Everything you need to know about the new Netflix thriller starring John David Washington and Alicia Vikander.

By Patrick Cremona

Published: Tuesday, 03 August 2021 at 12:00 am

---

Spending your holiday trying to distance yourself from a deadly political conspiracy doesn’t exactly sound like the most relaxing of breaks, but that’s the fate that awaits John David Washington’s title character in brand new Netflix thriller Beckett.

The film is directed by Italian filmmaker Ferdinando Cito Filomarino and boasts Call Me By Your Name director Luca Guadagnino as an executive producer – read on for everything you need to know about the film, including when you can watch it on Netflix and who stars in the cast.

Beckett release date

After premiering at the Locarno Film Festival on 4th August, Beckett will arrive on Netflix on Friday 13th August 2021.

Beckett cast

BlackKklansman and Tenet star John David Washington lands another leading role in the film as the titular protagonist, while support comes in the shape of Narcos star Boyd Holbrook as US embassy employee Agent Tynan, Academy Award winner Alicia Vikander as Beckett’s girlfriend and Phantom Thread’s Vicky Kreips – who recently starred in M. Night Shyamalan’s thriller Old – as political activist Lena.

Other members of the cast include Daphne Alexander (The Ghost), Panos Koronis (Before Midnight), Yorgos Pirpassopoulos (Chevalier), Olga Spyraki, and Lena Kitsopoulou.

Speaking about his character Tynan, Holbrook has said: “Agent Tynan is not who he appears to be on the surface. He’s a much more layered and complex character, as we come to find out he’s more of a wolf in sheep’s clothing. And ethically and morally he kind of resides in more of a grey area in terms of what he has to do for his agency and the government and it’s a really interesting turn that he has in terms of the character.”

Beckett plot

The film follows the titular Beckett, an American tourist who gets drawn into a political conspiracy after he’s involved in a tragic car crash in Greece. And as he desperately tries to reach the US embassy while being pursued by various forces, Beckett becomes more and more embroiled in the conspiracy.

Speaking about the film, director  Ferdinando Cito Filomarino, who also has a story credit, said: “Beckett is about an ordinary man who while on vacation in Greece has a tragic car accident and while dealing with its aftermath finds himself at the center of a deadly political conspiracy.

He said that the inspiration for the film comes from a “Frankenstein of ingredients” from a huge range of books and movies, many of which are set in a “political theatre”.

“Stealing from these ingredients and trying to find something that’s more, I would say, relatable – I wanted to see what if we take these ingredients but place an ordinary man who is not a spy and who is not equipped to deal with the situations that these characters are usually equipped with in these movies,” he said.

“And to quote an example, North by Northwest, talking about tone, is quite dreamlike – because all the things that happen to the character are so extreme they’re almost absurd and funny. And I went about it from the opposite direction to try and establish a thing that’s grounded, and the Greece that the film is set in and everything that happens to Beckett always has a feeling of reality to it that’s tangible.”

Beckett trailer

You can check out a trailer for the film below, which offers a first look at the difficult situation Beckett finds himself in – as he wakes up in a hospital bed unable to find his girlfriend, before finding himself shot at and seeking help from some political activists. It certainly looks tense!

Beckett is released on Netflix on Friday 13th August 2021. Looking for something else to watch? Check out our guide to the best TV series on Netflix and best movies on Netflix visit our TV Guide to see what’s on tonight or check out more of our Film coverage.

---