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Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Unlocked’ on Netflix, a Korean Thriller About a Serial Smartphone Stalker

Where to stream:.

• Unlocked (2023)

Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Birth/Rebirth’ on Hulu, a Frankensteiny Horror-Thriller Rooted in Feminine Dread

Stream it or skip it: ‘monster’ on netflix, a dialogue-free indonesian horror-thriller, stream it or skip it: ‘past lies’ on hulu, where a group of women’s lives are turned upside down by a pact they made in the ’90s, stream it or skip it: ‘eileen’ on hulu, a dark, sexy noir-thriller starring anne hathaway and thomasin mckenzie.

Paranoia is the main character in Unlocked (now on Netflix), a Korean thriller from first-time director Kim Tae-joon in which a serial killer gets his sick kicks by using his victims’ smartphones to wreak havoc on their lives before rendering them dead as heck. There was a time when guys like that used to just throw their victims in a pit in the basement or slash them in dark alleyways, but modern technology not only brings the world to our literal fingertips, but also apparently gives unsound minds all kinds of creative murder/torture options. So maybe the movie will function as a cautionary tale or a metaphor; let’s find out.  

UNLOCKED : STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist: We open with a day in the life of Na-mi (Chun Woo-hee) from the point of view of her phone. Music, selfies, food, social media, etc. It’s a long, crazy day that wraps with a heavy buzz and bedtime crash and when she wakes up, she panics. Her phone is missing. We know where it is, because the camera was with it on the floor of the bus when she got off and a highly suspicious pair of shoes shuffled up next to it. Those shoes belong to Jun-yeong (Im Si-wan), a quiet weirdo loner. He “answers” when Na-mi uses a friend’s phone to call, and by “answers” I mean he uses a fake voice app to speak so his voice won’t be recognized. CURIOUS. 

Before we see the rest of his possibly needlessly convoluted scheme to put a tracking device and spyware in her phone so he can monitor her every move and do god knows what else to her, we cut to a very gross dead body unearthed in the woods, which surely has nothing to do with Jun-yeong and is merely a coincidence in this plot, right? As police detective cop guy Ji-man (Kim Hee-won) investigates the death, we get to the god-knows-what-else part. Na-mi works in her father’s (Park Ho-san) cafe, and does marketing for a startup. The former is a good place for Jun-yeong to masquerade as a lover of plum juice and stalk her, the latter is something she loves that he can destroy using the power he has over every app in her phone. 

Meanwhile, we learn that Ji-man suspects his long-estranged son is the murderer. And it becomes pretty clear that Jun-yeong is a sociopath, since he fills yellow legal pads with teeny-tiny script and methodically wrecks Na-mi’s life by abducting and torturing her father, posing as a tech guy who can help fix her hacked phone and driving a big fat wedge between her and her bestie (Kim Ye-won). A mess of bodies turn up in the woods. Ji-man is increasingly tortured as he ignores the obvious conflict of interest and continues investigating the deaths. Jun-yeong turns out to be a classic monologuer. And Na-mi fights not just for her life, but for the ability to compulsively Instagram everything once again.

What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: Unlocked sits somewhere between neo-tech thriller Kimi and phone/tech-based horror crud like Unfriended .

Performance Worth Watching: Although her character is an underwritten protagonist, Chun Woo-hee holds the film together with a performance that foregoes the usual cliches of horror-movie final girls or female stalker-victims. 

Memorable Dialogue: Jun-yeong should’ve punctuated this line with an evil MU-ha-ha-ha laugh: “We live in a world where we’re connected by the touch of a finger. Ironically, it also means we can be disconnected just as easily.”

Sex and Skin: None.

Our Take: And to think, if someone hacked your phone, you’d be worried they’d order 10 grand worth of junk on your Amazon credit card or eff up your painstakingly curated Instagram feed. The nugget of an idea at the core of Unlocked is the paranoia we feel for having so much personal data inside a smallish plastic rectangle that’s so easy to leave behind at Chipotle, and how that rectangle could (can?) be so easily used to surveil your every move, embarrassing or otherwise. So what’s scarier, someone draining your Paypal account, or someone having video of that time you used your selfie-cam to locate and yank a pesky, shockingly coarse nose hair?

Sure, that’s an honest-to-blog 21st-century fear, but Unlocked surrounds that baseline idea with a bunch of bland characters participating in a heavily contrived plot. The situations aren’t particularly plausible, nor does it deliver the type of over-the-top nutso entertainment that might inspire fits of laughter. The movie exists in a neverwhere between fantasy and reality that hits a consistently drab tone best characterized by its villain, whose banality is supposed to create an air of menace, but ultimately inspires ennui. Kim Tae-joon uses some nifty camera maneuvers and creepy POV-via-phone shots to notable effect, but stylistic flourishes can’t compensate for narrative tedium (this doesn’t at all need to be nearly two hours) and an inability to generate any surprises or suspense.

Our Call: SKIP IT. Unlocked is almost a passable tech-isn’t-evil-unless-it’s-used-by-evil-people paranoia thriller, but almost just ain’t enough.

John Serba is a freelance writer and film critic based in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

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‘Unlocked’ Review: A Surveillance Thriller Best Left Offline

A woman experiences paranoia, loss and bodily danger after a serial killer hacks her phone.

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By Robert Daniels

In the sleepy cyberthriller “Unlocked,” Na-mi (Chun Woo-hee) forgets her phone on the bus after a night of revelry. It’s discovered by Jun-yeong (Yim Si-wan), who returns it to her — and who turns out to be a methodical serial killer. He’s bent on using the personal device to isolate Na-mi: first by kidnapping her doting father, then by destroying her promising marketing job, and finally by breaking the bond she shares with her best friend.

It’s not a particularly difficult task: He runs a phone repair shop, where he has hacked the device to observe texts and notifications, overhear calls and even access the camera. When Na-mi uses the phone’s selfie mode, it acts, in a sense, as a point-of-view shot. The director Kim Tae-joon and the cinematographer Yong-seong Kim smartly subvert the empathy such a composition provokes by leaning into the dread of unknowingly being watched.

The film, unfortunately, struggles to build on that aesthetic choice. Na-mi’s sole personality trait is her tendency to trust too much — a characterization that could work for a short-lived victim but that evaporates in a protagonist. Jun-yeong’s father (Kim Hee-won), a detective ridden with guilt over his seven-year estrangement from his son, is weakly drawn, too. The detective desperately wants to catch Jun-yeong before he kills again, but a last-second twist undermines the arc’s pathos.

“Unlocked” moves at a glacial pace. Jun-yeong is too apathetic, too quiet to keep a viewer enthralled for the entire film. In a cinematic landscape where the anxiety of surveillance has been sufficiently explored — with movies like “The Conversation,” “Enemy of the State” and “Kimi” — this simplistically dreary offering doesn’t crack a new code.

Unlocked Not rated. In Korean, with subtitles. Running time: 1 hour 57 minutes. Watch on Netflix.

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Should You Watch ‘Unlocked’? Review of Netflix’s New Korean Movie

Our PLAY, PAUSE, OR STOP? Review of the new Korean thriller.

Unlocked – Picture: Netflix

The new Netflix Korean Thriller, Unlocked , is now streaming, but should you give it a watch?

As noted in our review of the post-climate crisis sci-fi thriller JUNG_E last month, Netflix has taken note of the demand for more Korean content and set up a massive slate of 34 upcoming titles this year , including 6 brand-new original films.

After JUNG_E kicked off with modest reviews ( including my lackluster “Pause” review ), Netflix and Korean film fans hope for a better outcome with the latest Korean thriller dropping this weekend, Unlocked , the debut feature from actor turned director Tae-joon Kim.

