Humans may be at the top of the food chain, but they can find themselves to be the prey when hunted by fearsome animals like sharks and dinosaurs. But in Universal Pictures’ Beast, it’s a very different story when a single father of two finds himself protecting his kids from a man-eating lion in South Africa. Now we are getting a look at the terror firsthand in a brand-new trailer.
(from left) Norah (Leah Sava Jeffries) and Nathan (Idris Elba) in Beast, directed by Baltasar Kormákur.
Honestly, after years of being hunted by every privileged rich smug person on the face of the earth who thinks hunting is fun, it’s no wonder that these ferocious animals, lions in particular, have it out for us. They have every right to knock us down the food chain.
But it’s how director Baltasar Kormákur brings the audience to the action with its tight shots and use of shaky cam that amps up the terror. Add to that Idris Elba punching a lion makes things interesting. Almost as if they are putting a spin on punching a shark on the nose to deter it. What more could you ask for?
Here’s the official plot synopsis for “Beast:”
Idris Elba (Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, The Suicide Squad) stars in a pulse-pounding new thriller about a father and his two teenage daughters who find themselves hunted by a massive rogue lion intent on proving that the savannah has but one apex predator.
Elba plays Dr. Nate Daniels, a recently widowed husband who returns to South Africa, where he first met his wife, on a long-planned trip with their daughters to a game reserve managed by Martin Battles (Sharlto Copley, Russian Doll series, Maleficent), an old family friend and wildlife biologist. But what begins as a journey of healing jolts into a fearsome fight for survival when a lion, a survivor of blood-thirsty poachers who now sees all humans as the enemy, begins stalking them.
Iyana Halley (The Hate U Give, This is Us series) plays Daniels’ 18-year-old daughter, Meredith, and Leah Sava Jeffries (Rel series, Empire series) plays his 13-year-old, Norah.
Directed by Baltasar Kormákur (“Everest,” “2 Guns and Contraband”) and written by Ryan Engle (“Non-Stop,” “The Commuter,” “Rampage”), “Beast” also stars Sharlto Copley as game reserve manager Martin Battles. It is produced by Will Packer, James Lopez, and Baltasar Kormákur. Universal will release “Beast” in theaters on August 26, 2022.
