Writer and director Rian Johnson has revealed that the third instalment of his acclaimed murder mystery series Knives Out will be titled Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery.

Johnson shared the news on X (formerly Twitter), sharing a teaser video featuring a voiceover from Daniel Craig as Detective Benoit Blanc. Craig will star as Blanc for a third time, following Knives Out (2019) and Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022). Glass Onion spent seven weeks in Netflix's global top ten, with over 301,000,000 hours.

Referencing the series' previous editions, Craig narrates “In the beginning, the knives came out. Then behold, the glass was shattered. But my most dangerous case yet is about to be revealed.”

The next Benoit Blanc mystery, the follow-up to Knives Out and Glass Onion, is called Wake Up Dead Man. pic.twitter.com/pdDXRDmwcI

— Rian Johnson (@rianjohnson) May 24, 2024

Shortly before sharing the teaser, Johnson posted “I love everything about whodunnits, but one of the things I love most is how malleable the genre is. There's a whole tonal spectrum from Carr to Christie, and getting to explore that range is one of the most exciting things about making Benoit Blanc movies.”

Netflix has not confirmed whether Wake Up Dead Man will be given a theatrical release. Glass Onion, the first Knives Out film since Netflix's acquisition of the franchise, had a limited theatrical run.

Aside from Craig, there have been no official casting announcements. However, What's On Netflix reports that Josh O'Connor and Cailee Spaeny are in talks to feature in the new film. O'Connor has recently starred in Luca Guadagninos's Challengers (2024), which previously topped the UK box office. Spaeny's recent credits include Jessie in Alex Garland's Civil War (2024) and the titular lead in Sofia Coppola's Priscilla (2023).

No official release date for Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery has been announced. However, Johnson has confirmed that the film is due to begin production next month.

Words by Louis Roberts