(Photo Credits: Screengrab from Netflix’s Official YouTube Account)
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery marks the triumphant return of Daniel Craig’s Southern detective, Benoit Blanc, in what may be his most emotionally charged case yet. Written and directed by Rian Johnson, this third installment pulls Blanc into the heart of a devout upstate New York parish, where faith, loyalty, and secrets swirl around a baffling, “impossible” murder.
The story begins as a charismatic priest named Jud Duplenticy (Josh O’Connor) arrives to assist the powerful Monsignor Jefferson Wicks (Josh Brolin) and tend to a congregation full of complex characters from church matriarch Martha Delacroix (Glenn Close) to a tight-lipped groundskeeper Samson Holt (Thomas Haden Church), a shrewd lawyer Vera Draven (Kerry Washington), and a cellist named Simone Vivane (Cailee Spaeny). Into their sacred circle steps Benoit Blanc, teamed with the local police chief Geraldine Scott (Mila Kunis) to untangle a murder that appears to have no exit. According to Blanc, despite the religious trappings of the case, “This was dressed as a miracle, it’s just a murder. And I solve murders.”
Behind the camera, Johnson works again with longtime collaborators—Steve Yedlin on cinematography, Bob Ducsay editing, Nathan Johnson composing, and producer Ram Bergman. Read here for more information.
Benoit Blanc isn’t just brilliant—he’s also gay, a detail Rian Johnson clarified after Glass Onion briefly revealed Blanc’s live-in male partner. Addressing fan speculation, Johnson simply said, “Yes, he obviously is,” when asked about Blanc’s sexuality. Though he kept the actor’s name under wraps, he teased how perfectly the mystery man fits, noting, “There’s nobody in the world I can imagine bringing me more joy for Benoit Blanc to be with.”
For gay viewers, Blanc’s presence continues to be a welcome one: a polished, brilliant detective who happens to be gay, but whose sexuality doesn’t define his every thought or motive. Johnson has said that Blanc’s gayness “felt very natural” to him. It’s a quiet but powerful form of representation: a gay man at the center of a genre that seldom makes room for people like him.
This mystery promises to blend Johnson’s trademark wit, a mid-century locked-room feel, and real emotional stakes, especially for Blanc, who may be forced to reckon not only with sin in his surroundings, but with something deeper in himself.
Wake Up Dead Man premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 6, 2025. It will have a limited theatrical release starting November 26, 2025, before landing on Netflix this December 12, 2025.
Happy viewing!
Another Microwave Holiday TV Dinner?
I’m looking at the cast members; it’s got to be worth watching!
“a gay man at the center of a genre that seldom makes room for people like him.” The genre, Hollywood, the media in general, and “The Community”. Guys who keep their sexuality to themselves, guys “on the DL”, guys “in the closet”, guys who “are liars”, “guys whose lives are not all about being Gay!!” …. for decades they’ve been brushed aside in favor Stereotypical gays (fem, flamboyant, fluffy guys who spew glitter out of every orifice they have). When I joined A4A a couple of decades ago, I dared to say there were “Rodeo Drive Gays” as well as… Read more »
-2 votes by “The Community” of A4A after 2 hours. “Brush the non-Stereotype Gay guys aside”. Point proven.
To those who voted -2…as Ed said in the 1988 Bartles & Jaymes Peach Wine Coolers TV commercial said, “Thanks for your support!.”
Darling! Don’t feel so abandoned? God still loves you with all your faults and shortcomings!
LOL! LOL! LOL!