Later this month, Netflix will release the first of Wes Anderson’s four Roald Dahl shorts, The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar. Following the film’s world premiere at Venice, we’re now learning how Netflix plans to debut the entire anthology, and it’s not as one might expect.
In a new post on Netflix’s TUDUM site, it was revealed that Netflix will release each of Anderson’s four shorts as part of a four-night event beginning with The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar on September 27th.
The remaining shorts are The Swan on September 28th, The Ratcatcher on September 29th, and Poison on September 30th.
Ralph Fiennes, Rupert Friend, Benedict Cumberbatch, Dev Patel, Richard Ayoade, and Ben Kingsley will star in each of the films playing multiple characters, in true Wes Anderson fashion.
“I like the idea, right off the bat, of having a little company play the whole film,” Anderson said. “They took it and did it. You hand it to them, and then you step back and watch.”
Here’s a breakdown of each film below.
“The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar”
Logline: A beloved Roald Dahl short story about a rich man who learns about a guru who can see without using his eyes and then sets out to master the skill in order to cheat at gambling.
Cast: Ralph Fiennes (Roald Dahl, Policeman), Benedict Cumberbatch (Henry Sugar, Max Engelman), Dev Patel (Dr. Chatterjee, John Winston), Ben Kingsley (Imdad Khan, Croupier), Richard Ayoade (Dr. Marshall, Yogi)
Runtime: 39 minutes
“The Swan”
Logline: A young adult Roald Dahl short story about a small/brilliant boy ruthlessly pursued by two large/idiotic bullies.
Cast: Rupert Friend (Narrator), Ralph Fiennes (Roald Dahl), Asa Jennings (Peter Watson)
Runtime: 17 minutes
“The Ratcatcher”
Logline: A lesser-known Roald Dahl short story about a professional rodent exterminator.
Cast: Richard Ayoade (Editor/Reporter), Ralph Fiennes (Rat Man), Rupert Friend (Claud)
Runtime: 17 minutes
“Poison”
Logline: A well-known Roald Dahl short story about a man who discovers a poisonous snake asleep in his bed.
Cast: Dev Patel (Woods), Benedict Cumberbatch (Harry), Ralph Fiennes (Roald Dahl), Ben Kingsley (Dr. Ganderbai)
Runtime: 17 minutes
