Trailer released for Van Sant’s crime thriller

Row K Entertainment premiered the teaser trailer for director Gus Van Sant’s crime drama “Dead Man’s Wire,” marking his return to feature filmmaking after six years since 2018’s “Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot”darkhorizons.
The film stars Bill Skarsgård as Tony Kiritsis, who in 1977 kidnapped mortgage broker Richard Hall (played by Dacre Montgomery) and held him hostage for 63 hours with a shotgun rigged to his head, turning the standoff into a national media spectacledarkhorizons.
“Dead Man’s Wire” has earned strong critical acclaim on the festival circuit, scoring a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and 72/100 on Metacritic after premiering at the Venice International Film Festival on September 2, 2025darkhorizons.
The ensemble cast includes Al Pacino, Colman Domingo as local radio host Fred Temple, Cary Elwes, and Myha’la, with the film drawing inspiration from the 2018 documentary “Dead Man’s Line”darkhorizons.
Row K Entertainment will release the film in select theaters on January 9, 2026, followed by a wide release on January 16, 2026darkhorizons.

Dead Man’s Wire Trailer Released for Gus Van Sant Film

Row K Entertainment released the trailer for Gus Van Sant’s crime thriller “Dead Man’s Wire” on October 27, marking the acclaimed director’s return to feature filmmaking after a seven-year hiatus. The film stars Bill Skarsgård as Tony Kiritsis, the real-life Indianapolis man who captivated the nation in 1977 when he kidnapped his mortgage broker and wired a shotgun to his head.darkhorizons

Festival Success Builds Oscar Buzz

The film has garnered exceptional critical reception since its world premiere at the Venice International Film Festival in September, earning a perfect 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 72/100 score on Metacritic. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Skarsgård delivers his “strongest work to date” in Van Sant’s “stylish and gripping ’70s throwback”.darkhorizons

“Dead Man’s Wire” also screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it received its North American premiere. The film follows Kiritsis, who felt wronged by his mortgage company over a failed real estate deal and took company president Richard Hall hostage for 63 hours using a makeshift “dead man’s wire” contraption.wikipedia

Star-Studded Cast and Release Strategy

The ensemble cast includes Dacre Montgomery as hostage Richard Hall, Al Pacino as the mortgage company owner, and Colman Domingo as local radio host Fred Temple who becomes entangled in the media circus. Van Sant told Variety that when he first read Austin Kolodney’s script, “Tony talked so fast, like Scorsese on a cocaine bender, cracking jokes and losing his temper. I thought, ‘This is an amazing character'”.darkhorizons

Row K Entertainment has scheduled an Oscar-qualifying run beginning December 12, followed by a limited theatrical release on January 9, 2026, and wide release on January 16. The film marks Van Sant’s first feature since 2018’s “Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot,” with critics noting its stylistic echoes of Sidney Lumet’s 1970s thrillers, particularly “Dog Day Afternoon”.instagram