Nicholas Hoult stars in the legal thriller set to open theatrically November 1.
Dirty Harry Meets Lex Luthor? Not quite. But Clint Eastwood has cast Nicholas Hoult, who’ll be playing the Man of Steel’s longtime nemesis in James Gunn’s upcoming Superman reboot, as the lead character in his Juror #2. Rumored to be the 94-year-old Eastwood’s final directorial effort, the film will have its world premiere Oct. 27 as the closing night offering of the AFI Film Festival before kicking off a limited theatrical run Nov. 1.
“There is only one Clint Eastwood – and AFI is proud to present the world premiere of this next chapter in his historic canon,” said Bob Gazzale, AFI President and CEO. “We are honored to bring the community together once again – artists and audiences – to celebrate an American icon.”
The official synopsis from Warner Bros.: “Juror #2 follows family man Justin Kemp (Hoult) who, while serving as a juror in a high profile murder trial, finds himself struggling with a serious moral dilemma… one he could use to sway the jury verdict and potentially convict — or free — the accused killer.”
Eastwood directed the film from a screenplay by Jonathan Abrams, and surrounded Hoult with such stellar supporting players as Toni Collette (The Sixth Sense, Knives Out), Oscar winner J.K. Simmons (Whiplash), Zoey Deutch (Zombieland: Double Tap), and C&I cover guy Kiefer Sutherland (Young Guns, Forsaken).
In a recent interview with People, Eastwood said the cast and crew shared “all the laughs” on set. “We had a really great group of actors, led by Nicholas Hoult, who I was really impressed with — he is what I think a movie star is. Everyone was very professional, came prepared and ready to work, but more than that they came and we laughed every day. Whether I’m directing or acting, I think it’s important to enjoy the work, and we did.”
While a guest on the BBC’s The One Show earlier this year, Sutherland revealed that he eagerly promoted himself to land a role in Juror #2.
“I’ve always admired [Eastwood’s] filmmaking,” the Designated Survivor star said. “I really wanted to do a Western with him at one time because I love that genre of films.” But when he read that Eastwood was directing his last film, “I thought, ‘Oh my gosh. This is, like, the last chance.’ And so I wrote him a letter, telling him how much I admired his work, and which specific films and why, going all the way back to his first film [as a director], Play Misty for Me. And he was kind enough to give me a job.
“So kids — learn how to handwrite.”
Here is the first trailer for Juror #2.
