The first trailer for Kenneth Branagh's adaptation of Death on the Nile has now been released, teasing the return of Agatha Christie's legendary detective, Hercule Poirot. The trailer teases the kind of picturesque landscapes that will provide the backdrop to Poirot's latest case, and picturesque people that will cause him all manner of investigative headaches.
Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot's Egyptian vacation aboard a glamorous river steamer turns into a terrifying search for a murderer when a picture-perfect couple's idyllic honeymoon is tragically cut short. Set against an epic landscape of sweeping desert vistas and the majestic Giza pyramids, this tale of unbridled passion and incapacitating jealousy features a cosmopolitan group of impeccably dressed travelers, and enough wicked twists and turns to leave audiences guessing until the final, shocking denouement.
Death on the Nile sees the return of five-time Academy Award nominee Kenneth Branagh, who will once again be on directing duty, as well as starring as "probably the greatest detective in the world", Hercule Poirot. The movie has amassed a star-studded cast to light up the screen alongside him, with Kenneth Branagh being joined by Tom Bateman, who reprises the role of Bouc from the previous Poirot movie Murder on the Orient Express, four-time Oscar® nominee Annette Bening (Captain Marvel), Russell Brand (Ballers), Ali Fazal (Victoria & Abdul), Dawn French (French and Saunders), DC Comics favorite Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman 1984), Armie Hammer (Call Me by Your Name), Rose Leslie (Game of Thrones), Emma Mackey (Sex Education), Sophie Okonedo (The Secret Life of Bees), Jennifer Saunders (Absolutely Fabulous) and Letitia Wright (Black Panther).
The screenplay for Death on the Nile, which has been adapted from Agatha Christie's 1937 novel, has once again been written by Michael Green, with Ridley Scott, Mark Gordon, Simon Kinberg, Kenneth Branagh and Judy Hofflund all returning as producers.
Death on the Nile picks up with the world-renowned detective, Hercule Poirot, as he heads to Egypt and boards a glamorous river steamer. When an idyllic honeymoon is shattered by violent deaths, Poirot is tasked with hunting the mysterious murderer down. Death on the Nile is set to feature the kind of sinister tale and murderous consequences you would expect from a vacation with Poirot, as this tale of obsessive love plays out in an epic landscape of danger and foreboding, with enough shocking twists and turns to leave audiences unsettled and guessing until the final, shocking reveal.
Branagh has talked-up the movie in the past, and particularly Green's script, with the director hoping to once again craft a riveting murder mystery. "Crimes of passion are dangerously sexy. Agatha Christie has written a riveting story of emotional chaos and violent criminality and Michael Green has once again written a screenplay to match," Branagh said last year when the movie went into production. "With a cherished group of long-time artistic collaborators and a brilliant international cast, it is truly a pleasure to join Disney, Fox and Agatha Christie, Ltd. in bringing this daring thriller to the big screen. There are significant new twists, an awe-inspiring desert landscape and a chance to celebrate big screen entertainment in glorious 65-millimetre celluloid!"
Back when the first movie was released, Branagh discussed the franchise's future, and his intentions to make an Agatha Christie "shared universe" of sorts. "I think there are possibilities, aren't there? With 66 books and short stories and plays, she - and she often brings people together in her own books actually, so innately - she enjoyed that," he said at the time. "You feel as though there is a world - just like with Dickens, there's a complete world that she's created - certain kinds of characters who live in her world - that I think has real possibilities."
Death on the Nile is scheduled to be released by 20th Century Studios on October 23, 2020. This comes to us from 20th Century Studios' official YouTube channel.
