Boy Kills World
2023 film by Moritz Mohr
- Tyler Burton Smith
- Arend Remmers
- Arend Remmers
- Moritz Mohr
- Sam Raimi
- Zainab Azizi
- Roy Lee
- Wayne Fitzjohn
- Simon Swart
- Stuart Manashil
- Dan Kagan
- Alex Lebovici
- Bill Skarsgård
- Jessica Rothe
- Michelle Dockery
- Famke Janssen
- Sharlto Copley
- Brett Gelman
- Isaiah Mustafa
- Andrew Koji
Production
companies
companies
- Nthibah Pictures
- Hammerstone Studios
- Raimi Productions
- Vertigo Entertainment
- Lionsgate
- Roadside Attractions (United States)
- Empire Entertainment (South Africa)
Release dates
- September 9, 2023 (2023-09-09) (TIFF)
- April 26, 2024 (2024-04-26) (United States)
Running time
- Germany
- South Africa
- United States
Boy Kills World is a 2023 action comedy-thriller film directed by Moritz Mohr, in his feature directorial debut, from a screenplay by Tyler Burton Smith and Arend Remmers, and a story by Remmers and Mohr. The film stars Bill Skarsgard, Jessica Rothe, Michelle Dockery, Famke Janssen, Sharlto Copley, Brett Gelman, Isaiah Mustafa, and Andrew Koji. Its plot revolves around a campaign of vengeance enacted by a martial arts expert, rendered deaf-mute by an attack that killed his entire family, whose thoughts are presented as an inner voice derived from a childhood video game (provided by H. Jon Benjamin).
Boy Kills World premiered at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, and is scheduled to be released in the United States by Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions on April 26, 2024.
Premise
Bill Skarsgård stars as a man named Boy, who vows revenge after his family is murdered by Hilda Van Der Koy (Famke Janssen), the matriarch of a corrupt, post-apocalyptic dynasty, in an attack that left Boy deaf-mute. After being trained in the martial arts by a mysterious shaman (Yayan Ruhian), Boy and a ragtag resistance group embark upon a campaign of vengeance, his thoughts expressed by an inner voice derived from his favorite video game (provided by H. Jon Benjamin), with which he bickers with the ghost of his dead younger sister.[3]
Cast
- Bill Skarsgård as Boy, a deaf-mute man seeking revenge against the van der Koys.
- Nicolas and Cameron Crovetti as young Boy
- H. Jon Benjamin as Boy’s "inner voice". In addition, Benjamin also provides the voice for the announcer in the different arcade machine video games.[4]
- Jessica Rothe as June 27
- Michelle Dockery as Melanie van der Koy
- Brett Gelman as Gideon van der Koy
- Isaiah Mustafa as Benny, a resistance member
- Andrew Koji as Basho, a resistance member
- Famke Janssen as Hilda van der Koy, the matriarch of the van der Koy family and Glen's husband.
- Sharlto Copley as Glen van der Koy, Hilda's husband
- Yayan Ruhian as a shaman
- Quinn Copeland as Mina
Production
Director and story writer Moritz Mohr pitched Boy Kills World with a short and previsualization reel to Sam Raimi and Roy Lee, of Raimi Productions and Vertigo Entertainment respectively, who were impressed and subsequently agreed to produce alongside Nthibah Pictures and Hammerstone Studios.[5][6] Orion Pictures was initially involved at one point, but dropped out following the COVID-19 pandemic.[6]
The film was announced on October 7, 2021, with Bill Skarsgård, Samara Weaving, and Yayan Ruhian joining the cast. In a statement, Nthibah CEO Simon Swart said the film would combine "real-world themes with a stylized look that is fresh, cool, and original, borrowing from the best of graphic novels."[7] On October 28, 2021, Isaiah Mustafa joined the cast.[8] In January 2022, Andrew Koji was added to the cast,[9] and Jessica Rothe replaced Samara Weaving, who dropped out of project due to scheduling conflicts.[10] Filming began in Cape Town, South Africa, on February 14, 2022.[10][11] In March 2022, Famke Janssen, Brett Gelman, Sharlto Copley, Quinn Copeland, twins Cameron and Nicholas Crovetti, and Michelle Dockery were confirmed to star.[12][13]
In August 2023, Swedish composer Ludvig Forssell was announced to compose the film's soundtrack.[14]
Release
The world premiere for Boy Kills World was held at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival on September 9, 2023.[15]
In January 2024, Lionsgate Films and Roadside Attractions acquired U.S. distribution rights to the film and setting it for an April 26, 2024 theatrical release.[16]
Critical reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 68% of 41 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.7/10.[17] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 62 out of 100, based on seven critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[18]
References
- ^ "Boy Kills World - WGA Directory". Writers Guild of America West. March 25, 2023. Retrieved March 22, 2024.