Based on the novel by Akira Shiga and adapted from the Japanese movie, Stolen Identity , Unlocked centers around the smartphone-obsessed Na-Mi, who loses her phone after dropping it on the bus coming home from a night out with friends. After a stranger finds the phone, he returns it to her with spyware installed to track her every move. Na-Mi’s life is turned upside down as she and everyone close to her is at the mercy of the whims of this dangerous man.

The film stars Woo-hee Chun ( Be Melodramatic ; Bong Joon Ho’s Mother ) as Na-Mi, Si-wan Yim (Tracer, The King Loves ) as the dangerous stranger known as Jun Yeong, and Kim Hee-won ( The Man From Nowhere ) as police officer Ji Man.

Picture: Netflix

As smartphones and computers have been around controlling our lives for some time, the “hacker running havoc on someone’s life via personal devices” is not a fresh plot narrative. With this film, director Tae-joon Kim attempts to update the story by dividing the story between the three main characters: the victim, the criminal, and the officer who believes the criminal may be his estranged son that is connected to a recent murder victim found in the mountains. By doing so, the film shifts away from the standard “whodunnit” mystery to a creepier analysis of how and why this stranger would ruin a seemingly random woman’s life.

While the cyber criminality aspect of the story did make me want to throw my cellphone into the ocean and install a landline once again, I felt that the three main characters didn’t grab me in their respective roles.

Na-Mi is a very average victim with an incredibly thin personal connection to her stalker that develops after her phone is stolen. Her life is not particularly interesting or intricate in design, so when her life is upended, the drama is turned down until the stakes become potentially lethal at the very end of the film.

The stalker we know for most of the film as Jun Yeong has no true motive for his crimes. He’s a psychopath, a liar, and a decent hacker, but overall his presence in the film does not meet the level of the escalation in his offences. This is partially because Si-Wan Yim seems to be miscast in this type of role. He doesn’t convey creepiness or a level of menace that would denote a criminal of this level. He seems to play his character with a flat effect that barely moves the needle even as the danger increases. He also journals his every intention which takes away most of the surprise as the plot unfolds.

The only mystery element in the story belongs to the connection between the detective working the case and our criminal lead. While he quickly deduces that his estranged son is somehow involved, the detective still bungles many aspects of the investigation including identifying the criminal when they trap him late in the film. The plot unveils a late change that gives us a more charged ending and a bloody showdown, but it’s not enough to save a more pedestrian crime drama before the conclusion.

Overall, Unlocked doesn’t build upon the inherently terrifying cyberstalking reality we could all face at any time. With seemingly no motive, very little personal connectivity, and a lack of presence in the characters that matter most, the film fails to bring this story to a boil.

Watch Unlocked on Netflix if you like:

• Stolen Identity
• Unfriended: Dark Web

MVP of Netflix’s Unlocked

Park Ho-San as Na-Mi’s Father.

While his character may not have had a great time, I enjoyed the father-daughter relationship between Park Ho-San’s character and Na-Mi. Their connection and chemistry lead to some of the more compelling scenes at the end of the film. Park Ho-San continues to perform well in Korean Netflix films as he is quite good in The Call and Night in Paradise .

PLAY, PAUSE, OR STOP?:

While not a movie you will feel comfortable screening, the less compelling narrative and lead characters will make you think it’s worth the risk.

Andrew Morgan is a film critic & podcaster with 20 years of experience on the sets & offices of film & television. Current podcast host of the entertainment review show, Recent Activity. He lives in the Northeast of the United States.

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Unlocked – Netflix Review (3/5)

Posted by Karina "ScreamQueen" Adelgaard | Feb 17, 2023 | 4 minutes

UNLOCKED on Netflix is a new psychological thriller from South Korea. The movie is an adaption of the Japanese movie Stolen Identity . It’s a serial killer story, where we see his method of stalking victims via their smartphones. Read our full Unlocked movie review here!

UNLOCKED is a new Netflix thriller from South Korea about a serial killer who stalks his victims via their smartphones. In fact, he even seems to choose his victims at random; If they lose their phone and he finds it, then they’re his next victim.

MORE SMARTPHONE HORROR Though it has a different take on it, the new series  Red Rose  on Netflix is a relevant comparison >

This movie is an adaptation of the Japanese movie Stolen Identity which was directed by the iconic J-Horror director Hideo Nakata ( The Ring , Sadako ). It’s obviously a very character-based story, but it also focuses a lot on how much our phones say about us. And how dependent, we are on them. For just about anything and everything.

Continue reading our Unlocked movie review below. Find it on Netflix from February 17, 2023.

It could happen to you

When Unlocked begins, we follow Na-Mi ( Chun Woo-Hee from The Wailing ) who works as a marketer at a start-up company. She doesn’t make much money and also works at her dad’s café. In just about every way, she leads a very ordinary life of someone who works hard every day.

And she’s also someone who depends on her smartphone for everything from reminders to work and communication.

After a fun night out with friends, Na-Mi loses her smartphone on the bus as she returns home. Fortunately, she gets it back quickly. She believes a young woman has found her phone, but we [the audience] know it’s actually a young man. This young man is shady in every way and is installing all kinds of spyware on her phone.

When she gets her phone back, her life is about to change in several strange and twisted turns.

K-pop star Siwan as the villain

The young man, who found Na-Mi’s phone and manages to insert himself into her life in a separate way soon thereafter, is Joon-Yeong (or Jun-Yeong). He’s portrayed by Im Si-Wan who is also known simply as Siwan.

He’s both an actor and a singer, who fans of the K-pop boyband ZE:A will recognize. Also, if you’ve watched the Netflix series  Strangers from Hell , you’ll recognize Siwan from that.

As Joon-Yeong, Siwan managed to deliver an extremely creepy performance at its core. Especially because he can be equally charming and laid back when the situation calls for it.

It’s almost too easy

As always, it can feel almost too easy to watch things go to hell for Na-Mi so fast. However, there are also people pointing out that Joon-Yeong seems creepy. Especially Na-Mi’s father, but – of course – she doesn’t listen to him. Her father, however, knows that Joon-Yeong is lying when he says he’s a regular at the coffee shop. He knows that much, so he’s on guard.

Na-Mi’s father is portrayed by Park Ho-san who fans of South Korean genre productions will no doubt recognize. Most recently, he also played the father in the Netflix horror movie The Call (2020) and he was in the action gore movie Project Wolf Hunting which we reviewed here >

The best friend of Na-Mi is also a little weary but doesn’t push too hard at first. This friend is portrayed by Kim Ye-Won who was in a movie with a somewhat similar premise. That movie was titled Door Lock (2019) .

While Jun-Young is working on his latest victim, we also follow Detective Ji-Man ( Kim Hee-Won ) as he investigates a murder case. A dead body was found in the forest on a remote mountain. There’s quite a twist when the Detective finds clues that point to his son Joon-Yeong as the possible perpetrator—something the Detective only shares with one close colleague.

Watch  Unlocked  on Netflix now!

The new South Korean psychological thriller was directed by Kim Tae-joon. This is his directorial debut, but it’s certainly a very strong one. With a runtime of just under two hours (1 hour and 57 minutes), it isn’t one of the longer movies from South Korea. But the runtime is very well utilized.

The film is based on the Japanese novel of the same name by Akira Teshigawara. As already mentioned, this was adapted into the 2018 Japanese film Stolen Identity . I can easily see how further adaptions or remakes could be made in virtually any country.

