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==Release==
==Release==
===Theatrical===
===Theatrical===
''Free Guy'' was released in the United States on August 13, 2021<ref>{{cite web |last=Rubin |first=Rebecca |date=March 23, 2021 |title='Black Widow,' 'Cruella' to Debut on Disney Plus and in Theaters as Disney Shifts Dates for Seven Films |url=https://variety.com/2021/film/news/disney-postpones-black-widow-shang-chi-1234935874/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210323190428/https://variety.com/2021/film/news/disney-postpones-black-widow-shang-chi-1234935874/ |archive-date=March 23, 2021 |access-date=March 23, 2021 |website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref> in [[RealD 3D]], [[IMAX]], [[4DX]] and [[Dolby Cinema]] formats. It was the first film from [[Walt Disney Studios (division)|Walt Disney Studios]] during the pandemic released exclusively to theaters for 45 days before releasing on streaming services such as [[Disney+]] (include [[List of Disney+ Premier Access releases|Premier Access]]) or [[Hulu]]/[[Star+]] and [[HBO Max]].<ref name="ReleaseExclusiveWindow">{{cite web |last1=Couch |first1=Aaron |last2=McClintock |first2=Pamela |date=May 13, 2021 |title='Free Guy' and 'Shang-Chi' to Get Exclusive Theatrical Releases |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/free-guy-shang-chi-disney-release-dates-1234952853/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513210045/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/free-guy-shang-chi-disney-release-dates-1234952853/ |archive-date=May 13, 2021 |access-date=May 13, 2021 |website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]}}</ref>
''Free Guy'' was released in the United States on August 13, 2021<ref>{{cite web |last=Rubin |first=Rebecca |date=March 23, 2021 |title='Black Widow,' 'Cruella' to Debut on Disney Plus and in Theaters as Disney Shifts Dates for Seven Films |url=https://variety.com/2021/film/news/disney-postpones-black-widow-shang-chi-1234935874/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210323190428/https://variety.com/2021/film/news/disney-postpones-black-widow-shang-chi-1234935874/ |archive-date=March 23, 2021 |access-date=March 23, 2021 |website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref> in [[RealD 3D]], [[IMAX]], [[4DX]] and [[Dolby Cinema]] formats. It was the first film from [[Walt Disney Studios (division)|Walt Disney Studios]] during the pandemic released exclusively to theaters for 45 days before releasing on streaming services.<ref name="ReleaseExclusiveWindow">{{cite web |last1=Couch |first1=Aaron |last2=McClintock |first2=Pamela |date=May 13, 2021 |title='Free Guy' and 'Shang-Chi' to Get Exclusive Theatrical Releases |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/free-guy-shang-chi-disney-release-dates-1234952853/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513210045/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/free-guy-shang-chi-disney-release-dates-1234952853/ |archive-date=May 13, 2021 |access-date=May 13, 2021 |website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]}}</ref>


