Bad Times at the El Royale remains one of my most anticipated films of the fall. Written and directed by Drew Goddard (The Cabin in the Woods), it tells the tale of seven strangers who all end up at a Lake Tahoe hotel on one fateful night. Who people are and who they say they are might not line up, and a person's seemingly nice disposition might be covering some dark secrets.
The all-star cast includes Oscar winner Jeff Bridges, Emmy winner Jon Hamm, Dakota Johnson and Chris Hemsworth (who may hold the advantage in the never-ending Chris Wars after this movie comes out). Cynthia Erivo (the upcoming Widows), Cailee Spaeny (Pacific Rim: Uprising) and Lewis Pullman (Lean on Pete) round out the main actors.
Check out the character posters below.
Bad Times at the El Royale hits theaters on October 12.
About Kip Mooney
Like many film critics born during and after the 1980s, my hero is Roger Ebert. The man was already the best critic in the nation when he won the Pulitzer in 1975, but his indomitable spirit during and after his recent battle with cancer keeps me coming back to read not only his reviews but his insightful commentary on the everyday. But enough about a guy you know a lot about.
I knew I was going to be a film critic—some would say a snob—in middle school, when I had to voraciously defend my position that The Royal Tenenbaums was only a million times better than Adam Sandler’s remake of Mr. Deeds. From then on, I would seek out Wes Anderson’s films and avoid Sandler’s like the plague.
Still, I like to think of myself as a populist, and I’ll be just as likely to see the next superhero movie as the next Sundance sensation. The thing I most deplore in a movie is laziness. I’d much rather see movies with big ambitions try and fail than movies with no ambitions succeed at simply existing. I’m also a big advocate of fun-bad movies like The Room and most of Nicolas Cage’s work.
In the past, I’ve written for The Dallas Morning News and the North Texas Daily, which I edited for a semester. I also contributed to Dallas-based Pegasus News, which in the circle of life, is now part of The Dallas Morning News, where I got my big break in 2007. Eventually, I’d love to write and talk about film full-time, but until that’s a viable career option, I work as an auditor for Wells Fargo.
I hope to one day meet my hero, go to the Toronto International Film Festival, and compete on Jeopardy. Until then, I’m excited to share my love of film with you.
