Rian Johnson has revealed an important plot detail about Knives Out 3.
Knives Out 3, also known as Wake Up Dead Man and Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, arrives on Netflix later this year. The film is once again directed by Johnson and will see Daniel Craig reprise his role as Benoit Blanc.
What did Rian Johnson say about Knives Out 3?
In the first Knives Out movie, Craig’s Benoit worked closely with a character played by Ana de Armas, Marta, to solve the mystery of Harlan Thrombey’s death. Then, in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, Blanc was paired with Janelle Monáe’s Helen for most of the movie.
Speaking with Empire Magazine, Johnson has revealed that Craig’s character will be partnered with Josh O’Connor’s Father Jud in Knives Out 3.
“He ends up partnering with Blanc on solving this mystery; it’s very much [Jud’s] journey,” Johnson said.
The writer and director further said that Blanc “has the biggest personal journey in this one. Benoit has to engage with [the mystery] in a different way. He’s in a very different place than in the previous two films. Daniel and I had a lot of fun thinking about where Blanc is at in his life. And I think he’s going through some s—!
“…Blanc is seeing it as, ‘It’s just a murder, I can solve this.’ The way the murder presents itself is the opposite of that. It’s framed as an impossible thing that could never have happened, almost miraculous in nature. And Blanc, as the rationalist, is coming in to do what he does, and prove that wrong.”
The cast of Knives Out 3 also includes Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Cailee Spaeny, Daryl McCormack, and Thomas Haden Church.
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery will be released on Netflix on December 12, 2025.