The film was initially scheduled to be released on July 3, 2020, but it was delayed because of the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Welk |first=Brian |date=April 3, 2020 |title='Black Widow' Moves to November as Other MCU Films Shift Back to 2021, 2022 |url=https://www.thewrap.com/black-widow-moves-to-november-as-other-mcu-films-shift-back-to-2021-2022/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200927202402/https://www.thewrap.com/black-widow-moves-to-november-as-other-mcu-films-shift-back-to-2021-2022/ |archive-date=September 27, 2020 |access-date=April 3, 2020 |website=The Wrap}}</ref><ref name="Ramos">{{cite web |last=Ramos |first=Dino-Ray |date=December 7, 2019 |title=Fox Releases First Trailer For 'Free Guy'; Ryan Reynolds Refers To Unlikely Superhero Origin Story As Modern-Day 'Back To The Future' – CCXP |url=https://deadline.com/2019/12/free-guy-trailer-ryan-reynolds-shawn-levy-joe-keery-20th-century-fox-1202803053/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191221210141/https://deadline.com/2019/12/free-guy-trailer-ryan-reynolds-shawn-levy-joe-keery-20th-century-fox-1202803053/ |archive-date=December 21, 2019 |access-date=January 25, 2020 |website=Deadline Hollywood }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Kit |first=Borys |date=September 28, 2018 |title=Ryan Reynolds, Shawn Levy Team for Action Comedy 'Free Guy' |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/ryan-reynolds-star-action-comedy-free-guy-1133159 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191004041941/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/ryan-reynolds-star-action-comedy-free-guy-1133159 |archive-date=October 4, 2019 |access-date=June 22, 2019 |website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]}}</ref> It was then moved to December 11, 2020.<ref>{{cite web |last=Bullard |first=Benjamin |date=April 5, 2020 |title=Ryan Reynolds reveals Free Guy December new release date |url=https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/ryan-reynolds-new-free-guy-release-date |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200427115835/https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/ryan-reynolds-new-free-guy-release-date |archive-date=April 27, 2020 |access-date=July 7, 2020 |website=SyFy}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Gemmill |first=Allie |date=October 4, 2020 |title=New 'Free Guy' Trailer Teaser Hypes Ryan Reynolds' Comedy That You'll (Probably) See in 2020 |url=https://collider.com/free-guy-trailer-teaser-ryan-reynolds-jodie-comer/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201007171958/https://collider.com/free-guy-trailer-teaser-ryan-reynolds-jodie-comer/ |archive-date=October 7, 2020 |access-date=October 5, 2020 |website=Collider }}</ref> In November 2020, the studio removed the film, along with ''[[Death on the Nile (2022 film)|Death on the Nile]]'', from its upcoming release schedule until further notice.<ref>{{cite web |last=McClintock |first=Pamela |date=November 5, 2020 |title='Free Guy,' 'Death on the Nile' Sail Out of 2020 Amid Ongoing COVID-19 Crisis |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/free-guy-death-on-the-nile-sail-out-of-2020-amid-ongoing-covid-19-crisis |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201105234317/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/free-guy-death-on-the-nile-sail-out-of-2020-amid-ongoing-covid-19-crisis |archive-date=November 5, 2020 |access-date=November 5, 2020 |website=The Hollywood Reporter}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Ryan Reynolds' 'Free Guy' movie won't hit theaters in December |url=https://www.engadget.com/free-guy-ryan-reynolds-movie-delay-december-154331579.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201106154727/https://www.engadget.com/free-guy-ryan-reynolds-movie-delay-december-154331579.html |archive-date=November 6, 2020 |access-date=November 6, 2020 |website=Engadget }}</ref> The next month, the film was rescheduled to May 21, 2021.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Couch |first=Adam |date=December 11, 2020 |title='Free Guy,' 'Thor 4' and 'Lightyear' Get Release Dates Amid New Disney Plan |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/free-guy-thor-4-and-lightyear-get-release-dates-amid-new-disney-plan |url-status=live |access-date=December 11, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201230135342/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/free-guy-thor-4-and-lightyear-get-release-dates-amid-new-disney-plan |archive-date=December 30, 2020}}</ref> In March, Ryan Reynolds announced that the film was delayed to its August date.<ref name="2022Date">{{Cite news |last=D'Alessandro |first=Anthony |date=March 23, 2021 |title=Disney Shifts 'Black Widow' & 'Cruella' To Day & Date Release In Theaters And Disney+, Jarring Summer Box Office |work=Deadline Hollywood |url=https://deadline.com/2021/03/black-widow-cruella-disney-plus-theaters-day-and-date-release-1234720116/ |url-status=live |access-date=March 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210323183840/https://deadline.com/2021/03/black-widow-cruella-disney-plus-theaters-day-and-date-release-1234720116/ |archive-date=March 23, 2021}}</ref>