Having watched this, you’ll probably be conflicted between keeping your phone even closer and simply throwing it away. However, as many modern societies are built now, you can’t really opt to do the latter without making your life more difficult. It’s a double-edged sword, which (as mentioned initially) is exactly what the British Red Rose  series on Netflix also deals with.

Unlocked  is on Netflix from February 17, 2023.

Director: Tae-joon Kim Writers: Akira Shiga (novel), Kim Tae-Joon Stars: Chun Woo-hee, Yim Si-wan, Kim Hee-won, Jeong-hwan Park, Kim Ye-won, Jeon Jin-Oh

A woman’s life is turned upside-down when a dangerous man gets a hold of her lost cell phone and uses it to track her every move.

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About The Author

Karina "ScreamQueen" Adelgaard

I write reviews and recaps on Heaven of Horror. And yes, it does happen that I find myself screaming, when watching a good horror movie. I love psychological horror, survival horror and kick-ass women. Also, I have a huge soft spot for a good horror-comedy. Oh yeah, and I absolutely HATE when animals are harmed in movies, so I will immediately think less of any movie, where animals are harmed for entertainment (even if the animals are just really good actors). Fortunately, horror doesn't use this nearly as much as comedy. And people assume horror lovers are the messed up ones. Go figure!

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Unlocked (2023) Review – fantastic premise but mediocre thriller

Directed by Kim Tae-joon, we review the 2023 South Korean Netflix film Unlocked does not contain spoilers.

The South-Korean mystery thriller,  Unlocked  is director Kim Tae-joon ‘s first full feature. Based on the novel of the same name by the Japanese author Akira Teshigawara , the film was initially meant to have a theatrical release before the production company decided on a straight-to- Netflix premiere. With a cast including the K-Pop star Yim Si-wan and the critically acclaimed Chun Woo-hee , expectations for this title were high, perhaps a bit too high. 

Unlocked (2023) Review and Plot Summary

Unlocked  starts with a highly accurate sequence portraying a day in the protagonist’s life from her smartphone’s perspective. Na Mi (played by Chun Woo-hee) is a start-up marketer who works part-time at her dad’s Seung Woo ( Park Ho-san ) cafe. After a drunken night out with her friends, she passes out on the bus and leaves her phone behind. Luckily, the person who found it is willing to give it back. They’re even kind enough to drop it off at a phone repair shop and pay for its screen to be fixed. Unbeknownst to Na Mi, her phone landed in the hands of Oh Jun Yeong ( Yim Si-wan ), who installed spyware on her device and used it to stalk her and insert himself into her life. 

We’re also introduced to detective Ji Man ( Kim Hee-won ) and his partner, Jung Ho ( Jeon Jin-oh ) . They’re investigating the brutal murder of a young woman whose body was just uncovered. At the crime scene, Ji Man finds clues indicating that his estranged son, Jun Yeong, could be the culprit. The two detectives decide to quietly investigate Jun Yeong and find out if he’s a murderer before telling the rest of their colleagues and risking Ji Man’s career in the force. 

The premise for Unlocked is intriguing and a terrifying reminder of how much we rely on our smartphones. These pocket-sized supercomputers contain all our conversations with friends and family, our memories, our work schedule, our hobbies, and even our banking details. And the idea of some deranged psycho getting their hands on these profoundly personal details and using them for nefarious reasons makes for a great horror plot.

Unfortunately, the execution is a bit messy. We don’t spend enough time with Na Mi to care about what happens to her. The killer’s actions make little sense. At one point, I thought I was watching the Korean version of You before devolving back into senseless chaos. Despite the relatively long runtime, too many narrative pieces are left in the air. 

Yim Si-wan is excellent as a villain. His portrayal of the deranged serial killer was chilling. And the chemistry between the two leads made the little cat-and-mouse game fun to watch. I also found Kim Hee-won’s performance as a father stuck between his duty and his need to protect his son compelling, and I wish that particular dynamic had been explored more. 

Is the 2023 South Korean film Unlocked good?

The premise for Unlocked is fantastic, but the result is a mediocre yet entertaining thriller. While there are a few muddled-up bits, the acting is top-notch, and the story is engaging enough to keep you watching for the entire runtime. 

What did you think of the 2023 South Korean movie Unlocked? Comment below.

Article by Lori Meek

Lori Meek has been a Ready Steady Cut contributing writer since September 2022 and has had over 400 published articles since. She studied Film and Television at Southampton Solent University, where she gained most of her knowledge and passion for the entertainment industry. Lori’s work is also featured on platforms such as TBreak Media and ShowFaves.

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Unlocked review

Noomi Rapace stars in Unlocked, a new spy thriller from director Michael Apted. A new franchise in the offing? Ryan takes a look...

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Are filmmakers having trouble titling their spy thrillers? Think about the names of classic examples of the genre: The Spy Who Came In From The Cold. The Ipcress File. Three Days Of The Condor. The Day Of The Jackal.  Cool. Evocative. Enticing.

Now consider the following: Salt. Spectre. The Double. Unlocked. Don’t exactly get the pulse racing, do they?

Still, there’s plenty of tension and paranoia to go around in Unlocked , even if its name slips from the mind as soon as you’ve looked at the poster. Noomi Rapace stars as Alice Racine, a former CIA interrogator who’s reluctant to return to the fold after a she failed to foil a terrorist plot five years earlier. But a new threat – in the form of a biological weapon – forces Alice back into action, as she engages in a mad dash around London to track down the killer virus before it’s triggered.

What follows is a fairly rote thriller in the mode of Jason Bourne or TV’s Spooks (which got a forgettable big-screen spin-off, The Greater Good, in 2015). The good news is that veteran director Michael Apted has form in this kind of thing, having brought us the good-but-not-great 90s Bond outing The World Is Not Enough ; he brings a decent number of whizzes and bangs to most of Unlocked’ s action sequences, which are far more spiky and bloody than in your average Bond or Bourne flick.

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The bad news is that the plot’s taken straight from the big book of generic spy films. There’s a sage mentor figure – played by Michael Douglas in a spectacular white roll-neck sweater – an icy handler – Toni Collette, with a cut-glass accent and an even sharper Annie Lennox haircut – and a ruthless CIA boss – played by John Malkovich, who turns in a very Malkovich performance. You know, hard stares, abrupt bursts of shouting, that kind of thing.

At times, it’s difficult to tell whether we’re supposed to take Unlocked seriously or not. Screenwriter Peter O’Brien conjures up the phantom of international terrorism, and Apted, with his unwavering documentary-maker’s eye for the everyday, grounds the movie in a believably multicultural, contemporary London: apparently shot in the middle of October, Unlocked is all steel-grey skies, social housing blocks and run-down concrete car parks. Yet O’Brien throws in the occasional oddity to give us pause, which land on the screen like artefacts from another dimension: Orlando Bloom with an EastEnders accent as an ex-soldier and burglar (seriously, he’s in the middle of pilfering a television when he literally bumps into Alice); Malkovich mugging at Toni Collette over Skype; a terrorist riding a tiny bicycle like a refugee from BMX Bandits.

It’s all very odd, and we haven’t even got to Noomi Rapace’s leading performance. Softly spoken and surprisingly apologetic, Rapace entirely lacks the cool resolve of, say, Angelina Jolie’s turn in Salt – a movie Unlocked resembles, with all its assorted twists and changes of allegiance. (If we didn’t know better, we’d say Unlocked began life as a Salt sequel, in fact – the two movies even share the same producer, Lorenzo di Bonaventura.)

