Focus Features has released the official trailer for B.J. Novak’s upcoming film, Vengeance. Described as a "darkly comedic thriller," Vengeance centers on a podcaster, Ben (Novak), who travels to West Texas from New York to offer his condolences after a girl he once dated dies of an overdose. But the girl’s family believes she was murdered. And to Ben’s surprise, the family also thinks the couple were in a serious relationship and draws him into a plot to avenge her death. Hilarity ensues as Ben tries to exploit the situation to grow his podcast, knowing how much true crime sells nowadays, but he soon realizes that the case isn’t as straightforward as it seems.
B.J. Novak writes, directs, and stars in Vengeance alongside Ashton Kutcher (That 70s Show, The Butterfly Effect), Issa Rae (Insecure, Lovebirds), J. Smith-Cameron (Rectify, Succession), Boyd Holbrook (Narcos, Logan), and Dove Cameron (Liv and Maddie, Descendants). You can check out the trailer below.
The official logline of the film reads:
"Vengeance, the directorial debut from writer and star B.J. Novak (The Office), is a darkly comic thriller about Ben Manalowitz, a journalist and podcaster who travels from New York City to West Texas to investigate the death of a girl he was hooking up with."
Vengeance is a joint venture between Blumhouse Productions and Focus Features and marks B.J. Novak’s filmmaking debut. He has previously worked on several TV shows and has written and directed some of the best episodes of The Office, including Scott’s Tots, Diversity Day, and Threat Level Midnight. Jason Blum, Adam Hendricks, and Greg Gilreath serve as producers, with Novak, Leigh Kilton-Smith, and Christopher H. Warner executive producing.
Vengeance will premiere at the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival as its Centerpiece Gala selection on June 12, before releasing in theaters on July 29. Honored by the gesture, Novak said in a statement,
"I am overwhelmed with happiness that Vengeance will premiere as the centerpiece film of the Tribeca Festival, which has supported so many of my favorite artists over the years."
B.J. Novak Is Excited About His First Feature Film Vengeance
B.J. Novak has been in the film industry for two decades and is best known for playing the role of Ryan Howard in The Office. He has also worked on shows like Raising Dad and The Mindy Project. As he gears up for his directorial debut, Vengeance, Novak recently revealed to Variety what inspired him to make the film.
"It’s so easy to misinterpret our connections these days, and it’s also easy to fall in love with someone after they’re out of your life, when you can obsess over their photos and your own memories and regrets. I started there which led me to this idea: what if you were expected to avenge the death of a someone you barely knew? I wanted to put the character somewhere he was really lost, living with a family in the place he least understood. And then when I looked at a map, Texas was just staring at me. It has this almost mythological quality. From the Alamo onwards, vengeance is in Texas’s DNA. I found that Texas was full of contradictions, especially in that it feels like the most intimidating place and yet also the friendliest."
Judging by the ridiculously fun trailer, Vengeance promises to be a funny, edge-of-the-seat thriller that also touches upon socially relevant issues like clashing ideologies and how people would rather believe conspiracy theories than accept the truth. Be sure to check out Vengeance in theaters from July 29.