The Killing Grin (2022)

The Killing Grin is a 2022 American Psychological Slasher film, directed by David Gordon Green and with a script written by David Gordon Green and Produced by Todd Phillips. Not cannon in the DCEU. The film is also the third installment in the DCBU and it is based of the short film made by UnboundVisuals in 2016.

Ten years later after her Father and mother Henry and Tina Grey got murdered by the sinister Harley Quinn. Alexandra Grey has matured and tried to leave her past behind. But Alexandra knows that her past will follow her eventually. Alexandra Returns to Gotham after a new string of murders takes place in Gotham with her being the main target for Harley Quinn. On her Journey to avenge her dead parents she will meat some lovable allies and finally cross paths with Harley Quinn for One Hell of a Fight.

The film stars an ensemble cast including Betty Gilpin, Kaya Scodelario, Ansel Elgort, Elisabeth Moss, Oliver Stark , Samuel L. Jackson, Angela Basset, and Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn.

Development on the film began in September 2016, when James Mangold announced that he would direct the film and handed script duties to Stephen Mcfeely, leaving Todd Phillips to produce the film. On the same day, it was announced that shooting would take place in New York City, Jersey City, and Newark from October 2016 to July 2020.

The Killing Grin was widely anticipated, and Warner Bros. backed the film with Dc Films largest marketing campaign. The film premiered at the 78th Venice Film Festival on September 2, 2022, where it won the Golden Lion. The film was theatrically released in the United States on September 11, 2022. The film received critical acclaim, with much praise for its screenplay, direction, acting (particularly that of Scodelario, Gilpin, Stark, and Robbie), action sequences, emotional depth, Tone, Cinematography, and departure from traditional DC films. It became one of the best DC reviewed films in recent years. with many critics regarding it as one of the greatest DC films ever made, and it was selected by the National Board of Review as one of the top five films of 2022.