Solidly shot, quite tense in its best moments, Unlocked feels like one of those films you’d catch by accident on a late night cable channel, or might stumble on while flicking through the in-flight entertainment on a trip abroad. It’s by no means an awful film, but it’s several furlongs from a remarkable one. Ironically, it’s Unlocked ’s weirder moments that prevent it from being as forgettable as its title: Orlando Bloom muttering about his love of tagines; Toni Collette firing a machine gun the size of a family car; an incredibly strange moment involving a tattooed man, a lift and a pair of angry dogs.

If only the film had continued further down this route, and brought us a more outré take on the traditional spy thriller. More Michael Douglas in ill-advised sweaters; more of Bloom’s opinions on North African cuisine; more terrorists on tiny BMX bikes. Unlocked is one thing – Unhinged would have been far, far more interesting.

Unlocked is out in UK cinemas on the 5th May.

Ryan Lambie

We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article.

Unlocked ending explained: Who is the killer in Netflix's Korean thriller?

"Shall I live as Woo Jun-yeong?"

Unlocked ending spoilers follow.

Having picked up Na-mi's phone, Jun-yeong (Yim Si-wan) seeks to return it to her, but not before installing spyware. From there on, Jun-yeong begins to watch Na-mi's every move and listen to every conversation, making obsessive notes about her life, finances and social network.

Soon after, things in Na-mi's life start to get strange. Friends receive offensive messages from her that she didn't send, and she keeps bumping into Jun-yeong, who has strikingly similar interests.

Meanwhile, police detective Ji-man (Kim Hee-won) begins secretly investigating his estranged son, Jun-yeong, after discovering multiple bodies with evidence connected to him.

Both Ji-man and Na-mi realise Jun-yeong's grave intentions and their efforts to escape from Jun-yeong and incarcerate him before it's too late lead to a thrilling finale and an unexpected reveal.

Some big spoilers are ahead, so don't read on until you've seen Unlocked .

Unlocked ending explained: Who is Woo Jun-yeong?

Woo Jun-yeong is presented as a serial killer with several disguises, a tendency toward stalking, and dangerous intentions towards Na-mi. However, we find out he's not actually Jun-yeong at all – but we'll get to that.

The morning after Na-mi drops her phone, her friend calls. Jun-yeong answers, using pre-recorded responses in a woman's voice, explaining that he picked up the lost phone and hoped to return it. Notified by her friend, Na-mi also calls her phone and receives Jun-yeong's premeditated responses. They arrange for the phone to be left at Na-mi's father's cafe.

However, when Na-mi arrives, she gets a call to say her phone was dropped en route, smashing the screen. It's been left at a phone repair shop and the bill has been paid, she just needs to collect it.

The sketchy-looking phone shop is where she meets Jun-yeong, face covered by cap and mask. He doesn't talk, only gestures. Na-mi waits as Jun-yeong fixes her phone out back. But as he does, he places spyware onto the phone.

Na-mi leaves with her repaired phone, and the show begins. Jun-yeong watches her life through the phone camera, he listens to every conversation and reads every text – gaining information that he can use to stalk Na-mi and isolate her from everyone that cares about her.

At the same time, Jun-yeong's father, a police detective called Ji-man, begins uncovering bodies in a place that his estranged son was fond of. The evidence raises suspicions that Jun-yeong could be involved. So he checks his wife's phone, finding text exchanges between her and Jun-yeong.

Armed with Jun-yeong's address, Ji-man heads to the apartment to find pages of notes, numerous smartphones with photos of the dead as screensavers, and the same plant food that was found buried with the bodies.

As Ji-man begins filming the evidence confirming that his son is the serial killer, Jun-yeong returns home. But he realises his father is rifling around before opening the door, and begins to taunt him. Jun-yeong sends a photo of his location on the street outside the apartment and Ji-man runs out to check, giving Jun-yeong the opportunity to destroy the evidence and flee.

Meanwhile, Jun-yeong continues to ‘bump into' Na-mi. He poses as an IT office worker who shares Na-mi's interests and claims to be a regular at her father's cafe. However, her father is wary of Jun-yeong and warns Na-mi that something is not right – a conversation that Jun-yeong listens to through Na-mi's phone.

In response, Jun-yeong goes to Na-mi's father's home, tying up Na-mi's father and setting up camp for his surveillance. He begins to sabotage Na-mi's life, sending hurtful messages to get her fired and lose all her friends. Na-mi knows she's been hacked and calls Jun-yeong posing as the IT guy to help her.

At the same time, Ji-man and his partner find Jun-yeong's sketchy IT help centre. While there, they run into Na-mi who's returned to the shop due to smashing her phone out of frustration. The three agree to work together to catch Jun-yeong.

The killer receives a call from Na-mi and heads to her apartment. Ji-man and his partner wait outside to confront Jun-yeong when he arrives. But Ji-man doesn't recognise his son – which seems weird at the time, but it becomes clearer – and Jun-yeong retreats to Na-mi's father's house after seeing people are waiting for him.

Jun-yeong isn't at the house for long before Na-mi shows up. The police have dropped her there for safety, and asked her to contact them regularly to confirm she's still okay. Jun-yeong forces Na-mi to text the police, before tying her up and waterboarding her in the bathtub alongside her father. He takes a photo of Na-mi and makes it Na-mi's screensaver.

At that moment, Ji-man and his partner enter the house. Knowing that Jun-yeong was watching, Na-mi had handwritten a note to the police before leaving for the house: "No texts, only calls!".

Jun-yeong is caught and beaten by his father, but he's not really his father. Ji-man looks down at the smartphones and notes scattered on the floor – each one numbered according to the order in which Jun-yeong has killed his victims. He reaches down for the page numbered 0 and reads: "Shall I live as Woo Jun-yeong?"

Ji-man picks up the smartphone labelled 0 to find a screensaver of his son Jun-yeong tied up and tortured. That's right folks, Jun-yeong is dead and Ji-man only thought he was investigating his own son.

Jun-yeong had been estranged from his father for seven years not because they fell out, but because he was the killer's first victim, which also means the killer had been talking to Jun-yeong's mother pretending to be him. Now that's dark.

Unlocked is available to watch now on Netflix.

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Is netflix’s ‘unlocked: a jail experiment’ real the controversy, explained.

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Unlocked: A Jail Experiment

Netflix’s new reality series is not like any other. In the social experiment, incarcerated men are given increased autonomy in hopes of creating a community-driven atmosphere and deterring future criminal behavior. But is Netflix’s Unlocked: A Jail Experiment real ? Find out why the docuseries could be facing legal trouble.

Using interviews and unprecedented access, Netflix’s Unlocked: A Jail Experiment chronicles what happens when detainees can come and go from their cells and decide how their unit should operate. Over six weeks and eight episodes, 46 inmates are documented with unprecedented authority in the Pulaski County Regional Detention Facility in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Sheriff Eric Higgins, who was behind the unique experiment, wanted to discover what would happen when unit cells were “unlocked” for six weeks. “We thought, ‘What can we do to create some ownership for those detainees in that unit?’” Higgins told Netflix’s Tudum . “How do we make the facility safer, and what can we do to still hold them accountable but empower them at the same time?”

Is Netflix’s Unlocked: A Jail Experiment Real?

Netflix’s Unlocked: A Jail Experiment is an unscripted real-life social experiment conducted at Pulaski County Regional Detention Facility in Little Rock, Arkansas. Although the series was advertised as having “no locks” and “no officers,” that was actually not the case.

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In an ordinance shared by KATV , Higgins wrote that officers were stationed in the H-unit approximately six to eight feet from two secured doors. An officer was also monitoring cameras in the unit, and deputies were in the unit consistently. Higgins also said that “no locks” meant their cells were open and inmates had a higher degree of freedom.