- ^ "Boy Kills World (18)". BBFC. March 21, 2024. Retrieved March 30, 2024.
- ^ "Boy Kills World". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. September 27, 2023. Archived from the original on September 27, 2023. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
- ^ Taylor, Drew (February 22, 2024). "Boy Kills World' Trailer Promises Bloody Carnage With Bill Skarsgard - Video". The Wrap. Retrieved February 22, 2024.
- ^ Kit, Borys (October 7, 2021). "Bill Skarsgård, Samara Weaving and Yayan Ruhian to Star in Action Thriller Boy Kills World". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on October 7, 2021. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
- ^ a b Vlessing, Etan (September 8, 2023). "Toronto Hidden Gem: 'Boy Kills World' Faced Battles Onscreen and Off". The Hollywood Reporter. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved November 18, 2023.
- ^ Grater, Tom (October 7, 2021). "Bill Skarsgard, Samara Weaving & Yayan Ruhian Starring In Boy Kills World; Sam Raimi & Roy Lee Producing". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on October 7, 2021. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
- ^ Grater, Tom (October 28, 2021). "Isaiah Mustafa Boards Action Pic Boy Kills World". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on October 28, 2021. Retrieved October 28, 2021.
- ^ Kroll, Justin (January 10, 2022). "Andrew Koji Joins Bill Skarsgard And Samara Weaving In Boy Kills World". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 10, 2022. Retrieved January 10, 2022.
- ^ a b Kit, Borys (January 11, 2022). "Jessica Rothe Replaces Samara Weaving in Action-Thriller Boy Kills World". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on January 12, 2022. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
- ^ Raimi Productions (February 14, 2022). Let's go !!!. South Africa Cape Town. Retrieved February 15, 2022 – via Instagram.
- ^ Grobar, Matt (March 7, 2022). "Famke Janssen, Brett Gelman, Sharlto Copley & More Join Action-Thriller Boy Kills World From Producer Sam Raimi". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on August 17, 2022. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
- ^ Kroll, Justin (March 10, 2022). "Michelle Dockery Joins Action-Thriller Boy Kills World". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on March 19, 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
- ^ Eklecty-City (August 16, 2023). "Ludvig Forssell, le compositeur de jeux vidéo, fait ses débuts au cinéma avec Boy Kills World". Eklecty-City (in French). Archived from the original on August 16, 2023. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
- ^ Complex, Valerie (August 3, 2023). "TIFF Unveils Cinematic First Looks With Discovery And Midnight Madness Program; World Premieres Include Hell Of A Summer, Gonzo Girl, Widow Clicquot, And Boy Kills World". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on August 31, 2023. Retrieved August 3, 2023.
- ^ D’Alessandro, Anthony (January 23, 2024). "Lionsgate & Roadside Attractions Acquire TIFF Midnight Madness Movie 'Boy Kills World' Starring Bill Skarsgård, Michelle Dockery". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
- ^ "Boy Kills World". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ "Boy Kills World". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
External links
- Official website
- Boy Kills World at IMDb
- v
- t
- e
| Feature |
|
|---|---|
| Short |
|
- Easy Wheels (1989)
- The Nutt House (1992)
- The Hudsucker Proxy (1994, also second unit director)
- Man with the Screaming Brain (2005, co-story)
- Timecop (1994)
- The Grudge (2004)
- Boogeyman (2005)
- The Grudge 2 (2006)
- The Messengers (2007)
- 30 Days of Night (2007)
- The Possession (2012)
- Evil Dead (2013)
- Murder of a Cat (2014)
- Poltergeist (2015)
- Don't Breathe (2016)
- Crawl (2019)
- The Grudge (2020)
- The Unholy (2021)
- Don't Breathe 2 (2021)
- Nightbooks (2021)
- Umma (2022)
- 65 (2023)
- Boy Kills World (2023)
- Don't Move (TBA)
- Ghost House Pictures
- Ted Raimi (brother)
- Ivan Raimi (brother)
Portals:
Film
Germany
South Africa
United States
Speculative fiction
2020s
