What You Should Know About the Murder and Suspects in “Wake Up, Dead Man: The Mystery of the Knives”

efore the premiere screening of Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery at the Toronto International Film Festival, director Rian Johnson warned that it wasn’t going to be exactly like the previous two installments of the franchise.

Ahead of the premiere of Wake, Dead Man: The Mystery of the Knives at the Toronto International Film Festival, director Rian Johnson warned that it won’t be quite like the previous two installments in the series.

“We’re going back to church,” he said.

Johnson’s new film represents a departure from Wake, Dead Man (2019) and The Glass Onion (2022). While Wake, Dead Man was comforting and The Glass Onion was glitzy with a luxurious holiday feel, Wake, Dead Man is a retreat into the gothic realm. It’s still a bit funny, but it’s more sinister in spirit, with serious reflections on the meaning of faith. It also allows Daniel Craig’s beloved Southern detective Benoit Blanc to be in the background. Here’s what to expect from the film, which hits theaters in November before hitting Netflix on December 12.

What’s the setup?

Wake Up, Dead Man is set in a Catholic parish in the fictional upstate New York town of Chimney Rock, called Our Lady of Perpetual Fortitude. There, the narrator, Father Jude Duplantis (Josh O’Connor), is sent after punching a deacon in his previous post. Our Lady of Perpetual Fortitude is run by the vicious and mischievous Reverend Jefferson Weeks (Josh Brolin). (In his first confession to Jude, Weeks talks about his constant masturbation.) Weeks inherited the church from his grandfather, who shamed Jefferson’s mother as a “whore.” Father Jude and Reverend Weeks immediately clash: Jude sees faith as salvation, having turned to it after causing the death of a fellow boxer in his youth, while Weeks uses shame in his preaching. Weeks also has a devoted following, who hang on his every word. Then, of course, Weeks is murdered on Good Friday, bringing Benoit Blanc into the picture.

Who are the suspects?

Naturally, there’s once again an all-star cast of would-be killers. Jude O’Connor and Brolin, the conflicting priests, are among the group, but there’s also a group of Wicks’ followers. Glenn Close is chillingly good as Martha, a servant at the Church of Perpetual Fortitude since childhood, who now wears all black and keeps the church’s books. Samson, the devoted gardener, played by Thomas Haden Church, adores her. Then there are Wicks’s female admirers. Jeremy Renner is Nat Sharp, the doctor whose wife left him and in whom Wicks encourages a growing misogyny. Kerry Washington is Vera Draven, the lawyer whose father was close to Wicks. Her father also burdened her with caring for his illegitimate son, Cy (Daryl McCormack), a zealous Republican candidate who doesn’t hesitate to use any political rhetoric to succeed. Andrew Scott shines as Lee Ross, the formerly beloved science fiction writer who has moved to this remote area to escape the “liberal group mentality.” Finally, Cailee Spaeny plays a talented cellist suffering from chronic pain who turns to Wick, believing he can provide her with a miracle.

How does Benoit Blanc figure in?

Blanc is called into town to solve the murder, but the film quickly becomes a two-hander between Craig and O’Connor. In fact, Blanc has a smaller part to play than he does in any of the previous installments. If anything, Wake Up Dead Man is O’Connor’s movie. Blanc largely stands on the sidelines as Father Jud drives the action. And it’s his moral journey with which Johnson’s script is preoccupied. He is a man who earnestly believes in his faith, yet has deeply recognizable struggles with anger and hatred. Whereas Wicks uses fear to manipulate, Jud recognizes how humans need belief as solace. Yes, Blanc helps solve the mystery, but the character you care about above all is Father Jud.

What are its influences?

During his introduction, Johnson explained that Wake Up Dead Man pays tribute to a hero of the mystery genre: Edgar Allan Poe. Later, in a post-screening Q&A, Johnson acknowledged his debt to the Father Brown mysteries by G. K. Chesterton. “I think it’s a really great kind of peanut butter and chocolate fit, the notions of human grace and fallibility and all of those things in the murder mystery genre,” he said. The movie itself also provides a syllabus of sorts. Blanc specifically acts out moments from John Dickson Carr’s The Hollow Man to illustrate the impossibility of the crime. That is on a parishioners’ book club reading list that also includes a number of titles by Agatha Christie, a frequent touchstone for these films.

Why this swerve?

Wake Up Dead Man is a little less breezy than the other Knives Out films, drawing its audience into genuine meditations on why humans choose to dedicate themselves to religion. At the Q&A, Johnson said that at the London premiere of Glass Onion he and Craig started discussing how it would be fun to do something for their third collaboration “with this darker tone and something a little more grounded.” It’s an attempt to show the range of these films, though this is perhaps the last one for a while. Netflix bought only two sequels to Knives Out in its 2021 $450 million deal. In July, Johnson told Rolling Stone that he doesn’t have an idea for a fourth in his head, but “I would keep doing them as long as I can.”

How does Benoit Blanc appear in the film?

Blanc is called to the city to solve the murder, but the film quickly turns into a confrontation between Craig and O’Connor. In fact, Blanc’s role is smaller than in any of the previous films. On the contrary, Wake, Dead Man is O’Connor’s film. Blanc often stands on the sidelines while Father Jude drives the action. Johnson’s screenplay is preoccupied with his moral journey. He is a man of strong faith, yet he struggles with deep conflicts with anger and hatred. While Weeks uses fear to manipulate, Jude understands the human need for faith as a means of entertainment. While Blanc helps solve the mystery, the character who matters most is Father Jude.

What are the film’s influences?

During his introduction, Johnson explained that Wake, Dead Man pays homage to a mystery hero: Edgar Allan Poe. Later, in a Q&A session after the screening, Johnson acknowledged his debt to G.K. Chesterton’s “Father Brown” mystery novels. “I think it’s a wonderful blend of peanut butter and chocolate, notions of human tenderness and fallibility, and everything that goes with a crime mystery,” he said. The film itself also offers a curriculum of sorts. Blank, in particular, uses moments from John Dickson Carr’s The Hollow Man to illustrate the impossibility of the crime. The novel is on the parish’s book club reading list, which also includes several Agatha Christie novels, a staple of these films.

Why this deviation?

“Wake, Dead Man” is less flamboyant than the “Other Knives” films, drawing its audience into genuine reflections on why humans choose to dedicate themselves to religion. During the Q&A, Johnson said that at the London premiere of Glass Onion, he and Craig began discussing how much fun it would be to make their third collaboration “in a more gritty, realistic way.” It’s an attempt to showcase the diversity of these films, even though this may be their last for a while. Netflix bought only two sequels to “Knives Out” in a $450 million deal in 2021. In July, Johnson told Rolling Stone that he had no idea about a fourth film, but that he would “keep it going as long as I can.”