“Pulaski County Regional Detention Center is a direct supervision facility, which means the deputies are inside the unit with detainees,” Higgins told Tudum. Although security levels differ in each unit, the Sheriff’s intention for the experiment was simple: establish an environment with reduced direct supervision.

The first step of the experiment was removing deputies from the unit, giving inmates greater authority over their everyday routines. The Sheriff organized a tier-based structure that they replicated from a re-entry unit elsewhere in the facility. That way, detainees who consistently demonstrated good behavior could earn more privileges.

“Our re-entry unit is for detainees who want help with their addiction or other issues they’re dealing with,” Higgins explained to the site. “There’s an interview process — it’s an open-barrack unit, and it’s the safest in our facility. The behavior is better, it was safer, and the facility was cleaner, because they took ownership. Looking at this experiment, we wondered if that was something we could implement; if we could take a typical unit and modify behavior based on a system of responsibility and benefits.”

The subjects involved in the experiment were briefed about what to expect. “We didn’t automatically open the doors,” Higgins clarified. “We talked to them about the possibilities, and about behavior. We gave them a list of responsibilities and [made] personnel available to them to ask more detailed questions” before filming of the Netflix show began.

The production company also told detainees that they would be recorded and could depart the experiment if they wanted to. “We checked to see if they wanted to be there,” the Sheriff explained. “At any given time, a person could leave [the experimental unit].”

Why Is Netflix ’s Unlocked: A Jail Experiment Controversial?

State officials are looking into Higgins’s decision to allow a production crew to film inside the Pulaski County Jail. The Pulaski County Quorum Court has questions about the docuseries and passed an ordinance at the end of March to learn more.

The ordinance required Higgins to answer around 40 questions and provide “any copies of any agreements signed, any lists of reimbursements and compensations that came from filming, as well as questions regarding who knew this was taking place when it happened and more,” according to Fox 16 .

Justice of the Peace Phil Stowers, District 13, said there are concerns that this is a bad look for the county, but the ordinance will affect how they move forward legally, the news site reported. “It’s not a question as to whether or not the sheriff has the ability to try something out of the box, something new in the jail,” Stowers said, per Fox 16. “The questions and concerns are why did that have to turn into a reality TV show?”

In April, Higgins responded to the ordinance ( obtained by KATV ) and disclosed that $60,000 was paid to those participating in the show, payable to the Pulaski County Government. Two PCSO employees were paid $40 per hour for their off-duty hours, but no other compensation was given. When asked if PCSO adhered to the policies and protocols while conducting the experiment, Higgins said yes.

On April 10, the NAACP in Jacksonville held a Q&A session with Higgins, where he addressed questions about why he chose to proceed with the controversial jail experiment.

"I want to humanize people. I want to empower people to have an impact on their culture, environment, and community. If you can do that on a micro level, in jail with people you don't care about or didn't initially care about, and if you take that with you when you go to the broader community, then maybe you realize that you are empowered, you can have a positive impact on your neighborhood, on your family,” Higgins said, according to THV11 .

President of the NAACP Jacksonville branch, Barry Jefferson, also expressed his support for the experiment.

"We need to change because the system we're doing now is not working, building more prisons is not working, putting more people in jail is not working, because it's a revolving door but we can change the dynamic of jail on how people go and when they get released, that he won't come back," Jefferson explained. "This is all because people shouldn't have to feel that they don't have no other choice, but jail."

Unlocked A Jail Experiment is now streaming on Netflix.

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Unlocked: A Jail Experiment on Netflix: Documentary to Showcase an Arkansas Sheriff's Efforts

N etflix is set to release an intriguing documentary series next month titled Unlocked: A Jail Experiment, which will take a closer look at Sheriff Eric Higgins’ idea to improve the lives of incarcerated individuals.

Arkansas Sheriff Eric Higgins spent his whole life witnessing high recidivism rates and poor conditions in prisons . He believed that a much-needed change was necessary, hence, he decided to conduct a gutsy 6-week-long experiment. Higgins’ program aimed to make prisoners take responsibility and accountability for their and others’ actions. Furthermore, he wanted to instill a sense of dignity in the jailed individuals.

According to Netflix’s official YouTube channel, the synopsis of Unlocked: A Jail Experiment reads, “At an Arkansas detention facility, a sheriff implements a radical social experiment to grant men who are incarcerated more agency.”

The producers of this project are Greg Henry, George Kralovansky, Isaac Holub, Kimberly Woodard, J.C. Begley, and Matt Weber.

When will Unlocked: A Jail Experiment be released?

According to Tudum by Netflix, Unlocked: A Jail Experiment will come out on April 10, 2024. It will consist of eight episodes in total.

According to People Magazine , Sheriff Eric Higgins released a statement that described the upcoming docuseries. In addition, he revealed that he faced several obstacles in his journey. Higgins stated, “This series explores the challenges faced by jails and prisons, such as low staffing, overcrowding, and the negative stigma. Despite these difficulties, my team and I are working on new ways to improve our facility in order to create a safer environment for our employees and help those in our care through responsibility and accountability.”

He further stated, “Did we face obstacles? YES! However, I believe this journey will not only change the lives of the individuals involved but also challenge society’s views on incarceration and rehabilitation.”

Sheriff Eric Higgins is a licensed minister. Furthermore, he is married and has two daughters.

The post Unlocked: A Jail Experiment on Netflix: Documentary to Showcase an Arkansas Sheriff's Efforts appeared first on ComingSoon.net - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More .

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Sheriff faces questions from Arkansas lawmakers over Netflix series filmed at county jail

Pulaski County Sheriff Eric Higgins answers questions from legislators about the Netflix documentary series “Unlocked: A Jail Experiment” during the Joint Performance Review Committee meeting on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at the state Capitol in Little Rock. (Thomas Metthe/Arkansas Democrat-Gazette via AP)

Rep. Mark Berry, R-Ozark, calls for quiet in the crowd during the Joint Performance Review Committee meeting on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at the state Capitol in Little Rock, Ark. Arkansas lawmakers on Tuesday raised questions about a sheriff’s decision to allow a Netflix documentary series, “Unlocked: A Jail Experiment” to be filmed at the county jail. (Thomas Metthe/Arkansas Democrat-Gazette via AP)

A crowd listens as Pulaski County Sheriff Eric Higgins answers questions from legislators about the Netflix documentary series “Unlocked: A Jail Experiment” during the Joint Performance Review Committee meeting on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at the state Capitol in Little Rock, Ark. (Thomas Metthe/Arkansas Democrat-Gazette via AP)

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LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Arkansas lawmakers on Tuesday raised questions about a sheriff’s decision to allow a Netflix documentary series to be filmed at the county jail, with one critic saying the move exploited inmates.

Pulaski County Sheriff Eric Higgins defended the decision to allow the series, “Unlocked: A Jail Experiment” to be filmed at the county jail. The eight-episode series, which premiered last month, highlights a program giving some inmates more freedom at the Little Rock facility.

The decision has prompted scrutiny from local and state officials, who said they weren’t aware of the series until shortly before its premiere. The series focuses on a six-week experiment that gave inmates in one cellblock more freedom by unlocking their cell doors. Higgins said he did not approach Netflix or Lucky 8, the production company that filmed it, about the series.

“I took action to ensure that we have a reentry program to help those who are booked into our facility to come out and be better individuals,” Higgins told members of the Joint Performance Review Committee.

Republican Sen. Jonathan Dismang said he doesn’t have a problem with the sheriff’s reentry program or trying something new to address recidivism. But he said he was concerned with it being the focus of a show, and questioned how it could be considered an experiment if it was being filmed.