The film was initially scheduled to be released on July 3, 2020, but it was delayed because of the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Welk |first=Brian |date=April 3, 2020 |title='Black Widow' Moves to November as Other MCU Films Shift Back to 2021, 2022 |url=https://www.thewrap.com/black-widow-moves-to-november-as-other-mcu-films-shift-back-to-2021-2022/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200927202402/https://www.thewrap.com/black-widow-moves-to-november-as-other-mcu-films-shift-back-to-2021-2022/ |archive-date=September 27, 2020 |access-date=April 3, 2020 |website=The Wrap}}</ref><ref name="Ramos">{{cite web |last=Ramos |first=Dino-Ray |date=December 7, 2019 |title=Fox Releases First Trailer For 'Free Guy'; Ryan Reynolds Refers To Unlikely Superhero Origin Story As Modern-Day 'Back To The Future' – CCXP |url=https://deadline.com/2019/12/free-guy-trailer-ryan-reynolds-shawn-levy-joe-keery-20th-century-fox-1202803053/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191221210141/https://deadline.com/2019/12/free-guy-trailer-ryan-reynolds-shawn-levy-joe-keery-20th-century-fox-1202803053/ |archive-date=December 21, 2019 |access-date=January 25, 2020 |website=Deadline Hollywood }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Kit |first=Borys |date=September 28, 2018 |title=Ryan Reynolds, Shawn Levy Team for Action Comedy 'Free Guy' |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/ryan-reynolds-star-action-comedy-free-guy-1133159 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191004041941/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/ryan-reynolds-star-action-comedy-free-guy-1133159 |archive-date=October 4, 2019 |access-date=June 22, 2019 |website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]}}</ref> It was then moved to December 11, 2020.<ref>{{cite web |last=Bullard |first=Benjamin |date=April 5, 2020 |title=Ryan Reynolds reveals Free Guy December new release date |url=https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/ryan-reynolds-new-free-guy-release-date |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200427115835/https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/ryan-reynolds-new-free-guy-release-date |archive-date=April 27, 2020 |access-date=July 7, 2020 |website=SyFy}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Gemmill |first=Allie |date=October 4, 2020 |title=New 'Free Guy' Trailer Teaser Hypes Ryan Reynolds' Comedy That You'll (Probably) See in 2020 |url=https://collider.com/free-guy-trailer-teaser-ryan-reynolds-jodie-comer/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201007171958/https://collider.com/free-guy-trailer-teaser-ryan-reynolds-jodie-comer/ |archive-date=October 7, 2020 |access-date=October 5, 2020 |website=Collider }}</ref> In November 2020, the studio removed the film, along with ''[[Death on the Nile (2022 film)|Death on the Nile]]'', from its upcoming release schedule until further notice.<ref>{{cite web |last=McClintock |first=Pamela |date=November 5, 2020 |title='Free Guy,' 'Death on the Nile' Sail Out of 2020 Amid Ongoing COVID-19 Crisis |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/free-guy-death-on-the-nile-sail-out-of-2020-amid-ongoing-covid-19-crisis |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201105234317/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/free-guy-death-on-the-nile-sail-out-of-2020-amid-ongoing-covid-19-crisis |archive-date=November 5, 2020 |access-date=November 5, 2020 |website=The Hollywood Reporter}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Ryan Reynolds' 'Free Guy' movie won't hit theaters in December |url=https://www.engadget.com/free-guy-ryan-reynolds-movie-delay-december-154331579.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201106154727/https://www.engadget.com/free-guy-ryan-reynolds-movie-delay-december-154331579.html |archive-date=November 6, 2020 |access-date=November 6, 2020 |website=Engadget }}</ref> The next month, the film was rescheduled to May 21, 2021.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Couch |first=Adam |date=December 11, 2020 |title='Free Guy,' 'Thor 4' and 'Lightyear' Get Release Dates Amid New Disney Plan |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/free-guy-thor-4-and-lightyear-get-release-dates-amid-new-disney-plan |url-status=live |access-date=December 11, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201230135342/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/free-guy-thor-4-and-lightyear-get-release-dates-amid-new-disney-plan |archive-date=December 30, 2020}}</ref> In March, Ryan Reynolds announced that the film was delayed to its August date.<ref name="2022Date">{{Cite news |last=D'Alessandro |first=Anthony |date=March 23, 2021 |title=Disney Shifts 'Black Widow' & 'Cruella' To Day & Date Release In Theaters And Disney+, Jarring Summer Box Office |work=Deadline Hollywood |url=https://deadline.com/2021/03/black-widow-cruella-disney-plus-theaters-day-and-date-release-1234720116/ |url-status=live |access-date=March 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210323183840/https://deadline.com/2021/03/black-widow-cruella-disney-plus-theaters-day-and-date-release-1234720116/ |archive-date=March 23, 2021}}</ref>

