Dev Patel's Monkey Man - Release Date, Cast, Plot, And More Info
Contrary to what children of the '90s might assume, "Monkey Man" is not a feature-length film about the "mystery wrapped in an enigma" that is the Hillwood vigilante Monkeyman from "Hey Arnold," as awesome as that sounds. It's actually something even cooler, believe it or not: an original starring vehicle for Dev Patel, who's only one of the most exciting actors currently doing it. Things had gone radio silent for several years on the news front surrounding the film, only for Universal to nonchalantly drop its trailer online near the end of January, sending the internet into a riotous frenzy at the sight of Patel going full John Wick on a seemingly never-ending parade of goons in Mumbai. (Not to mention by far the best use of a tuk-tuk in a movie this side of "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.")
So what even is "Monkey Man," and why do people inevitably end up babbling, "Something, something, Dev Patel hot," every time you ask them about it? Consider this your all-inclusive guide to everything you need to know about the film.
When does Monkey Man premiere?
Netflix originally acquired "Monkey Man" in a $30 million deal back in 2021, with the intention of sending it directly to streaming per its longstanding business model. Luckily, however, a hero emerged in the form of Jordan Peele, who caught an early screening of the film and was reportedly so taken with it that he helped convince Universal to pick it up for a theatrical release.
"Monkey Man" is now set to hit theaters on April 5, 2024, which would be exciting news under any circumstances. That it's coming out this year, at a time when theaters are desperate for new films to show after the major Hollywood studios spend six months sitting on their hands in 2023 rather than treating the WGA and SAG-AFTRA fairly, is music to the ears of movie aficionados (it's a new term we're trying out courtesy of /Film's Jeremy Mathai). Universal will also premiere the film at SXSW on March 11, 2024, which is all the more proof of just how confident it is about having a winner on its hands here.
What are the plot details of Monkey Man?
No, "Monkey Man" is not about Patel's character seeking revenge for the death of his pet monkey, à la John Wick, although we would understand if he did. The film is inspired by the myth of the half-man, half-monkey Hindu deity Hanuman and centers on an anonymous young man — referred to simply as "Kid" in the film's synopsis — who does battle with the greedy corporate forces and criminals who killed his mother when he was younger. Donning a gorilla mask, Kid hones his fighting skills by competing in an underground fight club, all the while plotting a way to infiltrate Mumbai's "sinister elite."
For as much as "Monkey Man" evokes "John Wick" with its seedy nightclubs and underworld of killers-for-hire, it's also worth noting how different the films' hero journeys are. Where John's quest is deeply personal, Kid's mission is much bigger than himself. He's not just seeking retribution for the injustices committed against him, he wants to take down the whole corrupt system. We'll have to wait and see how things play out, but it feels like there's more to this action-thriller than its revenge movie premise might suggest.
Who is in the cast of Monkey Man?
Be it sci-fi ("Chappie"), period pieces ("The Personal History of David Copperfield"), or fantasy epics ("The Green Knight"), Patel the actor seems determined to try his hand at every movie genre imaginable. The results may not always stick the landing, but they're typically interesting even when they don't work. Looking back with the benefit of hindsight, the failure of M. Night Shyamalan's "The Last Airbender" might have been the best thing to happen to the actor (who selected that film as his follow-up to the Best Picture Oscar-winning "Slumdog Millionaire"), freeing him up from the sequels to go and pursue a much more intriguing batch of projects.
Speaking of "Chappie," the man behind the titular robot and another performer who tends to make interesting career choices (be they successful or not), Sharlto Copley, is among those joining Patel in the "Monkey Man" ensemble. Other cast members include Sobhita Dhulipala, Pitobash, Vipin Sharma, Ashwini Kalsekar, Adithi Kalkunt, Sikandar Kher, and Makarand Deshpande.
Who is the director of Monkey Man?
Patel is making his directing debut in addition to headlining "Monkey Man," and it sees him working with some of the best people in their fields. The film's fisticuffs were choreographed by Brahim Chab, a stunt performer and martial artist who's refined his craft by joining forces with the likes of Jackie Chan, Donnie Yen, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and Scott Adkins over a career that spans more than 15 years. But amazing action means nothing without a cinematographer who knows how to shoot it in exhilarating yet fluid and discernible takes ... which is exactly what "Monkey Man" has with Sharone Meir, who lensed "Whiplash" and, most recently, John Woo's "Silent Night."
Among the other collaborators worth singling out on Patel's team is Volker Bertelmann, aka. Hauschka, the German composer who deservedly snagged an Oscar for capturing the nightmarish horror of war with his gut-twisting score for "All Quiet on the Western Front." If Patel's ambition is to use this film as the springboard to transition into being a full-time actor-filmmaker, he's assembled a first-rate crew to get him there.
Who are the writers and producers of Monkey Man?
"Monkey Man" has Patel donning multiple hats as not just the director and star but also the movie's co-writer and producer. He shares scriptwriting duties with Paul Angunawela and John Collee, the latter of whom previously co-wrote Peter Weir's acclaimed naval drama "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World" and the Patel-led true story thriller "Hotel Mumbai." That's an unusually accomplished pedigree of writing talent for this type of genre fare, which is all the more reason to expect something a little more narratively substantial and thoughtful here.
The same could be said for the film's producers, with Patel and Peele joined by Peele's frequent collaborator Win Rosenfeld and Ian Cooper (the creative director of Peele's Monkeypaw Productions), as well as Thunder Road Films heads and "John Wick" mainstays Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee. Other producers include Jomon Thomas, Samarth Sahni, Christine Haebler, and Anjay Nagpal.
Has Monkey Man released a trailer?
Several rewatches later, I can personally confirm the "Monkey Man" trailer (see above) continue to kick all manner of butt. I don't really have much of anything new to say about it at this stage, but here's what I originally wrote about the preview when it first dropped online:
Remember how the first "John Wick" came out of nowhere and smacked us right up the sides of our collective heads with its incredible fight scenes and fascinating world-building? While it remains to be seen if "Monkey Man" can deliver the latter, its apparent themes about class warfare and misogyny certainly hint at a film that's got something going on under the hood. At the very least, the trailer promises some pretty spectacular hand-to-hand combat, with Patel evoking Keanu Reeves at his badass stoic best as Kid. There's even some welcome self-aware comedy here when Patel hilariously fails to pull off the classic jump-through-a-glass-panel maneuver.