Jesse Plemons is probably one of the most versatile actors currently working. Over the last 20 years, he has played many roles: a Like Mike villain; Crucifictorious frontman; a horrifying meth cook; and skeptic of Frito Lay’s business practices. And that’s just a few of the highlights. (Plus, he just snagged his first Oscar nomination for the extremely excellent film The Power of the Dog.) In his latest film, Windfall, he plays a new, yet familiar villain: a grating, wealthy white man. Netflix just released the first trailer for the film, which sees Jason Segel rob a house… and inadvertently kidnap its owners.
In the trailer, Segel’s character seems pretty desperate–certainly no seasoned criminal. And Lily Collins’s character seems pretty reasonable. But given the gunshot, a lot of blood, and Plemons’ chaotic energy, this is no relaxing weekend away.
The logline for the film is pretty straightforward: “A Hitchcockian thriller following a wealthy couple who arrive at their vacation home only to find it’s being robbed.”
However the YouTube description adds a few extra details. Specifically, noting that Plemons’ character is an “arrogant” tech billionaire, which sounds about right. Plus, the trip is a “last-minute” sort of thing. Given that the pair take an ill-timed jaunt to the vacation home on a whim suggests that Segel had an idea that the home was empty. (Or should’ve been empty.) So how does his character connect to Plemons and Collins? And what kind of revenge is he hoping to take? We don’t know the answer but it sounds like a pretty unpredictable predicament.
Charlie McDowell, who directed the excellent pilot to the forever underrated On Becoming a God in Central Florida, directs the film. Trouble at vacation homes takes McDowell back to his vacation home roots. His feature debut, The One I Love, is a comedy thriller following a couple on the rocks who go on a weekend away to a secluded estate. Justin Lader, who wrote The One I love, and Andrew Kevin Walker penned the script.