Revision as of 23:57, 13 April 2022

Free Guy
A man in a blue shirt surrounded by the citizens of Free City with the cityscape in the background
Theatrical release poster
Directed byShawn Levy
Screenplay by
Story byMatt Lieberman
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyGeorge Richmond
Edited byDean Zimmerman
Music byChristophe Beck
Production
companies
Distributed by20th Century Studios
Release dates
  • August 10, 2021 (2021-08-10) (Locarno)
  • August 13, 2021 (2021-08-13) (United States)
Running time
115 minutes[2]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$100–125 million[3]
Box office$331.5 million[1][4]

Free Guy is a 2021 American action comedy film directed and produced by Shawn Levy from a screenplay by Matt Lieberman and Zak Penn, and a story by Lieberman. The film stars Ryan Reynolds, Jodie Comer, Lil Rel Howery, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Joe Keery, and Taika Waititi. In the film, a man discovers he is a non-player character in a massively multiplayer online game and partners with a real player to find evidence that a gaming company's CEO stole the player's source code.

Free Guy premiered at the Piazza Grande section of the 74th Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland on August 10, 2021.[5] Following a year-long delay as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was released theatrically in the United States three days later on August 13 in RealD 3D, IMAX, 4DX and Dolby Cinema formats by 20th Century Studios. It grossed $331.5 million worldwide. The film received positive reviews from critics for the concept, comparing it to science fiction films and action video games such as Ready Player One, The Truman Show, The Matrix, Grand Theft Auto, and Fortnite.[6][7] The film received a nomination for Best Visual Effects at the 94th Academy Awards. A sequel is in development.

Plot

Guy is a non-player character (NPC) in Free City, a massively multiplayer online role-playing video game (MMORPG) developed by Soonami Studio. Free City’s players are distinguished from NPCs by the sunglasses they wear, and spend their time robbing banks, murdering NPCs or each other, and overall causing mass mayhem. Unaware that the world they live in is a video game, Guy and the other NPCs are mostly oblivious to the chaos caused by players while living out their scripted lives.

In the real world, game developers Millie Rusk and Walter "Keys" McKey previously created a concept game called Life Itself using a novel artificial intelligence technique for its NPCs. Now unemployed, Millie spends her time playing Free City in hopes of finding hard evidence that Soonami founder/CEO Antwan Hovachelik stole Life Itself's source code after buying the game’s rights from her. Keys (who is now employed by Soonami) is sympathetic, but declines to help because of his NDA.

Guy works as a bank teller alongside his best friend, security guard Buddy. After Millie's avatar of Molotov Girl catches his attention by singing his favorite song "Fantasy", he begins to deviate from his programming, shocking Buddy by standing up to a skull-masked player robbing the bank and leaving with his sunglasses. Now able to access the players' view of the game, Guy visits new areas and eventually meets Millie at Revenjamin Buttons' stash house that holds evidence of her source code. Thinking Guy is a novice player, she advises him to level up after their first break-in attempt fails. Rapidly progressing through the game by benevolently completing missions, he stands out from other players and becomes a worldwide sensation known as "Blue Shirt Guy".

Keys and his coworker Mouser, believing Guy to be a hacker disguised as an NPC, unsuccessfully try to ban him from the game. Eventually, Keys realizes that Guy is truly an NPC. During development of Life Itself, Keys, too shy to ask Millie out, instead encoded what he knew about her tastes into an AI routine in the game, which was eventually incorporated into Free City; this explains why Guy felt uniquely drawn to Molotov Girl. Other NPCs that Guy interacts with also begin to develop self-awareness. Informed by Keys, Millie tells Guy the truth of his situation, but he becomes frustrated and breaks off contact, until he talks with Buddy. Guy realizes that there is something more to their reality as Buddy helps Guy get the specific footage from Revenjamin Buttons.

