Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is the third installment in the popular Knives Out franchise with Daniel Craig reprising his role as Detective Benoit Blanc

Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is the third installment in Rian Johnson’s blockbuster Knives Out franchise, reuniting viewers with Daniel Craig’s beloved Kentucky Fried detective character Benoit Blanc.

The film features an A-list ensemble cast and tells the story of a priest and former boxer named Jud Duplenticy, played by Josh O’Connor, who is transferred to a new church run by Josh Brolin’s Monsignor Jefferson Wick, the cult-of-personality preacher with a flock of faithful followers at the center of the film’s mystery.

While Wake Up Dead Man is beautifully shot, the plot, inspired by the locked-room mystery subgenre of crime fiction, takes so many twists and turns that, at 2 hours and 20 minutes, it starts to feel redundant and, well, preachy.

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Wake Up Dead man had its world premiere at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival on September 6. I happened to catch the film in a beautiful 35mm print at the Paris Theater in New York City, which is owned by Netflix. Following a limited theatrical run, Wake Up Dead Man will premiere on Netflix on December 12.

Along with Craig, O’Connor, and Brolin, the film also stars Glenn Close, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Cailee Spaeny, Daryl McCormack, and Thomas Hayden Church.

Overall, the mystery at hand is a fresh take on the genre that incorporates heavy commentary on religion and capitalism, while exploring themes such as faith versus logic and greed versus sacrifice, among others.

The acting is fantastic, as expected with such a stellar cast, but there may be one too many characters, which means the audience only gets a surface-level understanding of who they are and what potential motives they may have as suspects.

The push and pull between Detective Blanc’s logical sensibility and Father Jud’s more faith-based ethos is a welcome contrast that keeps the story moving along. What the film lacks, however, is some of the silliness of the first two films. There are some lighthearted and cheeky moments, but part of what makes the Knives Out franchise such a great blend of good old-fashioned mystery and timely social commentary is the use of humor as parody.

There are some good zingers here and there, but an overall sense of heaviness looms over the film, which could be alleviated by more moments of levity.

One of the most enjoyable aspects of the movie and the franchise as a whole is how it both leans into and subverts the genre’s tropes. There’s a Scooby Doo reference, Benoit using a magnifying glass, an overt reference to the 1935 novel The Hollow Man, and so many bait-and-switch moments that are what make the Knives Out movies so satisfying to watch unravel.

While “Wake Up Dead Man” is a fun watch, it does not quite live up to the first film. The story is a bit convoluted at times, and takes so many twists and turns it’ll leave you feeling whiplashed, not to mention how heavy-handed the commentary and metaphor are when you’re being hit over the head with it. Even the bible had editors.

While it’s not as good as the first installment, Wake Up Dead Man is definitely worth watching, especially for mystery lovers.

We caught up with the franchise’s star, Daniel Craig, on the red carpet at the world premiere of the film at TIFF and asked him how many times he planned to play Benoit Blanc after starring as James Bond in five films. Playing coy, she shrugged and answered, “Five! I don’t know!” So, it’s possible that we may see more of Benoit Blanc in the future.

Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is now playing in select theaters and premieres on Netflix on December 12.

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