Star-studded cast explains ‘Knives Out’ sequel’s reason for being

Daniel Craig (center) with the cast of “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” —PHOTO COURTESY OF NETFLIX

In 2019’s “Knives Out,” Detective Benoit Blanc, played by Daniel Craig, had to sift through a string of dead-ends and red herrings to investigate the death of a famous crime novelist (Christopher Plummer) after he celebrates his 85th birthday.

The film earned universal acclaim for its clever but tightly wound screenplay—which received an Oscar nomination—and for the portrayals of its star-studded cast.

But the movie had another significance for its lead star: It launched another spy-themed franchise for Daniel after he wrapped up his five-film stint as James Bond 007 in last year’s “No Time to Die.”

In the COVID-era set thriller “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery,” which will be streamed on Netflix beginning today, there’s more of that exhilarating, edge-of-your-seat frenzy, with writer-director Rian Johnson still at the helm.

Part of the titillation of screen whodunits is figuring out the relationships fueling the group dynamic that exists among the “suspects.” For that reason, we’ll avoid discussing too much of the details here. Suffice it to say that in this installment, Benoit “gatecrashes” a private get-together arranged by tech billionaire Miles Bron (Edward Norton). The quirky entrepreneur has flown his friends and colleagues to a secluded island in Greece to play a game and solve a mystery. But much of the fun that Miles had anticipated flies out the window as soon as “party pooper” Benoit solves the case shortly thereafter.

But the real excitement begins when one of the guests is murdered—and all hell breaks loose!

Fun challenge

At the press conference for “Glass Onion” that Inquirer Entertainment attended, the 49-year-old Oscar-nominated screenwriter-director (“Star Wars: The Last Jedi,” “Breaking Bad”) explained the “fun” challenge of bringing the new film to life.

“It was challenging, but even when Daniel and I were making the first one, we were just having such a good time,” Rian said. “We thought, ‘If this does even moderately well, it’d be really fun to keep making these.’

“But the mode in which we were thinking to keep making them was always not to continue the story of the first one, but to treat them the way Agatha Christie treated her books … to do an entirely new mystery every time, with a new location and a new rogues’ gallery of characters.

“Also, as any fan of Agatha Christie would know, she really shook it up from book to book. It’s not just a change of whodunit—she was mixing genres and throwing crazy narrative spins that had never been done in whodunits before. She was really keeping the audience on their toes.”

Keeping Rian company at the press con were producer Ram Bergman and cast members Norton, Kate Hudson (supermodel-turned-fashion designer Birdie Jay), Madelyn Cline (Whiskey, Duke’s girlfriend), Jessica Henwick (Peg, Birdie assistant), Leslie Odom Jr. (scientist Lionel Toussaint), Kathryn Hahn (Connecticut Governor Claire Debella) and Janelle Monae in a dual role (as Helen Brand and her sister Andi, who is Miles’ estranged business partner). At the time of the press con, Daniel was “feeling unwell,” while Dave Bautista, who plays men’s rights activist Duke Cody, was shooting a film in Poland.

Getting the role

While the movie is inhabited by A-listers and top supporting actors, the roles haven’t been handed to them on a silver platter.

Kate, for one, admitted that she “chased” Rian to get a foot in the door.

“I chased Rian,” she disclosed. “I was slipped the script (laughs), so we knew that this part was going to be cast. I was like, ‘Get me in the room!’ And Rian said, ‘Sure, come on in. Let’s see what you can do with Birdie.’ And I did my best, and my best seemed to find me here.”For Rian, while the idea of casting an ensemble of great actors seemed like a gargantuan task, the true challenge was to hire those who can work well with each other.

“It’s as simple as getting the best actors you can possibly get,” he quipped. “I mean, my head spins when I think about the fact that we were able to get this group together. We know we’re going to be on location and we’ll all be stuck together for a while. So, you have to cast cool people who are hopefully going to get along and have a good time.”

Kathryn noted, “It did feel like we all had known each other forever, immediately. There was a real sense of egolessness on the part of all of these humans. [And] we really did get to spend every single day together.

“For the most part, we ate lunches together. It felt very much like we were in a theater ensemble. And starting with Daniel, who had been through this before, there was such a welcoming generosity of spirit for every single person on set.

“There were so many shots where the camera was on one person, but if you turned it around, you’ll see the rest of us all crowded around behind the camera [rooting for the one in front of it]! It was pretty remarkable and hilarious!”

Leslie, a theater vet, agreed, “You really can’t lead from the bottom or middle of the call sheet, you know? I’ve had a couple of opportunities to be a part of great ensembles, particularly with [the stage musical] ‘Hamilton’ and [the acclaimed film] ‘One Night in Miami’—and this is one of the best. But it’s impossible to achieve without leadership—it happens from the top down. It was really Rian and Daniel and Ram who made it feel creative and permissive and fun.”

Indeed, while the movie has some dark and deadly themes at the center of its storytelling engine, its cast also had a grand time creating it as they were interacting happily with each other… like Edward Norton.

Asked if he felt like he had license to go to some extreme fun places with his character, Edward said, “I mean, when someone like Rian calls and says, ‘I’m basically going to run a summer camp for deeply unserious people, and I need people who are willing to ham it up,’ [you don’t say no].

‘When you’re with a group of people and it becomes apparent that the words ‘repetitive’ and ‘boring’ have never been applied to any of them, it’s just… a lot of fun!

“For a lot of us who came into this through theater or the idea of being in a repertory company, it has a special pleasure. It reminds you of your high school drama club… for those of us who were dorky enough to be in the high school drama club.

“But there’s a funny irony to making films or doing theater, which is really made up of a bunch of adults playing dress up and pretending to be other people (laughs).

“It’s amazing how much seriousness we layer over that in so many of the things we do. So, when you strip that off and liberate yourself from any pretention to be doing anything other than entertaining the audience or yourselves, it’s incredibly wonderful! And after a year and a half in your pajamas, it’s especially great.”

Janelle, whose character is a crucial piece of the puzzle, said, “I am a fan of everybody here, and being able to work with Rian is a dream… because this is a character that you get to play with as an actor. It has so many layers, so mysterious. It took a lot of focus from me.

“So, there were moments where the cast was out having a blast after they did their scenes, and maybe I was in a corner upset, jealous, mad. [Pause] No, no, no, I wasn’t! Hey, we were in Greece, so what can I complain about, you know?

“But what I got was an opportunity to grow as an actor and, along the way, gain what I’d like to call a ‘family.’”