Blue Shirt Guy's popularity threatens Antwan's plans to launch a sequel, Free City 2, so he orders a server reboot that temporarily resets Guy's memories. Millie restores his sentience by kissing him, and he is able to recall the location of an island containing remnants of Life Itself source code. They make their way to the island before the sequel launch wipes all old content from the servers.

Antwan fires Keys, has all the players booted, and sends Dude, a muscular, unfinished version of Guy developed for Free City 2, into the game. Initially overwhelmed, Guy puts his sunglasses on Dude, distracting him and allowing Guy to reach the island. In a last ditch attempt to stop Guy, Antwan begins smashing the servers with a fire axe, erasing Buddy along with much of the game world while firing Mouser. Before he can destroy the final server, Millie offers a deal to abandon her lawsuit, give him the rights to her code, and surrender the profits of the Free City franchise to him in exchange for the last server.

Sometime later, the sales for Free City 2 have tanked due to lagged play and bugs in the code. Antwan is "in the hot seat" as he claims to the press while being loaded into his limo by his security staff that he's a "victim". Keys, Mouser, and Millie release Free Life using their recovered code including Guy, Dude, and the other Free City characters. In the game, Guy reveals to Millie that his code is in fact a love letter to her from Keys. Millie leaves the game and she and Keys share a kiss.

Meanwhile, Guy reunites with Buddy and they head off to do whatever they want.

Cast

Ryan Reynolds portrays Guy and voices Dude
  • Ryan Reynolds as Guy / Blue Shirt Guy, a bank teller and non-player character (NPC) in Free City who is initially unaware that he is a video game character.
    • Reynolds also provides the uncredited voice and facial motion capture for Dude, an incomplete muscular version of Guy that was made for Free City 2. Dude is physically portrayed by bodybuilder Aaron W. Reed.[8]
  • Jodie Comer as Millie, a player looking for source code to her original game Life Itself, which she co-developed with Keys, inside the game[9] In Free City, her avatar is Molotov Girl.
  • Joe Keery as Keys, an employee of Soonami Studio who co-developed Life Itself with Millie. In Free City, his avatar is described as a "dirty stripper cop".
  • Lil Rel Howery as Buddy, a Free City bank security guard and Guy's best friend.
  • Utkarsh Ambudkar as Mouser, Keys' co-worker at Soonami Studio.[10] In Free City, his avatar is a police officer in a rabbit suit.
  • Taika Waititi as Antwan, the ruthless and narcissistic founder, CEO, and head developer of Soonami Studio who stole the source data for Life Itself to make Free City.[11][7]
  • Channing Tatum as Revenjamin Buttons, an avatar in Free City who owns a stash house that Guy and Molotov Girl try to break into to obtain an incriminating data involving Life Itself.
    • Matty Cardarople as Keith, the 22-year-old gamer who plays Free City as Revenjamin Buttons.
  • Jonathan De Azevedo as Jonathan, the personal assistant of Antwan.
  • Destiny Claymore as an art nerd at Soonami Studio

Recurring NPCs in Free City include Britne Oldford as the barista; Camille Kostek as the bombshell; Mark Lainer as a bank hostage with his hands up; Mike Devine as Officer Johnny, a police officer; Sophie Levy as a big city dreamer; Vernon Scott as a bank manager; Maheem Garcia as Joe, a convenient store owner; Anabel Graetz as Phyllis, a cat lady who needs help finding her 99 cats; Ric Plamenco as an ice cream vendor; Kenneth Israel as a businessman; Miachel Malvesti as a newsstand vendor; Michael Tow as Rain Man; and Colin Allen as a shoe store clerk.

The film features cameo appearances from gamers and streamers Jacksepticeye, Ninja, Pokimane, DanTDM, and LazarBeam who, in the film, provide commentary on Guy on their respective YouTube and Twitch channels from their own perspectives.[12]

Actor Chris Evans and Good Morning America host Lara Spencer make cameo appearances as themselves.[13][14] Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek makes a posthumous cameo appearance in his final film role after his death on November 8, 2020.[15][16]

Other voice cameos in the film include Tina Fey as Keith's mom (portrayed by Regina Taufen) who was vacuuming in the background, Hugh Jackman as a masked avatar in an alley (physically portrayed by Patrick Vincent Curran) who Molotov Girl gets the location to Revenjamin Buttons' stash house from, Dwayne Johnson as bank robber #2 (physically portrayed by Owen Burke) who Guy accidentally shoots while trying to claim his sunglasses, and John Krasinski as a silhouetted gamer (physically portrayed by Rosario Corso) who comments about Guy and the NPCs.[17][14] Charlotte Levy portrays the teen gamer who controlled bank robber #2 and Colette Levy portrayed her foul-mouthed little sister.

