Are audiences sleeping on Charlie McDowell? As the spouse of Lily Collins and the son of Martin McDowell and Mary Steenburgen, it’s easy to overlook that he’s also a director who already has a couple of solid films to his credit. “The One I Love” and “The Discovery” both premiered at Sundance in 2014 and 2017, respectively. While critics didn’t take to the latter as much as the former, both have an undeniable auteurist flair.
Perhaps McDowell’s latest film, “Windfall,” is the one where he makes a name for himself. Set to hit Netflix next month, the film stars Jason Segel as a man who breaks into the house of Jesse Plemon‘s tech billionaire, only for Plemons and his wife, played by Lily Collins, to come home mid-robbery. Sounds like a noirish plot that’s bound to have some devilish twists and turns in it.
McDowell directs a script co-written with Segel, Justin Lader (who also co-wrote ‘The One I Love’ and ‘The Discovery’), and thriller specialist Andrew Kevin Walker. Cinephiles know Walker best as the screenwriter for David Fincher‘s 1995 breakout “Se7en,” Tim Burton’s 1999 take on “Sleepy Hollow,” and others. He also adapts Fincher’s upcoming feature “The Killer,” maybe due out on Netflix later this year.
McDowell already has his next project lined up, too: “Gilded Rage,” a look at the infamous murder of investment banker Thomas Gilbert, Sr. With Bill Skarsgard, Christoph Waltz, and Collins set to star, and “Foxcatcher” screenwriter E. Max Frye co-writing with Lader, it sounds like McDowell will have his auteurist credentials soon enough.
“Windfall” premieres exclusively on Netflix on March 18. Check out the trailer below: