Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is a 2022 American mystery film written and directed by Rian Johnson. It is a standalone sequel to Knives Out (2019) and the second film in the series. Daniel Craig returns as master detective Benoit Blanc, who takes a new case involving tech billionaire Miles Bron and his friends.
Johnson and Ram Bergman produced it. Netflix bought the rights to two Knives Out sequels for $469 million in March 2021, and the cast signed on that May. Filming ran on the Greek island of Spetses in June and July 2021, then in Belgrade until September.
Trailer, via Netflix.
A Murder Game on a Greek Island
Miles Bron, played by Edward Norton, hosts a murder mystery game at the Glass Onion, his mansion on a private island in Greece. He invites his friend group, the “Disruptors,” by puzzle box.
- Lionel Toussaint (Leslie Odom Jr.), Alpha’s head scientist
- Claire Debella (Kathryn Hahn), Connecticut governor and Senate candidate
- Birdie Jay (Kate Hudson), former supermodel turned fashion designer
- Duke Cody (Dave Bautista), men’s rights streamer
- Andi Brand (Janelle Monáe), the ousted Alpha co-founder
Birdie’s assistant Peg (Jessica Henwick) and Duke’s girlfriend Whiskey (Madelyn Cline) come along. Blanc arrives too, saying Miles invited him. Miles privately says another guest probably sent the invitation as a joke, then lets him stay.
Klear, the Mona Lisa, and a Missing Pistol
Miles shows off glass sculptures and the Mona Lisa, on loan from the Louvre. He reveals “Klear,” a hydrogen-based fuel Alpha plans to sell. Lionel and Claire know it is dangerously volatile. Blanc solves the murder game at once and warns Miles that the Disruptors all have motives to kill him.
Andi storms off after an argument. Duke dies after drinking from Miles’s glass, and the group suspects Andi tried to poison Miles. Lionel calls the police, but they cannot arrive until morning. The group then finds Duke’s pistol is missing, and a power outage follows.
The Twist in the Dark
Blanc finds Andi, whom he addresses as Helen. An unseen assailant shoots her.
The Cast Around Craig
Johnson described casting the film as “throwing a dinner party.” Monáe does the heaviest lifting, playing Andi and her twin sister Helen, an Alabama schoolteacher.
- Kathryn Hahn as Claire Debella
- Leslie Odom Jr. as Lionel Toussaint
- Kate Hudson as Birdie Jay
- Dave Bautista as Duke Cody
- Jessica Henwick as Peg
- Madelyn Cline as Whiskey
- Noah Segan as Derol
- Jackie Hoffman as Mrs. Cody
- Dallas Roberts as Devon Debella
Ethan Hawke appears briefly as Miles’s assistant. Hugh Grant cameos as Phillip, Blanc’s domestic partner. Joseph Gordon-Levitt voices Miles’s clock.
Cameos and a Dedication
Stephen Sondheim, Angela Lansbury, Natasha Lyonne, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Yo-Yo Ma, Jake Tapper and Serena Williams appear as themselves. Sondheim and Lansbury died before release, and the film is dedicated to both.
What the Film Is Worth
Glass Onion premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 10, 2022. It ran one week in theaters from November 23 and grossed $15 million. Netflix began streaming it December 23. Reviewers praised Johnson’s screenplay and direction, the cast and the score. The National Board of Review named it one of the top ten films of 2022.
The Klear subplot matters less as a thriller engine than as a portrait of a billionaire who cannot be told no. That portrait is the film’s sharpest idea. At 140 minutes, the middle stretch coasts on jokes before the real plot arrives.
8.1/10 (Metacritic).
Get the Notebook.
The day's best stories and every fresh verdict, in plain English, in your inbox by seven. One email a day, no more.
