The first look at Steven Soderbergh’s latest movie KIMI has landed, with the trailer teasing an unusual witnessing of a murder, an Alexa-like virtual assistant who probably shouldn’t be trusted, and Zoë Kravitz with blue hair.
Kravitz, who will be taking on the role of Catwoman in the upcoming The Batman, helms the project as Angela Child, a voice stream interpreter who overhears a murder while analysing a recording.
However, when she reaches out to her employers, they don’t seem particularly keen on pursuing the matter. In fact, quite the opposite.
The thriller will premiere exclusively on HBO Max on 10th February. There is no word yet as to when or where we might see it in the UK, but given the US streamer’s ongoing partnership with Sky and NOW, it’s likely we won’t have to wait too long before it arrives this side of the pond.
In the meantime, you can check out the trailer below.
Interestingly, Soderbergh was inspired by a real-life murder case involving Amazon Echo recordings as potential evidence, which the judge ordered the company to hand over.
Soderbergh, whose previous directing credits include Contagion, Side Effects and Unsane, explained the inspiration further during a chat with IGN.
He said: “I’m just sort of stunned that people allow these devices in their homes at all. The idea that it is only ‘activated’ when you speak to it and activated is just ridiculous to me. I mean, the idea of just having no privacy. There’s no ‘get’ for me that would make it worth it. I was interested in working with a story in which that is a central question. Is it worth it to have one of these things in your home?”
He added: “These companies function like governments and like countries, they’re that big. These are incredibly powerful influential entities. Run by people who are not elected and yet have arguably as much or more control over our daily lives than our government does.
“It’s this kind of quiet transfer of influence and power that’s taken place in the last two decades [that] is interesting to me. It invariably leads to consequences that nobody could have anticipated, and as we know the law is so far behind what’s actually going on in the culture, that by the time they start having hearings on this it’s too late.”
The film was shot during the pandemic with social distancing guidelines in place.
KIMI will premiere on HBO Max on Thursday 10th February 2022. Looking for something else to watch in the meantime? Check out our Movies coverage or plan your viewing with our TV Guide.