The 69th BFI London Film Festival (LFF) will open with the international premiere of Rian Johnson’s Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery on Wednesday, October 8.
The Netflix title will play as the opening night gala at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall in London, as well as in partner cinemas around the UK.
“The film features incredible British and international talent on and off screen who bring a sense of play and verve to the screen, to craft a film that twists, turns and will keep audiences guessing to the final frame,” said LFF director Kristy Matheson.
Wake Up Dead Man sees Daniel Craig’s detective Benoit Blanc unravel his latest murder mystery in an as-yet-undisclosed setting. The location of the film’s world premiere has not yet been announced.
The cast also includes Josh O’Connor, Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Cailee Spaeny, Daryl McCormack and Thomas Haden Church.
“London is the birthplace of the golden age of detective fiction and it’s a thrill to be back,: said Johnson, who also produced the film through T-Street, the company he runs with Ram Bergman.
Netlfix in London
Wake Up Dead Man is the third Netflix film to open LFF following The Harder They Fall (2021) and Matilda: The Musical (2022).
It is also the third of the three Knives Out films to play the festival, after Knives Out in 2019 and festival closer Glass Onion in 2022. That was one of three Netflix titles to close the festival to date.
Wake Up Dead Man starts streaming on Netflix from December 12. Netflix has not yet confirmed a theatrical release for the title, although Johnson has expressed his wish for the film to play in “as many theatres as possible.”
The full LFF programme will be unveiled on Wednesday, September 3, with tickets on sale from September 16.
LFF 2025 runs from October 8-19.