Rian Johnson Is “Pissed Off” That ‘Glass Onion’ Features ‘Knives Out’ In The Title

Netflix had an early Christmas present for film fans this year, as the streaming service released “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” on December 23. While the jury is still out on whether or not the sequel will be as successful with fans and awards organizations as the original “Knives Out,” it’s safe to say that Rian Johnson’s mystery franchise is still excelling in its second go-round. That said, there’s still one thing that really bugs Johnson about ‘Glass Onion,’ and it has to do with the way the film is titled.

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Speaking to The Atlantic, Rian Johnson talked about how he aims to make each “Knives Out” film a self-contained adventure. Sure, Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc will be at the center of each story, but the cast and the mystery are ever-changing. This led Johnson to lament the fact that Netflix has to add a sub-title to the film so that people know it’s all part of the same universe. 

“I’ve tried hard to make them self-contained,” said Johnson. “Honestly, I’m pissed off that we have ‘A Knives Out Mystery’ in the title. You know? I want it to just be called ‘Glass Onion.’ I get it, and I want everyone who liked the first movie to know this is next in the series, but also, the whole appeal to me is it’s a new novel off the shelf every time. But there’s a gravity of a thousand suns toward serialized storytelling.”

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Johnson has never hidden the fact that he’s heavily influenced by writer Agatha Christie and other famous mystery novelists for his “Knives Out” films. And when you look at the Agatha Christie novels, the titles are all very different and you wouldn’t immediately think they’re part of some sort of serialized storytelling. That seems to be the effect that Johnson is going for with his film franchise. Though Blanc is the carryover between films, you could ostensibly watch ‘Glass Onion’ before the original “Knives Out” and not really feel as if you missed anything. Basically, this isn’t the Marvel Cinematic Universe or “Game of Thrones.” 

However, in the grand scheme of things, having ‘A Knives Out Mystery’ at the end of the title isn’t the be-all, end-all. It’s not going to doom the film in any way or lessen a viewer’s enjoyment. As Johnson said, if nothing else, it’s going to help because people do love serialized storytelling… even if it’s in name only. 

“Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” is on Netflix now.