“I think it’s an exploitation of your prisoners that you allowed a film crew to come in,” Dismang said.

Another Republican lawmaker said he was worried about what the show would do to the state’s reputation, comparing it to a 1994 HBO documentary about gangs in Little Rock.

“For most of the people that watched this docuseries, this is the first time they’ve ever been exposed to Pulaski County, or perhaps to the state of Arkansas,” Rep. David Ray said. “I worry about the brand damage that our state sustains from this being the first perception of our state to other people.”

Pulaski County Judge Barry Hyde — the county’s top elected administrator — said he wasn’t aware of the series until he saw a trailer before its premiere. Hyde has said that the agreement between the sheriff and the production company was illegal because Hyde didn’t sign it. The county has since returned a $60,000 check from the production company that filmed the series.

Higgins, a Democrat who was first elected in 2018 and is the county’s first Black sheriff, has had the backing of some community members. The Little Rock chapter of the NAACP has supported Higgins’ decision, and supporters of the sheriff filled a committee room for Tuesday’s hearing.

Democratic Sen. Linda Chesterfield said Higgins’ supporters are looking for “someone to provide humane treatment for people who have been treated inhumanely.”

“We are viewing this through different lenses, and it’s important we respect the lenses through which we view it,” Chesterfield said.

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Netflix viewers are obsessed with 'underrated' movie called the 'most unnerving AI film'

Netflix users are flocking online after the streaming service released an 'underrated' movie about ai featuring a 'wow'-worthy plot twist.

Poppy Bilderbeck

Netflix users are flooding to social media in horror over a movie about artificial intelligence.

It may not reduce you to tears like another action movie available on the streaming service starring Bruce Willis and described as a 'masterpiece' , but this dark-humored AI , action film is sure to get your skin-prickling.

Cast, crew and synopsis

The film was written and directed by Leigh Whannell - best known for one of the best horrors to exist The Invisible Man (2020) and other hits such as SAW and Insidious - and produced by Jason Blum's Blumhouse Productions - known for Get Out, Paranormal Activity and M3GAN.

It stars the likes of Logan Marshall-Green ( Intrusion), Betty Gabriel ( Get Out) and Harrison Gilbertson ( The Tall Grass).

The cyberpunk action film centers itself around auto mechanic Grey Trace (Marshall-Green) who ends up getting implanted with a chip , which allows him to control his body after being left paralyzed. But, will the chip do more than just give him back authority over his body? And is Grey still really in control?

The movie - titled Upgrade - first came out in 2018, premiering on 10 March at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas , however, since its release onto Netflix earlier this month, viewers have been flooding to social media to give their reviews.

Upon its initial release, the film made an applaudable $16.5 million globally at the box office, as per Box Office Mojo, costing around $5 million to make, as per IMDB, and it received positive reviews from critics at the time too.

And at the time of writing, Upgrade has achieved an impressive Rotten Tomatoes audience score of 88 percent and a matching solid - and officially 'fresh' - tomatometer score of 88 percent too.

The film has even been described by ScreenRant as 'the most unnerving AI movie of the past 10 years'.

And the praise has spilled out onto social media too.

One X user said: "For my cyberpunk lovers out there. Go watch Upgrade on Netflix. I can't believe I never heard of this film till yesterday and it was absolutely fantastic. (Trailer doesn't do it justice)."

"It is a fantastic film, beautifully shot, acted, and paced. Plus that twist is just wow!" Another added.

A third commented: "Name an underrated sci-fi movie? Not enough people talk about Upgrade (2018) for my liking."

"Banger movie. Showed this to a buddy recently and he was over the moon about it. So inventive and stylishly shot," a fourth wrote.

And a final resolved: "The ending to this movie tho!"

Topics:  Artificial Intelligence , Entertainment , Film and TV , Netflix , Social Media , Technology , Twitter , Horror

Poppy Bilderbeck is a Senior Journalist at LADbible Group. She graduated from The University of Manchester in 2021 with a First in English Literature and Drama, where alongside her studies she was Editor-in-Chief of The Tab Manchester. Poppy is most comfortable when chatting about all things mental health, is proving a drama degree is far from useless by watching and reviewing as many TV shows and films as possible and is such a crisp fanatic the office has been forced to release them in batches.

• AI was asked to show what dreams look like and the results are 'disturbing'
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June Will Be a Sad Month for 'Nightmare on Elm Street' Fans

Netflix is delivering a real nightmare right in the middle of the horror slasher's 40th anniversary.

The Big Picture

• Nightmare on Elm Street , its first four sequels, and the 2010 remake are leaving Netflix on June 30, 2024.
• The original film is coming to 4K for the first time to celebrate the franchise's 40th anniversary.
• Wes Craven's New Nightmare will be the only film from the franchise remaining on Netflix after June 30.

A Nightmare on Elm Street may have not had a new film in the franchise in 14 years, but there are many ways Freddy Krueger is being celebrated this year for the franchise’s scary 40th anniversary. This includes a handful of new toys and Netflix has even honored the original Wes Craven classic with a spot in their 1984 collection. However, it won’t be staying there for long as the original film and Freddy's first handful of Nightmare sequels are leaving the streamer in June .

The films leaving Netflix include the first four sequels; Freddy’s Revenge, Dream Warriors, The Dream Master, and The Dream Child . Also leaving the streamer is the much-maligned 2010 remake . All these Nightmare films will vanish from the streamer on June 30, 2024 . However, Freddy isn’t completely dead on Netflix as it appears that Wes Craven’s New Nightmare , a 1994 meta reinvention of the franchise, is staying to haunt people's dreams on the platform. This quasi-reboot is most known for being Craven’s precursor to Scream , which he would make two years later in 1996. At this time, the only Nightmare films not on Netflix at all are Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare and the epic slasher crossover Freddy vs Jason .

The King of the Slasher Genre

While Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees were the kings of horror in the early 80s, once Nightmare debuted in 1984, Freddy ripped the blood-soaked crown from their heads with ease. With some creative kills, an all-star cast, and an iconic killer design, Craven created a unique slasher icon with a personality that was like nothing moviegoers had seen before. “Freddy-Mania” was very much a real thing selling an endless trove of merchandise and the villain helped usher in the VHS boom of the decade.

The first film’s success would of course lead to sequels , most of which pale in comparison to the timeless night terrors found in the original. However, some, like Freddy’s Revenge and Dream Warriors , have left a lasting impact on the people who grew up with the franchise. Freddy has more than a few cult classics under his weathered fedora. That’s why it’s a bit sad that most of the franchise will be leaving Netflix so soon in the anniversary year — particularly since Nightmare ’s official anniversary isn’t till November.

Most of these films will likely end up on another streaming service before then. While we can't say for certain, they may return to Warner Brothers-owned Max, which has been home to the Nightmare franchise in the past. It was also recently revealed that the original film would be coming to 4K for the first time later this year. While it appears right now that none of Freddy’s sequels will be joining the format, a lot could change between now and the end of the year.

Will There Be a New 'Nightmare on Elm Street' Movie?

Even though Nightmare is one of the most beloved horror franchises ever, the series hasn’t seen a new film since 2010. The remake was almost a shot-for-shot update of the original, which is where the criticisms of it often begin. Unlike, something like Friday the 13th , there was no legal battle holding up any potential reboot. There just hasn’t been one. However, in recent months there has been some interest in reviving Freddy for a new generation of horror fans.

