A24’s Opus trailer traps Ayo Edebiri in John Malkovich’s cult of celebrity

Ayo Edebiri gets the listening experience of a lifetime: A pop album orchestrated by John Malkovich. 

By Matt Schimkowitz  |  January 21, 2025 | 9:00am
Courtesy of A24
Film News opus
A24’s Opus trailer traps Ayo Edebiri in John Malkovich’s cult of celebrity
Introducing Endless Mode: A New Games & Anime Site from Paste

Playing a new note in the emerging genre of thrillers set in the world of pop music, Opus joins the likes of Trap and Smile 2. However, those two films do not star John Malkovich as a pop star cult leader, so we suppose that’s one point for Opus. Opus exists in a world where Malkovich is a pop icon, Moretti, returning after 30 years of silence with a new album, and he wants up-and-coming music magazine writer Ayo Edebiri to cover the first listening party.

Here’s the synopsis:

A young writer (Ayo Edebiri) is invited to the remote compound of a legendary pop star (John Malkovich) who mysteriously disappeared thirty years ago. Surrounded by the star’s cult of sycophants and intoxicated journalists, she finds herself in the middle of his twisted plan.

The trailer offers some shades of the luxury resort satires that have been all the rage in film and TV for the last few years; movies and shows like The Menu, Don’t Blink Twice, Glass Onion, and The White Lotus all have this subgenre on lock. But against the backdrop of pop music, writer-director Mark Anthony Green, in his directorial debut, has a chance to expand this subgenre over a full-body shaving and a delightful meal of blue lobster and pickle chips. Green was also GQ’s Style Guy, so we expect some choice fits in this one.

Opus opens on March 14.

 
Join the discussion...