Howdy, pardner, whatcha seein’ on that there TikTok? For his next movie, Eddington, Ari Aster (Midsommar, Hereditary) is once again teaming up with A24, this time for an modern-age western. Just like he did for Beau Is Afraid, Aster is writing and directing, in addition to co-producing with Lars Knudsen. Oscar-nominated cinematographer Darius Khondji will be the director of photography, changing the formula from Pawel Pogorzelski who worked on all of Aster’s previous features. The film has a slew of big stars, a lot of menacing vibes, and it’s set during COVID lockdowns, just in case Aster’s movies weren’t already stressful enough. Below, find everything the sheriff’s investigation has turned up about Eddington.
Show me the trailer.
Pedro Pascal and Joaquin Phoenix are realizing “This town ain’t big enough for the both of us.” In the June 10 trailer, Pascal plays the mayor of the town of Eddington, running for reelection during COVID lockdown, and Phoenix plays his opponent, the sheriff. There’s also a hefty focus on the internet in the trailer. A livestream captures a shooting, for example. And Emma Stone’s character is exclusively seen through a phone. In his mayoral campaign, Phoenix promises to “take back our community” and “save our souls.” Wait, aren’t movies supposed to be an escape?
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What’s Eddington about?
Set in May 2020, Eddington follows the mayoral race between Ted Garcia (Pascal) and Joe Cross (Phoenix) in the midst of the most-intense times during lockdown. The race gets ugly enough that it sets off an intra-town war. This is all magnified by the characters’ various interactions with internet culture, from Black Lives Matter activists to conspiracy theorists.
Who’s in the cast?
Other than leads Pascal and Phoenix, the cast includes Emma Stone as Louise Cross, Phoenix’s fragile wife, and Deirdre O’Connell as her conspiracy-ridden mother. Austin Butler plays a pedophile-ring-conspiracy-peddling influencer, whom Louise becomes obsessed with, named Vernon. Luke Grimes is Phoenix’s deputy Luke, who becomes increasingly racist amid BLM protests, and begins treating a Black colleague, played by Micheal Ward, suspiciously. Other cast members include Amélie Hoeferle as Sarah, Clifton Collins Jr. as Lodge, and William Belleau as Officer Jiminez Butterfly.
When is it coming out?
Eddington made its debut at Cannes Film Festival on May 16. In her review from Cannes, Vulture critic Alison Willmore wrote “Eddington is surprisingly sharp with its granular culture-war details,” but “I’m honestly not sure I’d even say I liked it.” Everybody else can doomscroll back to 2020 when Eddington opens in wide release on July 18.
