A24 pride itself on offbeat films that catch the mood of the moment. They are cultural tastemakers, and while they don’t always get it right, more often than not they’re spot on. It doesn’t take a genius to see why they were interested in the weird dark comedy-horror Death of a Unicorn. First of all, the film stars the immensely popular duo of Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega. Second, it’s produced by Ari Aster whose fans are likely to trust anything he’s willing to put his name on.
Death of a Unicorn stars Rudd and Ortega as a father and daughter who accidentally hit and kill one of the titular mythical beasts on their way to a weekend retreat, where his billionaire boss decides he wants to exploit the dead creature’s magical curative properties. However, the unicorn has family, and they want revenge against these unscrupulous fat cats.
The film marks the debut from writer/director Alex Scharfman, a well-known Hollywood producer. Also in the cast are Richard E. Grant, Téa Leoni, Will Poulter, Anthony Carrigan, Sunita Mani, Jessica Hynes, and Steve Park.
A24 will release Death of a Unicorn in spring 2025. Don’t be surprised if it plays a festival or two before then. I’m surprised it’s not at Sundance.
SYNOPSIS: A father (Paul Rudd) and daughter (Jenna Ortega) accidentally hit and kill a unicorn while en route to a weekend retreat, where his billionaire boss (Richard E. Grant) seeks to exploit the creature’s miraculous curative properties.
