Glass Onion: Daniel Craig's Knives Out sequel continues Whodunit craze

The question of what has prompted the caller resurgence successful Whodunits is practically a Whodunit successful itself.

Is the US TV bid Only Murders In The Building down their abrupt popularity? The merchandise of 2019's container bureau smash Knives Out? Kenneth Branagh's re-imagining of Hercule Poirot? Or bash the continued income of Agatha Christie novels amusement that Whodunits ne'er near successful the archetypal place?

The lone happening we tin genuinely beryllium definite of is it was not Colonel Mustard successful the drafting room.

Whatever the cause, they are surely large concern astatine the moment. Netflix reportedly paid $450m (£376m) for the rights to 2 Knives Out sequels, the archetypal of which, Glass Onion, is released connected Friday.

The archetypal Knives Out movie starred Daniel Craig arsenic detective Benoit Blanc, alongside Chris Evans, Jamie Lee Curtis and Ana de Armas successful her breakout role.

An old-fashioned yet innovative execution mystery, it was not the benignant of landfill superhero movie oregon sci-fi blockbuster that has stormed the container bureau successful caller years. And yet, that is precisely what it did - taking $313m (£255m).

Glass Onion, which stars an wholly caller formed isolated from Craig, is the archetypal of what could beryllium galore sequels. Its writer and director, Rian Johnson, isn't amazed by the enduring popularity of Whodunits.

"It makes consciousness to me, due to the fact that it's the aforesaid happening that's ever been appealing astir the genre," helium tells BBC News. "What's not to love? You person a rogue's assemblage of absorbing characters, you person a cardinal charismatic detective, you person intrigue, you person mystery, comedy, quality drama, each the ingredients are there.

"And for me, I'm a Whodunit junkie, I'm successful eden close now, the information that determination are much and much of these things, and that talents similar Steve Martin are penning mysteries close now, to me, that's heaven."

The Steve Martin task Johnson is referring to is Only Murders In The Building, which besides stars Selena Gomez and Martin Short. The palmy comedy-drama was precocious renewed for a 3rd season.

It follows 3 neighbours who go suspicious that a execution has been committed successful their building. The trio of improbable sleuths squad up to big a existent transgression podcast and lick the mystery.

Another big-screen Whodunit released this twelvemonth was See How They Run, starring Sam Rockwell and Saoirse Ronan successful a standout comedic performance.

It flew somewhat nether the radar due to the fact that it was released successful cinemas the time aft the Queen died, but it's present disposable connected Disney+.

"I deliberation execution mysteries look to wax and wane successful cinema," the film's manager Tom George tells BBC News. "But successful the UK specifically, they're beauteous constant. A twelvemonth astir apt doesn't spell by wherever determination isn't immoderate caller imagining of an Agatha Christie story."

Set successful London's West End successful 1953, See How They Run follows a director's efforts to transportation the occurrence of Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap from the West End to the large screen.

But everything goes incorrect erstwhile a cardinal subordinate of the accumulation squad is murdered. It is simply a riot - a execution enigma wrong a execution enigma - and 1 of the season's astir enjoyable films.

"I deliberation the crushed Whodunits support audiences coming backmost to them arsenic stories is the assemblage are trying to bash the aforesaid happening that the detectives are trying to bash - ace the case," suggests George.

"And that makes for a superb story. In immoderate movie you're trying to get the assemblage to link with their pb quality oregon characters arsenic soon arsenic imaginable by benignant of putting them successful their shoes.

"So successful a Whodunit, that's benignant of baked successful from the start. So from precise aboriginal on, the assemblage are locked successful with the detectives. They're watching each of the suspects and trying to fig out, what are their tells? What tin I larn from this interaction? And it conscionable makes for a truly compelling story.

"And there's thing truly reassuring astir a puzzle wherever you cognize that each the pieces are yet going to click into spot - thing you don't needfully get successful mundane beingness oregon existent crime."

As good arsenic being portrayed arsenic a quality successful See How They Run, Christie was besides an inspiration for Knives Out. Johnson says the queen of the Whodunit was a peculiar power connected him arsenic a child.

"It's a genre I conscionable dearly emotion and person a existent passionateness for," helium says. "I thought astir increasing up watching the Agatha Christie adaptations with my family, and however they were immoderate of my astir treasured movie experiences.

"And I thought, I deliberation determination are radical who are truly going to privation to spot thing similar Knives Out. So we rolled the dice, but we truly didn't cognize [it would beryllium that successful]."

While worldwide publication income are ever a nightmare to verify, Christie's ain property claims she is the best-selling novelist of each time, and is outsold lone by the Bible and Shakespeare.

"The emotion of a Whodunit is embedded successful British DNA, and I deliberation we tin hint overmuch of this to Agatha Christie," says The Mousetrap's shaper Adam Spiegel, who volition besides co-produce the amusement connected Broadway.

"Her singular assemblage of enactment some remains enormously fashionable with the public, and she is simply a root of large inspiration for the caller procreation of writers."

Two of Christie's astir celebrated execution mysteries person been remade successful caller years with Kenneth Branagh arsenic Hercule Poirot - Murder connected the Orient Express and Death connected the Nile.

A signifier adaptation of different Christie mystery, The Mirror Crack'd, is touring the UK, portion 2 caller TV bid astir the writer fronted by Alan Carr and Lucy Worsley precocious aired connected Channel 4 and BBC Two respectively.

Whodunits are everyplace you look. The BBC's fantabulous world bid The Traitors saw 22 members of the nationalist gathered successful a Scottish castle, tasked with uncovering 3 traitors successful their midst. It regularly topped the iPlayer chart.

Glass Onion's shaper Ram Bergman suggests Knives Out has had a affirmative power connected the fig of Whodunits being commissioned.

"People were acrophobic to marque those," helium says, "and I deliberation due to the fact that Knives Out was truthful successful, it benignant of gave the state for the studios and streamers, 'there's an assemblage for these movies, let's marque much of those'. Before, I deliberation they were tense astir it."

To statesman with, Glass Onion feels somewhat disappointing aft the brilliance of Knives Out. But erstwhile the set-up has been established, the movie changes gear.

But Kevin Maher of the Times said it is "a atrocious lawsuit of sequelitis", adding: "It's bigger, louder, emptier. The plot, which is the driving unit of immoderate execution mystery, is conspicuously flimsy, with precise fewer surprises and small ingenuity."

So, however bash you constitute a genuinely large Whodunit?

"First and foremost you travel up with a story," says Johnson. "Who is the quality we attraction about, what is their dilemma, and however are we going to person a satisfying ending? Not conscionable successful the Whodunit consciousness of 'oh that idiosyncratic did it', but a genuinely satisfying story.

"And you travel up with that and past you person your spine, and you commencement layering things on, figuring things out, and planting things present and there. The enigma portion is the amusive part, the pugnacious portion is coming up with a movie that's going to support radical entertained for 2 hours."