Netflix’s 3-Part Detective Series Has Such A Good Cast, It’ll Never Be Topped

Netflix’s three-part detective franchise has such an impressive cast that it’s unlikely anything else will ever beat it. Netflix has been able to lure in A-list talent since it started producing original content, with major names like Jane Fonda, Ted Danson, Drew Barrymore, Rita Moreno, Olivia Colman, Lucy Liu, Giancarlo Esposito, and many more lending their star power to various Netflix movies and shows.

Still, some of Netflix’s best franchises started without the streamer’s backing: the company has a solid eye for saving compelling shows and buying the rights to star-studded new movie sagas. This includes 2019’s sleeper hit, Knives Out, the beginning of a new detective franchise created by Rian Johnson and starring James Bond himself, Daniel Craig. The original Knives Out film earned over $300 million at the worldwide box office on a reported $40 million budget, netting a hefty profit for distributor Lionsgate (via Box Office Mojo).

While Daniel Craig’s new Sherlockian, Agatha Christie-esque detective, Benoit Blanc, was (and remains) an undeniable highlight of the first Knives Out movie, the rest of the cast was just as impressive. With legendary and fresh new stars like Christopher Plummer, Jamie Lee Curtis, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Lakeith Stanfield, Don Jonson, and Toni Collette rounding out the ensemble, Rian Johnson proved the enduring popularity of the murder mystery genre. With the right story, characters, and on-screen talent to bring it to life, even new detectives can find an audience in the genre’s oversaturated landscape.

Since Netflix bought the rights to Johnson’s next two Benoit Blanc stories, the streamer and the director have done their utmost to ensure every ensemble cast was as impressive as the last. The second Knives Out movie, Glass Onion, featured a great range of actors, including but certainly not limited to Janelle Monáe, Edward Norton, Kate Hudson, Leslie Odom Jr., Katherine Hahn, and Jessica Henwick, while the most recent third installment, Wake Up Dead Man, introduced an intriguing mix of iconic and fresh performers, including the incredible Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Josh O’Connor, Kerry Washington, Jeremy Renner, and Andrew Scott.

Few movie franchises, but especially those on Netflix, boast the same caliber of talent. Johnson truly created something special with Knives Out, and it’s been great to see it maintain its legacy on the world’s biggest streaming platform.

Knives Out’s Revolving Cast Means It Can Last Forever

What makes Knives Out such an anomaly is that the franchise’s high-profile cast doesn’t distract from the story or Craig’s leading performance as Benoit Blanc. The casting choices don’t feel like a gimmick or like Johnson and Netflix are trying to profit from an actor’s fame. Each star embodies their part perfectly, whether it’s Chris Evans’ hilarious, anti-Captain America performance as Ransom Drysdale, Edward Norton’s pitch-perfect portrayal of a narcissistic, tech-bro billionaire, or Glenn Close’s stunningly tragic role as devout parishioner Martha Delacroix.

Since each new mystery requires a new ensemble, the Knives Out franchise can potentially last forever. There are no limits. Different settings and themes require different kinds of actors. Glass Onion‘s cast and Wake Up Dead Man‘s cast couldn’t be more different; they’re both undeniably talented, but they fulfilled contrasting roles. Josh Brolin would have felt out of place in Glass Onion‘s glossy, private-island setting, and Kate Hudson wouldn’t have fit in Wake Up Dead Man‘s small-town vicarage, either.

The Knives Out franchise could potentially even outlive Daniel Craig’s tenure as Benoit Blanc. While Craig’s performance is a massive part of what’s made Knives Out such a success, Benoit Blanc has the characterization and staying power of fellow world-famous detectives like Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Jules Maigret, and Miss Marple. Those characters have been reinterpreted countless times in different generations, and yet audiences can never get enough. Right now, Benoit Blanc is Daniel Craig’s role, just as James Bond was once his. If Sherlock Holmes can survive literal hundreds of on-screen interpretations, who’s to say Benoit Blanc can’t overcome one, or two, or 10?

That’s the beauty of the murder mystery genre and detective fiction, in particular. The settings, the characters, the crimes, and the actors may all change, but the heart of the story remains the same. With Knives Out, Rian Johnson has created one of the most refreshing new detective franchises in years. Whether it’ll keep being marketed as Knives Out or will one day simply become known as “The Benoit Blanc Mysteries,” surely the industry’s biggest talent will keep wanting to join the sleuthing fun.

Latest Film

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

Upcoming Films

Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery

Movie(s)

Knives Out, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery