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'''''The Hunt''''' is a 2020 American ] ]{{efn|name=fn1}}<!--please establish consensus for genre changes on the talk page; they should be based on reliable sources, not personal interpretation--> directed by ], and written by ] and Nick Cuse. The film stars ], ], ] and ]. ] serves as a producer under his ] banner.<ref name="thr">{{Cite news |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/ads-pulled-hunt-wake-mass-shootings-1229829 |title=Ads Pulled for Gory Universal Thriller 'The Hunt' in Wake of Mass Shootings (Exclusive) |date=August 6, 2019 |work=The Hollywood Reporter |access-date=August 8, 2019 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190915175753/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/ads-pulled-hunt-wake-mass-shootings-1229829 |archive-date=September 15, 2019}}</ref> Both Zobel and Lindelof have said that the film serves as a ] on the profound political divide between the American ] and ].<ref name=":2" /> '''''The Hunt''''' is a 2020 American film, described both a ] ] or as a ]{{efn|name=fn1}}<!--please establish consensus for genre changes on the talk page; they should be based on reliable sources, not personal interpretation--> directed by ], and written by ] and Nick Cuse. The film stars ], ], ] and ]. ] serves as a producer under his ] banner.<ref name="thr">{{Cite news |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/ads-pulled-hunt-wake-mass-shootings-1229829 |title=Ads Pulled for Gory Universal Thriller 'The Hunt' in Wake of Mass Shootings (Exclusive) |date=August 6, 2019 |work=The Hollywood Reporter |access-date=August 8, 2019 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190915175753/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/ads-pulled-hunt-wake-mass-shootings-1229829 |archive-date=September 15, 2019}}</ref> Both Zobel and Lindelof have said that the film serves as a ] on the profound political divide between the American ] and ].<ref name=":2" />


The film was originally scheduled for release on September 27, 2019. However, following the ] and ] ] in early August 2019, ] decided to delay the release of the film. The decision came a day after criticism regarding the film came from United States President ]. The film was originally scheduled for release on September 27, 2019. However, following the ] and ] ] in early August 2019, ] decided to delay the release of the film. The decision came a day after criticism regarding the film came from United States President ].

Revision as of 17:12, 14 March 2020

film directed by Craig Zobel
The Hunt
Theatrical release poster
Directed byCraig Zobel
Written by
  • Nick Cuse
  • Damon Lindelof
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyDarran Tiernan
Edited byJane Rizzo
Music byNathan Barr
Production
companies
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release dates
  • March 11, 2020 (2020-03-11) (United Kingdom)
  • March 13, 2020 (2020-03-13) (United States)
Running time90 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$14 million
Box office$2.2 million

The Hunt is a 2020 American film, described both a black comedy horror film or as a thriller film directed by Craig Zobel, and written by Damon Lindelof and Nick Cuse. The film stars Betty Gilpin, Ike Barinholtz, Emma Roberts and Hilary Swank. Jason Blum serves as a producer under his Blumhouse Productions banner. Both Zobel and Lindelof have said that the film serves as a satire on the profound political divide between the American left and right.

The film was originally scheduled for release on September 27, 2019. However, following the Dayton and El Paso mass shootings in early August 2019, Universal Pictures decided to delay the release of the film. The decision came a day after criticism regarding the film came from United States President Donald Trump.

The Hunt was theatrically released in the United Kingdom on March 11, 2020 and in the United States on March 13, 2020. It received mixed reviews from critics and has grossed $2 million.

Premise

The film follows 12 strangers who mysteriously wake up in a clearing. They do not know where they are or how they got there. They discover that they have seemingly been chosen to be hunted in a game devised by a group of elites. The hunters gather in a remote facility called the Manor House, but their sport is derailed when one of the hunted, Crystal (Betty Gilpin), fights back and starts killing them one by one.

Cast

Production

Development

In March 2018, Universal Pictures acquired the rights to the film, which would be directed by Craig Zobel with a script from Nick Cuse and Damon Lindelof. The original title of the script was Red State Vs. Blue State, a reference to the red states and blue states. Later, Universal issued a statement denying that the film had ever had it as its working title.

The elite hunters' reference to their quarry as "deplorables" is an allusion to the phrase "basket of deplorables", used by Hillary Clinton during the 2016 United States presidential election campaign to refer to supporters of then-presidential candidate Donald Trump. An early draft of the script depicted working-class conservatives as the film's heroes.

Casting

In March 2019, Emma Roberts, Justin Hartley, Glenn Howerton, Ike Barinholtz and Betty Gilpin were announced as being cast in the film. In April 2019, Amy Madigan, Jim Klock, Charli Slaughter, Steve Mokate and Dean West joined the cast of the film. Hilary Swank was announced as being cast in July.

Filming

Filming began on February 20, 2019, in New Orleans, and was completed on April 5.

Release

The film was scheduled for release on September 27, 2019. It was, for a time, moved back to October 18 before shifting back to its original release date of September 27.

On August 7, 2019, Universal announced that in the wake of the Dayton and El Paso mass shootings, they would be suspending the film's promotional campaign. Several days later, the film was pulled from the studio's release schedule.

In February 2020, the film's release in the United States had been rescheduled to March 13, 2020 (Friday the 13th), with a new trailer, partially in response to the success of the similarly controversial film Joker. Producer Jason Blum stated in an interview that "not one frame was changed" since the delay and that it was "exactly the same movie".