Just this month Collider’s own Steve Weintraub moderated a Directors on Directing penal at CCXP Mexico City where he asked Spider-Man: Homecoming director Jon Watts what other IP the filmmaker would want to take on. His answer was Nightmare on Elm Street . While he hasn't got any plans for a Nightmare film at this time, it's exciting to see the list of people wanting to do a Nightmare film slowly growing. Early this year, Ready or Not star and modern horror icon Samara Weaving also expressed interest in starring in a reboot of the franchise.

The Nightmare Is Almost Over

A Nightmare on Elm Street is currently streaming on Netflix till the end of June. That means there’s still a lot of time to binge the franchise before Freddy’s dead for good. While fans still wait for any potential Nightmare reboot news, Freddy is waiting to enter your dreams one last time on the streamer.

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

Teenager Nancy Thompson must uncover the dark truth concealed by her parents after she and her friends become targets of the spirit of a serial killer with a bladed glove in their dreams, in which if they die, it kills them in real life.

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Unlocked: A Jail Experiment

Where to watch.

Watch Unlocked: A Jail Experiment with a subscription on Netflix.

Cast & Crew

Eric Higgins

Executive Producer

George Kralovansky

Isaac Holub

Kimberly Woodard

J.C. Begley

More Like This

Series info.

May 22, 2024

New Netflix Series Has Arkansas Sheriff In Hot Water After Being Filmed In County Jail

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An Arkansas sheriff faced scrutiny from lawmakers after he decided to green-light a Netflix documentary series to be filmed at a county jail.

Pulaski County Sheriff Eric Higgins, the county’s first Black sheriff, stood his ground about allowing the film crew of the Netflix series Unlocked: A Jail Experiment inside county jail walls. The eight-episode series, which premiered in April, shines a light on a six-week experiment that allows inmates in one cellblock more freedom by unlocking their cell doors.

As Higgins pointed out, Netflix and Lucky 8, the production company behind the series, approached him about it, and local and state officials waved red flags as they claimed they were not aware of the series until a short time before its premiere. The sheriff told the Joint Performance Review Committee members that he “took action to ensure that we have a reentry program to help those who are booked into our facility to come out and be better individuals.”

However, one critic, Republican Sen. Jonathan Dismang, wasn’t buying it, saying the series exploits inmates.

“I think it’s an exploitation of your prisoners that you allowed a film crew to come in,” Dismang said. He doesn’t have an issue with the program but questioned how the program was being labeled an experiment if it was being filmed.

Fellow conservative lawmaker Rep. David Ray raised concerns about the damage the show could do to the state’s reputation , comparing it to a 1994 HBO documentary about gangs in Little Rock.

“For most of the people that watched this docuseries, this is the first time they’ve ever been exposed to Pulaski County, or perhaps to the state of Arkansas,” Ray said. “I worry about the brand damage that our state sustains from this being the first perception of our state to other people.”

However, Higgins, a Democrat first elected in 2018, has some support from those on the same political side. 

During a hearing on May 21, the Little Rock chapter of the NAACP supported Higgins and other supporters who filled the room . Sen. Linda Chesterfield said the sheriff’s supporters want someone “to provide humane treatment for people who have been treated inhumanely.” “We are viewing this through different lenses, and it’s important we respect the lenses through which we view it,” she said.

However, Pulaski County Judge Barry Hyde—the county’s top elected administrator—said he was unaware of the series and labeled the agreement i llegal because he never signed it, according to WHEC . 

A $60,000 check from the production company has since been returned from the county.

• Eric Higgins
• Unlocked: A Jail Experiment
• Pulaski County

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‘atlas’ director brad peyton on key to working with jennifer lopez, filming a 2030 delorean and his ‘predator’ dreams.

The Netflix sci-fi actioner centers on an AI bad guy, but the filmmaker didn't want that to be the full story: "I simply didn't want to repeat what I'd seen in other cinema."

By Brian Davids

Brian Davids

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Brad Peyton had his work cut out for him on the set of his new sci-fi action film, Atlas . The Canadian director’s new 2071-set film centers on Jennifer Lopez ’s Atlas Shepherd, a data analyst whose deep mistrust of AI is tested to the extreme when she must rely on an AI-driven mech suit to survive after the latest attack by an AI terrorist (Simu Liu’s Harlan). 

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“[ Atlas ], overall, is the most complex movie I’ve ever made,” Peyton tells The Hollywood Reporter . “I jokingly say this, though it’s true, but Avatar is probably the most complex movie you could make. It’s a lot of completely imagined and created reality, but ours is one step below that because there’s a lot of imagined augmented reality.”

Peyton wrapped principal photography in November 2022, just as the discourse around artificial intelligence started to become one of the most controversial issues in the entertainment industry and its eventual labor stoppages of 2023. While AI was never the focal point of the film for Peyton, he seems to align with the position of his film that it can be an effective tool if used properly and in tandem with a human being. 

“I had conversations with a couple of futurists. And with AI, it all seemed to come back to the same place. AI is a tool, and much like a hammer, it can be used for good or for bad,” Peyton says. “So it was important for me to build a story that showed both the extreme of the bad and the extreme of the good, and that was baked into the DNA of the screenplay and the story I wanted to tell. And, yeah, once we got into post, I felt very lucky that [the AI conversation] started bubbling up in a way.”

“It’s sneaky and not shown too much, but … there’s a little bot changing a tire on the 2030 DeLorean,” Peyton reveals. “They’ve designed it already, and they lent it to us to put inside the movie. So I guess you could call it a time machine, but I got to put a prototype for a future [DeLorean] in the movie. ”

Peyton dropped by THR ’s offices six years ago where he made it known that he’s literally seen John McTiernan’s Predator (1987) over 365 times, and while discussing Dan Trachtenberg’s well-received Predator prequel, Prey , Peyton shared that he, too, has his own take on a Yautja story that he’s dreaming of making someday.

“I also have a version of Predator that I would really like to see. I obviously can’t talk about it, because no one’s inviting me to go do a Predator movie yet ,” Peyton says. “But I actually really liked [ Prey ]. Anytime someone can come in and reinvent a franchise — but also keep the great elements that we love from the original — you have to applaud that person. So I think [Dan Trachtenberg] did that in spades.”

Below, during a recent conversation with THR , Peyton also looks back on the short-lived San Andreas sequel, before offering his response to a recent report regarding the on-set behavior of his frequent collaborator, Dwayne Johnson .

Not greatly, to be honest with you. The script is really the blueprint for the themes and the topics, and they had long been settled on. In all honesty, the whole topic of AI was secondary to the movie I wanted to make, which is about a woman learning how to trust. Atlas [Lopez] shut herself off from relationships, and the two most important things to any meaningful relationship are trust and respect. So she was not trusting whatsoever, and that’s what drew me into the movie. The AI component of it, I simply didn’t want to repeat what I’d seen in other cinema, and I’m a big science fiction/fantasy person. I’ve devoured that stuff since I was a little kid, and in most cinema, the AI is the evil robots from the future. It’s definitely the bad guy. 

We worked with a couple futurists on this movie, and I really wanted to talk about how to depict Earth and L.A. I didn’t want to do sand dunes; it’s not Mad Max . ( Laughs .) So I wanted to get in on a fundamental, realistic level of where things are really going to go, and I had conversations with a couple of futurists. And with AI, it all seemed to come back to the same place. AI is a tool, and much like a hammer, it can be used for good or for bad. It’s not one thing. The only place where it’s truly all good or all bad is in our imaginations because it’s a tool to be used. 

Knowing what you know now about AI, if you were to develop Atlas today, would you still make the same story decisions that you made two or three years ago?

