The large majority of the focus and subsequent furor surrounding Warner Bros.’ decision to release their entire 2021 slate of films on HBO Max the same day that they hit theaters has fallen on the studio’s mega budget blockbusters, which is completely understandable.
Dune director Denis Villeneueve is furious that his proposed franchise may have been killed at the first hurdle, while Legendary were reportedly threatening legal action over Godzilla vs. Kong, although it would appear that the two parties have kissed and made up following the reveal of yesterday’s jaw-dropping first trailer.
However, it isn’t all about the $150 million epics, and HBO Max has plenty of smaller projects arriving over the next eleven months, with the first one out of the gate boasting some serious pedigree. The Little Things drops on Friday, and sees Denzel Washington as a veteran County Sheriff who gets sent to Los Angeles for an assignment, only to find himself drawn into the hunt for a crazed serial killer.
Washington tackling either the crime or thriller genres guarantees something that’s watchable at the very least, so combining the two together and throwing fellow Academy Award winners Rami Malek and Jared Leto into the mix means that The Little Things is an intriguing prospect, especially when the atmospheric first trailer makes it look abundantly clear that there are many more big revelations and shocking twists buried in the story.
The leading man is one of the few talents in Hollywood who can convince people to watch a movie based entirely on his presence alone, and it’ll be interesting to see how the first major HBO Max release of 2021 fares in terms of both driving up subscriber numbers and potentially leaving a mark at the box office.