Reception

Initial reactions

The Hollywood Reporter wrote that there were a pair of test screenings for the film which garnered "negative reactions". The second screening was held on August 6, 2019, in Los Angeles, in which "audience members were again expressing discomfort with the politics" of it, an issue Universal had not foreseen (although other studios had initially passed on the script for that very reason). In a statement to Variety, Universal pushed back on a report that test audiences had been uncomfortable with the film's political slant, and also countered claims that the script had originally had a politically explosive title. "While some outlets have indicated that test screenings for The Hunt resulted in negative audience feedback; in fact, the film was very well-received and tallied one of the highest test scores for an original Blumhouse film," a Universal spokesperson said. "Additionally, no audience members in attendance at the test screening expressed discomfort with any political discussion in the film. While reports also say The Hunt was formerly titled Red State vs. Blue State, that was never the working title for the film at any point throughout the development process, nor appeared on any status reports under that name."

Prior to the film's initial shelving, the film attracted criticism from some of the media as an alleged portrayal of liberal elitists hunting supporters of Donald Trump. Trump issued a tweet on August 9, 2019, calling "Liberal Hollywood" "acist at the highest level" and writing: "The movie coming out is made in order to inflame and cause chaos", adding "They create their own violence, and then try to blame others". Although Trump did not specify the name of the film, news vehicles believed that was most likely a reference to The Hunt. Some commentators, such as columnists for The Atlantic and The National Review, argued that the film actually had a right-wing, anti-liberal tone that was misinterpreted by conservative critics of the film.

Box office

In the United States and Canada, the film was released alongside Bloodshot and I Still Believe, and is projected to gross $8–11 million from 2,500 theaters in its opening weekend. The film made $2.2 million on its first day, including $435,000 from Thursday night previews.

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 54% from 138 reviews, with an average rating of 5.79/10. The site's critics consensus reads: "The Hunt is successful enough as a darkly humorous action thriller, but it shoots wide of the mark when it aims for timely social satire." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 50 out of 100, based on 42 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "C+" on an A+ to F scale.

Notes

  1. Sources differ as to the exact genre of the film; some have classified it as a thriller (specifically satirical thriller, horror thriller, action thriller, and political thriller), while one has called it an action comedy. Others have called it a horror film.

References

  1. ^ "THE HUNT (2020)". British Board of Film Classification. March 3, 2020. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
  2. ^ "The Hunt (2020)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
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  4. ^ Masters, Kim (February 11, 2020). "'The Hunt' Is Back On: Universal Sets Release for Controversial Elites vs. "Deplorables" Satire (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved February 11, 2020.
  5. "Does an Upcoming Movie Show 'Liberals' Hunting Trump Supporters?". Snopes. Retrieved August 8, 2019.
  6. ^ Dry, Jude; Dry, Jude (July 30, 2019). "'The Hunt' Official Trailer: Betty Gilpin and Hilary Swank Duke It Out in Bloody Blumhouse Horror". IndieWire. Archived from the original on July 31, 2019. Retrieved August 8, 2019.
  7. Nickolai, Nate (August 8, 2019). "Universal Temporarily Halts Marketing for 'The Hunt' Following Mass Shootings". Variety. Archived from the original on September 3, 2019. Retrieved August 8, 2019.
  8. Stewart, John (July 30, 2019). "'The Hunt' Chases Down Another Trailer". Slanted. Archived from the original on August 3, 2019. Retrieved August 8, 2019.
  9. N'Duka, Amanda; N'Duka, Amanda (March 28, 2018). "Universal, Blumhouse Pick Up 'The Hunt' From 'The Leftovers' Creator Damon Lindelof". Archived from the original on September 13, 2019. Retrieved March 15, 2019.
  10. ^ Travers, Ben (July 6, 2018). "Jason Blum Has a Secret for Making Great Horror Films: Hire from TV". IndieWire. Archived from the original on April 4, 2019. Retrieved November 9, 2018.
  11. ^ Lang, Gene Maddaus,Brent; Maddaus, Gene; Lang, Brent (August 19, 2019). "'The Hunt' Director Breaks Silence on Film's Cancellation (Exclusive)". Variety. Archived from the original on September 14, 2019. Retrieved August 20, 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  12. News; World (August 12, 2019). "Universal Pictures cancels Hilary Swank film depicting Liberal voters hunting Trump supporters | National Post". Retrieved August 13, 2019. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  13. N'Duka, Amanda; N'Duka, Amanda (March 13, 2019). "Emma Roberts, 'This Is Us' Star Justin Hartley & Glenn Howerton Join Damon Lindelof's Thriller 'The Hunt'". Archived from the original on April 4, 2019. Retrieved March 15, 2019.
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  20. Pedersen, Erik (March 6, 2019). "Universal Shifts Damon Lindelof's 'The Hunt' To October; 'Addams Family' Moves Up A Week". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on March 8, 2019. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  21. Beresford, Trilby; Rahman, Abid (August 7, 2019). "Universal Pulls 'The Hunt' Ads Amid Gun Violence Uproar". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on August 11, 2019. Retrieved August 7, 2019.
  22. ^ Schrupp, Kenneth (August 9, 2019). "[Opinion] The Hunt and the Snowflake GOP: We're Better Than This". The California Review. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
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  24. Revely-Calder, Cal (August 12, 2019). "The Hunt called off: how a gun-crazy Hollywood liberal fantasy ended up in Trump's crosshairs". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on September 7, 2019. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  25. Wilkinson, Alissa (February 12, 2020). "Controversial film The Hunt is daring you to own the libs – or the right wing – by seeing it". Vox. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved February 13, 2020.
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External links

Works directed by Craig Zobel
Films
TV series
Damon Lindelof
TV series created
Films written
Comic books written
Richard Connell's The Most Dangerous Game
Films
Television
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