Yeah, probably. I don’t think I would change much, because, again, my focus was a lot more on Atlas’ arc. It was not that focused as a statement about AI. I was really focused on someone who has to learn how to trust, and that’s where I put almost all my emphasis. 

So I don’t think I would change much, but let’s be honest, every time you go through a creative process, you’re like, “Oh, I wish I’d done this.” But there isn’t a wholesale thing where I would go, “Okay, I would change all this,” not that I have really spent any time thinking about it. I was just more focused on executing Atlas’ story and her relationship with Smith [the AI driving her suit] and how to make that an emotional experience, rather than the good AI versus the bad AI. 

You’ve worked with a few heavy hitters including Dwayne Johnson, Jason Momoa and now Jennifer Lopez. What’s the key to working with these types of movie stars who command a room to such a degree? 

I don’t know how everyone does it; I just know my approach to it, and I try to earn their trust by being in it with them. I try to be as direct with them as possible, and I try to service their end mission. My role, as a creative, is to support all the other creatives. I’m there to try to get the best from them, for them. So I need to get on the same page with them, earn their trust, and then really support them. There’s no games with me. There’s no, “I’m trying to have a dinner party and invite you.” There’s none of that stuff. It’s just, “I want what’s best for you while you’re at work, executing a movie.” And when they get a sense of that, I think they are willing to engage you, because they know, and you know. that you only have their best interest at heart.

As you touched on, you got to design the future including a futuristic Los Angeles. Given that you thanked DeLorean in the credits, did you sneak a time machine in there somewhere?

Is there something futuristic that your team designed that you’d actually want to see developed in real life?

I would drive a mech suit all day, every day, if they could somehow develop that. And as I was shooting, the other thing that hit me was her alarm clock. I like it a lot better than my alarm clock. It’s prettier and nicer, but it also plays chess with you and tells you that day’s humidity. So I would love to have that alarm clock.

How challenging were the mech suit sequences where Jennifer is mostly having stressful and emotional conversations with someone voicing Smith the AI out of frame?

Well, the movie, overall, is the most complex movie I’ve ever made. I jokingly say this, though it’s true, but Avatar is probably the most complex movie you could make. It’s a lot of completely imagined and created reality, but ours is one step below that because there’s a lot of imagined augmented reality. And what I mean by that is we would shoot plates of an organic place with certain actors in it, and then we would shoot an element of Jen and put those elements together with a CG character that she’s inside of and CG elements on top of it. 

The Jen component of it all was very rewarding, but also very challenging. I only got the mech suit two days before we went to camera, so we had to figure out how to record on the fly. There were two mech suits. One of them was put up on a big hydraulic gimbal that moves so you could augment ten different walk and run cycles. And what I then realized about Jen is that she’s one of the most intuitive actors I’ve ever worked with. I’m also an intuitive creative person. I choose my camera positions based on a feeling I get when I look through the lens, and I recognized Jen as the other side of that [intuition]. 

So rather than doing the standard of setting up cameras, recording a scene and changing lenses to then record another part of the scene, I realized that I needed to give her as much space to play as possible. So when we got to the mech suit, we ended up setting up four or five cameras at once. When I would block the scene with her, I’d give her a little map of where to move and what positions each camera was for. If she was exasperated, I’d say, “Hey, can you play that up there? I want to put a camera out here to see that moment.” But a lot of times, we would just record the entire scene in one go, because I could let her be free and intuitive inside of the mech suit. I’d never spent seven weeks recording entire runs of scenes with five cameras and no coverage before moving on.

I have to give credit to her history as a performer. She’s a solo performer and dancer who’s used to going on stage and performing to stadiums full of people. She’s the main object, and as much support as her dancers are or the tech is behind her, she has to be out there in this very vulnerable place like she was here, where she’s acting opposite no one for weeks on end.

So, going into this movie, I never could have imagined filming it this way, but I had to figure it out when I got the suit two days ahead of time. What makes you a real professional and good at your job is when you go, “I know it’s not working, and I’m not going to fool myself, so I’m going to adapt.” And because of that, the movie ended up being exponentially better, and Jen delivers an amazing performance.

What’s the story behind Smith’s voice actor? Greg [James Cohan], who voices Smith, is a great story unto itself. He was brought in as a day player. He was actually there to just support Jen, but when I heard his voice, I chose him. That was how I pictured Smith talking, and I knew that I could direct him to be how I pictured Smith being, which is basically Siri to superhero. He starts off very didactic and very matter of fact, and by the end of it, he’s like, “Ah, shit.” He’s like Danny Glover to Mel Gibson in Lethal Weapon . He’s got his own kind of movie star role.

So you had a background actor audibly congratulate Sterling K. Brown’s character on his Oscar nomination since filming coincided with his real-life nomination?

You told THR six years ago that you’ve seen Predator over 365 times, so did you and Sterling talk about that franchise at all? (Brown starred in 2018’s The Predator .)

No, but I’m going to see him for dinner, so we’re going to go there tonight. Most of the time on set, I’m so absorbed and present in what I’m doing. It’s a lot to take on, so I don’t actually have a lot of those conversations. I’m usually hyper-focused, and then when we’re done, I can actually become a real person. A lot of times, actors will meet me when I’m not shooting and they’ll be like, “Oh man, you’re way more relaxed.” And I’m like, “Well, yeah, I’m not shooting five pages of intense action and helming this gigantic movie.” So I have not actually picked Sterling’s brain about Predator , but I’m going to now.

Just out curiosity, can I get your quick impression of Prey since you’re clearly invested in this franchise? 

I really liked it. I thought it was super cool. I also have a version of Predator that I would really like to see. I obviously can’t talk about it, because no one’s inviting me to go do a Predator movie yet . But I actually really liked [ Prey ]. It was really fresh and innovative and interesting, and anytime someone can come in and reinvent a franchise — but also keep the great elements that we love from the original — you have to applaud that person. So I think [Dan Trachtenberg] did that in spades.

There was a script, but there wasn’t a lot of time spent on the script. I don’t really recall because I quickly moved into doing Rampage , but there was a script that existed. So there were a lot of conversations about developing it, and there was an initial approach, but it was also a long time ago. So I don’t really remember exactly how far we got with it.

You’ve made three movies with Dwayne Johnson [including San Andreas ], so that would suggest that you work well together. However, there was a recent report about his lack of punctuality on various sets including your Rampage (2018) set. What do you recall about his behavior during your 2017 production?

Dwayne has always been a terrific collaborator, and I had a great experience with him on Rampage and the other projects we worked on. I always felt that Dwayne respected me and gave me his all. I worked with him three times and I’d love to do it again.

Lastly, you and Rian Johnson both sing the praises of editor Bob Ducsay. Is there a particular sequence in Atlas where he was especially invaluable? 

Bob was incredibly valuable to me on this movie. He’s one of the people that I hope to work with for the rest of my career just because our sensibilities and our approach to narrative filmmaking are so similar. He really gets inside of [the story] and challenges everyone in the same way that I do of delivering the best work you can.

So Bob and I started mocking this approach up of an animated Smith avatar, and he spent so much time nuancing the modulation of the voice. We called it “Circle Smith” when we were developing it, and I want to say that a lot of it was Bob. As much freedom as I tried to afford Jen, I also gave that freedom to Bob. 

But I didn’t burden Jen with [the Smith avatar]. I wanted her to continue the process she was on, but once we got into post and Bob started cutting scenes, he really took these ideas and ran with them. So the end result of the animated Smith avatar was from Bob and his team taking the runway and beginning to develop it as I was shooting. It was such a huge invention, and it impacts the movie in such a massive way.

*** Atlas hits Netflix on May 24.

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