Cast

 * Kaya Scodelario as Alexandra Grey - The daughter of Henry and Tina Grey who were murdered by Harley Quinn back in 1962. And after a new string of murders start to appear. She decides to take action into her own hands and stand up to what's right for Gotham while trying to face her inner trauma and come face to face with the fact that she is LGBTQ. She doesn't see herself above other superheroes like superman and wonder woman, she sees herself a someone who will never be recognized. Alexandra's characters is a Respectful, Quick-Witted, Fearless, Athletic, and will stop at nothing to avenge her dead parents.
 * Sandra Bullock as Monica Davis - A widowed single mother who lives in the building with her son Justin and everyone else. She thinks about moving away from Gotham and towards Metropolis because she describes Gotham as "a dumping ground for people who want Monica wants her son to continue what he wants to do and eventually graduate to college because he's so smart. Monica is Tough at times but in the end she will not stop to protect her son.
 * Betty Gilpin in as Detective Missy Johnson - a police detective investigating Harley's murder strings who is the partner of Lee Thomas who decides to help out Jamie early in the film to try not to make Gotham better for everyone but to also face the struggles with that she is LGBTQ and all the discrimination she has to fight against. Missy is Fearless, Intelligent, and is ready to take charge of any situation.
 * Samuel L. Jackson as Detective Lee Thomas - A police detective investigating Harley's murder strings and lives next door to Jamie. Lee goes around Gotham investigating murders with a formed alliance with 3 other detectives in Gotham to learn more about the victims Harley Quinn has targeted. Later he finds out that all of the victims hold a grudge towards or against Harley Quinn. Later in the film, it is revealed that he made a deal with Harley Quinn to spare him and his wife Jenn and instead track down and kill Alexandra Grey and kill anyone who tries to stop her.
 * Angela Basset as Detective Jenn Thomas - Another detective of the GCPD who is also the wife of Lee Thomas who joins the GCPD so that she can put an end to the madness that Gotham has turned into. Jenn is usually the one who is able to search through the files to find out about the Harley Quinn victims history to see what they did that got them targeted. Jenn is quick-thinking and doesn't have take any orders from anyone else.
 * Elisabeth Moss as Julie Moore - One of the many residents in the building who had her entire family killed when she was just 12 and has been running from death ever since. Julie tries to seek medical attention multiple times to cure her depression because she desperately wants to live a happy life and help others who need saving. That's why she is seen helping out multiple residents in the apartment building.
 * Ansel Elgort as Mitchell Grey - the son of Henry and Tina Grey who both were murdered 6 years ago and has been trying to cut ties with his sister ever since. He still loves his sister but he can't bear to look at her because it will just have him remembering the night that his parents were murdered. Mitchell Decides to join the fight with Alexandra because he knows he's next and his sister and foster father are the only people who knows what he is going through and is trying to help him get over his trauma.
 * Naomie Harris as Officer Sarah Rodgers - Another officer who works for the GCPD who investigates the series of murders committed by Harley Quinn. She wants to help out with Gotham's criminal problem because her Alice wants to have a baby with a another student at her school. She wants to let her do that but she cant because of the many criminals in Gotham that could endanger the baby's life.
 * Amanda Stenberg as Luna Rodgers - A crime photographer who gets spots some suspicious stuff Harley Quinn has been up to in Gotham. Later in the film she also decides to help Alexandra since her mom is a cop and she has taken some photos of Harley Quinn in the past 11 days and leaked them to the internet and the press. She wants to have a baby her mom says she cant because its not safe for her or the baby
 * Saoirse Ronan as Andrea Madison - Jamie's best friend who decided to become friends with her after relating to her paranoia problems. Her mom is suffering from paranoia which she understands cause she is paranoid herself after living in Gotham for 15 years she learns Gotham will do that to everyone. Andrea is and Intelligent thinker, who never tries to question her moms paranoia because she knows she is one of the only people in Gotham who protects her 24/7.
 * Renée Zellweger as Detective Hailey Madison - Andrea's mother who works with the GCPD detective trio (Lee, Jenn, Missy) to solve the Harley Quinn killings. She suffers from paranoia and has a $100,000 home security system in her house to protect her and her daughter. She doesn't want to paranoia to be cured because it is a blessing to her and she can use it as an advantage to protect her daughter.
 * Oliver Stark as Luke Roberts - The foster father taking care of Alexandra after her parents got murdered in 1989. He doesn't want her to die because he wants to be a good father but because he was friends with Henry grey and he promised that he will never let Alexandra go no matter what. So he constantly decides to cheer her up by taking her hiking and doing activities with her to try to get her mind off of her trauma. Luke is very dedicated to protect Alexandra and would even try to fight the GCPD just to try to save Alexandra.
 * Jack Dylan Grazer as Justin Davis - The son of Monica Davis. Justin is also friends with Andrea, Alexandra, and Luna, because no one else wants to be his friends at school . Justin is always the one who is cracking jokes amongst the group and is always on the top of his classes and even makes his own weapons for Alexandra to use in combat against Harley Quinn. Justin is a Quick-Witted thinker who always knows his way around any situation.
 * Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn - A former-certified psychiatrist, who became a crazed criminal and the Joker's accomplice/girlfriend. She decides to go after Alexandra because she wants to make sure no on else in Gotham will try to hurt or or The Joker because she thinks everyone is after her and Mistah J. Harley Quinn thinks The Joker is the only person who is able to protect her in this crazy world. This version of Harley Quinn is a Seductive, Intimidating, Fearless, Brutal, Quick-Witted, and is ready to finish what she started back in 1962.

Supporting Cast

 * David Spegal as Henry Grey
 * Hannah Davis as Tina Grey
 * Jeffrey Wright as Commissioner Gordon
 * Tobin Bell as Father Joseph
 * Gavin Stenhouse as Trauma Therapy Group Leader
 * Willem Dafoe as Arthur Fleck / Joker ( Post Credits Cameo)
 * Con O'Neill as Chief Mackenzie Bock
 * Barry Keoghan as Officer Stanley Merkel
 * Millie Bobby Brown as Young Alexandra Grey

Production
In February 2020, it was announced that David Gordon Green would direct and write the script for a DC slasher film through Warner Bros. alongside producer Todd Phillips.

