The sci-fi thriller Companion is coming our way from writer/director Drew Hancock and the team behind the 2022 horror hit Barbarian (which is pictured above, since we haven’t seen any images from this movie yet)… but even though nearly a year has passed since the project assembled its cast and went into production, we still know very little about it. It has managed to stay shrouded in secrecy all this time. Which is a good thing, since its release date is still several months away. Deadline broke the news that Companion won’t be reaching theatres (including IMAX screens) until January 10, 2025.
That release date gives Companion a one week head-start on Blumhouse Productions and director Leigh Whannell’s reboot of the classic Universal Monsters property Wolf Man.
New Line Cinema went all-in on a partnership with Barbarian (watch it HERE) writer/director Zach Cregger and the film’s producers at BoulderLight Pictures. New Line came out the winner in a bidding war over Cregger’s next film, a mysterious horror project called Weapons. They signed a first look deal with BoulderLight Pictures, tasking the company with developing high concept genre projects for them. And they gave the greenlight to Companion, which is being produced by BoulderLight and Cregger.
Hancock wrote the screenplay for Companion, and Cregger was so impressed by it that he considered making the film his directorial follow-up to Barbarian. Instead, Hancock makes his feature directorial debut with Companion while Cregger focuses on Weapons. The cast of Companion includes Jack Quaid (Scream 2022), Harvey Guillén (What We Do in the Shadows), Lukas Gage (You), Megan Suri (Never Have I Ever), Rupert Friend (Asteroid City), and Sophie Thatcher (The Boogeyman).
Details on the plot are being kept completely under wraps, but The Hollywood Reporter heard that the makers of Companion are describing it as being “self-contained”. Hancock’s previous writing credits include episodes of Supah Ninjas, Blue Mountain State, Fred: The Show, Suburgatory, Faking It, Mr. Pickles, and My Dead Ex (which he co-created), as well as the movie Fred 3: Camp Fred. While he has never directed a movie before, he has directed episodes of Acceptable TV and Jimmy Kimmel Live!, as well as a Tenacious D music video.
Cregger is producing Companion with Raphael Margules and J.D. Lifshitz of BoulderLight Pictures, as well as Roy Lee of Vertigo. BoulderLight’s Tracy Rosenblum and Vertigo’s Andrew Childs serve as executive producers.
Even though the project is shrouded in secrecy, The Hollywood Reporter was able to dig up the fact that Thatcher’s character is “more than meets the eye”. They’ve also heard that Friend’s character doesn’t live up to the actor’s last name.
The Motion Picture Association ratings board has already given Companion an R rating for strong violence, sexual content, and language throughout.
Are you interested in Companion? What do you think of the film getting a January 2025 release date? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
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