Production

Development

Free Guy director Shawn Levy

In August 2016, Matt Lieberman spent three weeks writing the first draft of the spec script for Free Guy.[18] It was sold and entered development at 20th Century Fox prior to its acquisition by Disney. It is one of the first Fox films to continue production under Disney ownership, as well as under the studio's new name of 20th Century Studios.[19] Director Shawn Levy read the script in 2016 but passed on it. Several years later, he was introduced to Ryan Reynolds by Hugh Jackman, a mutual friend, and Levy and Reynolds decided to work on Free Guy after rereading it together.[3] Reynolds, who also produced the film, said, "I haven't been this fully immersed and engaged in something since Deadpool."[19] Levy had previously been attached to the film Uncharted, an adaptation of the video game series of the same name, before he left to make Free Guy.[20]

Filming

Principal photography began in Boston in May 2019, mostly around the city's Financial District.[21][22] It also took place in the Massachusetts cities of Worcester,[23] Framingham (in the former Framingham Savings Bank building),[24] and Weymouth (at the former Naval Air Station),[25] as well as at Revere Beach.[26]

Design and cultural references

Levy decided to hire production designer Ethan Tobman over other candidates with more feature film experience after being inspired by the energy he brought to the project. Together they created a visual bible laying out the rules for their video game world. To split the real world from the in-game look they specified colors, lenses, composition and framing, camera movement, and other details.[20] Levy found it liberating to be influenced by other games and films but not required to make a direct adaptation of an existing franchise.[20] Tobman said the film's game-world design drew primary inspiration from games like SimCity, The Sims and Red Dead Redemption 2, while also acknowledging thematic inspiration from Grand Theft Auto and Fortnite.[27]

The film features several weapons from other video game and film franchises, including a Mega Buster, a lightsaber from the Star Wars series, one of Fortnite's pickaxes, the gravity gun from Half-Life 2, the portal gun from Portal, as well as Captain America's shield and Hulk's fist from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. When the film was acquired by Disney, which owns the Marvel and Star Wars franchises, the filmmakers asked for permission to use such iconic weapons as a lightsaber and Captain America's shield, and were granted permission to use everything they requested.[14][27][20] The cameo by Chris Evans was suggested by Reynolds' wife Blake Lively.[28] Levy contacted Evans, who was already in Boston shooting Defending Jacob and asked if he would come by for ten minutes, and he agreed.[29]

Music

The film's score was composed by Christophe Beck.[30] Portions of the film's score are sampled from the Disney animated short film Paperman, which Beck had previously scored. Levy had originally intended to use the song "Your Love" by The Outfield, but Reynolds suggested using "Fantasy" by Mariah Carey instead.[14] Reynolds talked to Carey about getting permission to use it and she allowed them to use the song throughout the film.[31] A cover version of "Fantasy" sung by Jodie Comer was also used in the film.[14][20]

Marketing

Promoting the film in 2019 Reynolds and Waititi joked that it was nice to work together for the first time, pretending that they knew nothing about the Green Lantern film.[32][33][34] In July 2021, Reynolds released a video on YouTube titled Deadpool and Korg React, in which he reprised his role as Wade Wilson/Deadpool from the X-Men film series and Waititi reprised his role as Korg from the Marvel Cinematic Universe reacting to the trailer to Free Guy.[35]

On August 12, 2021, Dude became a purchasable outfit in the video game Fortnite[36] alongside a series of optional quests placed into the game to allow players to unlock an emote with Reynolds's voice.