Two months later, it was announced that Kaya Scodelario, Sandra Bullock, Samuel L. Jackson, Angela Basset, Betty Gilpin, Oliver Stark and Margot Robbie were cast as starring roles. Also that month, Jack Dylan Grazer and Toni Collette was added to the cast.

The film's production began in late-October 2016 in Glasgow, Scotland and went on for 4 years and concluded on July 15, 2020.

Release
The film was released by Warner Bros. in the United States on September 11, 2022, in 2D, RealD 3D, 4DX, ScreenX, Dolby 3D and IMAX 3D. The film held its world premiere at the Sydney Opera House in Australia on September 9, 2022. In the United States, the film opened to 6,839 theaters in its widest release. The Killing Grin was shown in cinemas for 189 days (27 weeks). It was originally scheduled to be released in the United States on April 24.

Reception
Box Office

The Killing Grin Was a Box office hit. Grossing $570 million in the United States and Canada and $902 million in other territories for a worldwide gross of $1.49 billion against a $172 million budget. Becoming the 8th highest-grossing superhero film of all time. The 10th highest grossing film of all time. And the highest grossing R rated film. And the highest grossing DC Film of all time.

Critical Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an approval rating of 100% based on 654 reviews, with an average rating of 9.8/10 on IMDB, and a 5/5 on Common Sense Media. On Rotten Tomatoes, the critic's consensus reads "The Killing Grin tells a relatable and Inspiring story with a badass ensemble of relatable and well-written characters that teach us important lessons about love and family that we feel motivated by ." On Metacritic, the film has an average of 95 out of 100, based on 145 critics, indicating "Universal Acclaim". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A+" on an A+ to F scale, while PostTrak reported filmgoers gave it a 96% overall positive score.

Accolades
Kaya Scodelario's performance in the film won her multiple awards, including an Academy Award for Best Actor, a BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, a Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actor, a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama, and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role.

The Killing Grin won the Best Actress (Scodelario) and Best Original Score awards at the 95nd Academy Awards. It received overall Twelve nominations (including Best Picture) from the ceremony, breaking the record of eleven held by Joker for the most nominations received by a film based on a comic book, comic strip or graphic novel. At the 75rd British Academy Film Awards, the film won Best Actor in a Leading Role (Scodelario), Best Casting, Best Actor In A Supporting Role (Gilpin) and Best Original Score out of a leading twelve nominations including Best Film. The film was nominated for five Golden Globe Awards for the 79th Ceremony, winning the awards for Best Original Score, Best Screenplay, and Best Actor (Scodelario).The film was nominated for nine awards at the 25th Critics' Choice Awards, winning Best Actor (Scodelario), Best Acting Ensemble, and Best Score, and was included in the American Film Institute's top 5 films of 2022.

Trivia

 * The film was shot in Glasgow, Scotland, The same place The Batman (2021)
 * Cinematography was held by Roger Deakins, Who also filmed 1917 (2019)
 * Warner Bros. is planning to start a separate DC universe starting with The Batman (2021), Joker (2019) and The Killing Grin (2022) entitled the "DC The Black Label Universe".
 * The Film takes place 20 years before Bruce Wayne Becomes The Batman.
 * The movie was Rated R for "Horror Violence, Disturbing Behavior, Pervasive Language, strong bloody violence and gore."
 * Jason Onorad who made the original Killing Grin short film had a hand in working on the script with David Gordon Green telling him how the characters should be like and told him to flesh them out more.
 * The film received a 20 Minute Long standing ovation at the 78th International Venice Film Festival and won The Golden Lion Award.