John Woo returns with his signature action style on Peacock's "The Killer"

August 26, 2024

Courtesy: Peacock

The Killer is the explosive new action thriller directed by the legendary Hong Kong film director John Woo. It is a remake of his classic 1989 film of the same name starring Nathalie Emmanuel (The Fast and Furious franchise, Game of Thrones) as Zee in the lead role as an infamous assassin known in the Parisian underworld as the Queen of the Dead.

Distributed by Peacock, The Killer is produced by Universal Pictures, A Better Tomorrow Films, and Atlas Entertainment, with additional producers Terence Chang, Mark Gordon, Matt Jackson, and Robin Mulcahy Fisichella. The screenplay is from Brian Helgeland, Josh Campbell, and Matt Stuecken.

Courtesy: Peacock

According to the show's official synopsis, When Zee is given her new assignment from her handler to kill a blind young woman (Jenn) in a Paris nightclub, she refuses. The decision will disintegrate Zee's alliances, attract the attention of a savvy police investigator, and plunge her into a sinister criminal conspiracy that will set her on a collision course with her own past.

 The ensemble cast includes Omar Sy (Intouchables, Jurassic World), Sam Worthington (Terminator Salvation, Avatar franchise), Diana Silvers (Space Force), Eric Cantona (The Fragile Colossus, Elizabeth), Saϊd Taghmaoui (Wonder Woman, The Kite Runner), Tchéky Karyo (Nikita, A Very Long Engagement) and Grégory Montel (Call My Agent!, Thirst for Life). It also features Angeles Woo (Silent Night, Manhunt) and Aurélia Agel (Halo, Black Widow).

Courtesy: Peacock

Very reminiscent of John Woo's previous classics "Face/Off" starring John Travolta and Nicholas Cage and Tom Cruise's "Mission: Impossible 2", Woo once again delivers riveting action sequences and slow motion stylized imagery that evokes feelings of nostalgia from his earlier work. Fans will appreciate the new version of The Killer in the gender swapped role of Zee replacing Chow Yun-fat in the original film. The relationship between Zee and Jen, as Zee decides to protect her is one of the richer dynamics of the show as Zee develops a moral conscience even at the expense of her own life with Sey, the policeman hot on her trail. With religious symbolism and themes of redemption, The Killer is one of the best action movies of the year.

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The Killer is streaming now on Peacock.