The trailer for Hypnotic, the thriller directed by Robert Rodriguez and starring Ben Affleck, dropped Monday ahead of its May 12 release. The pic is coming off a work-in-progress screening last month at SXSW.
Ketchup Entertainment acquired U.S. rights to the big-budget pic earlier this year; the project, which went into production in late 2021 after several pandemic delays and a lawsuit, saw its original financier and U.S. distributor Solstice Studios shut down. Now it will be released via Ketchup on more than 2,000 screens, helped by several former Solstice executives who will assist in getting the film over the finish line.
Hypnotic got a warm reception at SXSW. The feature centers on a detective (Affleck) who finds himself spiraling down a rabbit hole while investigating a series of reality-bending crimes mysteriously connected to his missing daughter. Aided by a gifted psychic (Alice Braga), he is pursued by a lethal specter (William Fichtner) who he believes holds the key to finding his daughter.
JD Pardo, Hala Finley, Dayo Okeniyi, Jeff Fahey and Jackie Earle Haley also star.
In Deadline’s scoop about the release date and strategy, Affleck is keen to support the project but is also doing rounds for his Nike movie Air and DC’s The Flash, which are being released in April and June, respectively. As it stands, Hypnotic launches the week after Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 and the same weekend as Sony’s Love Again and Focus Features’ Book Club the Next Chapter.
Check above for the Hypnotic trailer, which was unveiled today during an exclusive event on IGN.
