Arguably the most notorious movie to have its release upended by the pandemic is Death on the Nile. This mystery drama film, the second of Kenneth Branagh’s Agatha Christie adaptations in which he portrays Belgian detective Hercule Poirot, hasn’t just been shuffled around the schedules due to COVID-related delays but has also undergone a change of studio — from Fox to Disney — and the misfortune of having its leading man embroiled in a serious scandal.
We almost didn’t expect this one ever to see the light of day, then, but — though you might not believe it — it’s genuinely almost here. Death in the Nile opens in cinemas in the U.S. this weekend, and, ahead of its imminent arrival, a new teaser trailer has dropped. Featuring brief shots of the star-studded cast, which includes Gal Gadot, Letitia Wright, and Emma Mackey, the promo promises that “the greatest mystery of all time can only be solved in theaters.”
After the downfall of Armie Hammer, Disney had a tough job in marketing Death on the Nile, but the tactic they took was minimalizing exposure of the actor in the marketing. This teaser follows suit on that, for instance, with Gadot getting the lion’s share of screentime and Hammer only barely being glimpsed in the final group shot. The cast also includes Annette Bening, Russell Brand, Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders, Sophie Okonedo, and Rose Leslie.
All together, Death on the Nile has been attached to a total of six release dates spanning three years, reaching from Christmas 2019 until now. After so many delays, it remains to be seen whether audiences are still pumped enough to go check this one out on the big screen en masse. The first reviews that have come in so far have been solid if unremarkable, unfortunately.
If you can believe it, Death on the Nile opens in theaters in just four days on Feb. 11.
