himself,” Bumbray wrote. “Some of the gore has sprinklings of producer Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead worked in (perhaps). One of the most notably disgusting bits involves Boy using a box grater in a gory scrap, and another highlight is a hand-to-hand fight where his opponent keeps losing parts of his body.” You can check out the rest of Bumbray’s review right here.

The post Boy Kills World acquired by Lionsgate, Roadside Attractions and given 2024 theatrical release appeared first on JoBlo.

JoBlo’s own Chris Bumbray got to see director Moritz Mohr’s dystopian action thriller Boy Kills World, which stars Bill Skarsgard (It) and Jessica Rothe (Happy Death Day), at the Toronto International Film Festival last month, and you can read his 8/10 review of the film at THIS LINK. While we wait to hear when the movie is going to receive a proper release, Empire has gotten their hands on a new image – which can be seen at the bottom of this article – and talked to Mohr about getting the legendary Sam Raimi on board as producer.

Boy Kills World was scripted by Arend Remmers (Sløborn) and Tyler Burton Smith (Kung Fury: The Movie). The story takes place in a bizarre, dark dystopian universe and centers on a deaf and mute character, Boy (Skarsgård), who navigates this depressing world with his otherworldly imagination. Tragedy strikes when Boy’s family is brutally murdered. When his fight or flight instincts kick in, Boy finds himself on a life-threatening trek into the darkly forested jungle. There, he meets a shaman (Ruhian) who takes Boy under his wing and launches him into a cutthroat coming of age journey where he encourages his new pupil to leave his youth behind and pick up the baton as a highly trained assassin.

Mohr told Empire Raimi got involved based on the strength of a short, proof-of-concept trailer the director had put together. When he heard Raimi was about to watch the trailer, “It was complete insanity. I was showing my phone to everyone around me. ‘You see that?!’ Two hours later, we were all hanging out at a Five Guys in LA. The email arrived and it just said, ‘Sam flipped.’ It became our battle cry for the next few weeks. Meeting him and getting to work with him was just the absolute dream come true. It was ridiculous, man.“

Skarsgard and Rothe are joined in the cast by Yayan Ruhian (The Raid: Redemption), Andrew Koji (Warrior), Isaiah Mustafa (It: Chapter Two), Famke Janssen (The Faculty), Brett Gelman (Stranger Things), Sharlto Copley (District 9), Quinn Copeland (Punky Brewster), twin brothers Cameron and Nicholas Crovetti (Big Little Lies), and Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey). Dockery plays Melanie, “the sister of the film’s Van der Koy family. Melanie is a satirical powerhouse and sociopath who tries to project a powerful cohesive family image to hide the desperation behind their decaying dynasty.” Janssen, Gelman, and Copley are also members of the antagonistic Van Der Koy family, with Janssen as matriarch Hilda, and Gelman and Copley as Gideon and Glen, respectively.

Sam Raimi and Zainab Azizi produced Boy Kills World through Raimi Productions, Roy Lee produced for Vertigo Entertainment, Simon Swart and Wayne Fitzjohn produced through Nthibah Pictures, and Alex Lebovici produced through Hammerstone Studios. Stuart Manashil and Dan Kagan are also producers. Reza Brojerdi of Ventaro Film and Andrew Childs are executive producers.

Are you looking forward to Boy Kills World? Let us know by leaving a comment below – but first, take a look at this image:

The post Boy Kills World image unveiled as director talks getting Sam Raimi to produce action thriller appeared first on JoBlo.