Free Guy's marketing team created parody posters in the style of other video games, including Super Mario 64, Minecraft, Among Us, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Mega Man, Street Fighter II, Doom, and Animal Crossing: New Horizons.[37]

Release

Theatrical

Free Guy was released in the United States on August 13, 2021[38] in RealD 3D, IMAX, 4DX and Dolby Cinema formats. It was the first film from Walt Disney Studios during the pandemic released exclusively to theaters for 45 days before releasing on streaming services.[39]

The film was initially scheduled to be released on July 3, 2020, but it was delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[40][41][42] It was then moved to December 11, 2020.[43][44] In November 2020, the studio removed the film, along with Death on the Nile, from its upcoming release schedule until further notice.[45][46] The next month, the film was rescheduled to May 21, 2021.[47] In March, Ryan Reynolds announced that the film was delayed to its August date.[48]

The film premiered at the Piazza Grande section of the 74th Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland in August 2021.[5]

Home media

Free Guy was released on digital on September 28, 2021,[49] 45 days after its theatrical release,[50] and was released on 4K,[51] DVD, and Blu-ray by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment on October 12,[49][52] two months after its theatrical release. It was added to Disney+ and HBO Max in the United States on February 23, 2022.[53][54][55]

Reception

Box office

As of December 2, 2021, Free Guy has grossed $121.6 million in the United States and Canada, and $209.9 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $331.5 million.[1][4]

In the United States and Canada, Free Guy was released alongside Respect and Don't Breathe 2, and was initially projected to gross $15–18 million from 4,165 theaters in its opening weekend.[56] However, after making $10.5 million on its first day (including $2.2 million from Thursday-night previews), estimates were raised to $26 million. It went on to debut to $28.4 million, topping the box office.[6] The film made $18.5 million in its second weekend, remaining in first. The drop of just 34% marked the smallest second-weekend decline of any wide release of the summer, and the second-best of Reynolds' career.[57] Although it was dethroned by newcomer Candyman, the film continued to hold well in its third weekend, falling just 27% to $13.6 million.[58]

Critical response

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 80% based on 297 reviews and an average rating of 7/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Combining a clever concept, sweet, self-aware humor, and a charming cast, Free Guy is frivolous fun."[59] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 62 out of 100 based on 51 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[60] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.[6]

Writing for Variety, Peter Debruge called the film an "at-times unwieldy mashup of multiple-reality blockbusters like The Matrix and The Lego Movie" and said that "Free Guy is a lot of fun, despite the fact that Levy and the screenwriters seem to be changing the rules as they go."[61] Richard Roeper of the Chicago Sun-Times lauded both the "perfectly cast" Reynolds and "superb and charming Jodie Comer." Giving the film three out of four stars, he wrote "Thanks in large part to the vibrant, funny, sweet, endearing work by Reynolds and Comer, Free Guy delivers."[62] A.A. Dowd of The A.V. Club gave the film a C+ grade and said, "For all its casual mayhem, Free Guy turns out to be a rather cuddly crowdpleaser, a high-concept blockbuster trifle with bubblegum ice cream clogging its circuits." Dowd contrasted the film with The Truman Show, saying "Reynolds replicates that slightly unhinged Truman Burbank grin but not the desperation behind it."[63] Nick De Semlyen of Empire was critical of the film; he compared it unfavorably to 2018's Ready Player One, and said that although it is "eager to please" it "doesn't really hang together, even as you're watching it.".[64]

Accolades

Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
People's Choice Awards December 7, 2021 The Comedy Movie of 2021 Free Guy Won [65][66]
The Male Movie Star of 2021 Ryan Reynolds Nominated
The Comedy Movie Star of 2021 Nominated
Academy Awards March 27, 2022 Best Visual Effects Swen Gillberg, Bryan Grill, Nikos Kalaitzidis, and Dan Sudick Nominated [67]
Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards April 9, 2022 Favorite Movie Actor Ryan Reynolds Nominated [68]

Sequel

On August 14, 2021, following the film's successful first-day box-office gross, Reynolds confirmed that Disney wanted a sequel.[69][70] In March 2022, Steve Asbell, president of 20th Century Studios, said a script was being submitted shortly and called the sequel "a fantastic story".[71][72]

References

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External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Free_Guy&oldid=1082580366"