In a somewhat questionable attempt to both beat Tenet‘s potential July release and to lay claim to the title of the first new movie released in theaters in months, here comes Unhinged, a Russell Crowe thriller you probably never heard of until today. The selling point for this flick doesn’t seem to be the presence of Crowe, who is playing a crazy guy targeting a woman he encountered in a traffic jam, but rather that this will be the first new movie to hit theaters since March. Watch the Unhinged trailer below.

Unhinged Trailer

In Unhinged, “Rachel (Caren Pistorius) is running late getting to work when she crosses paths with a stranger (Russell Crowe) at a traffic light. Soon, Rachel finds herself and everyone she loves the target of a man who feels invisible and is looking to make one last mark upon the world by teaching her a series of deadly lessons. What follows is a dangerous game of cat and mouse that proves you never know who you’re driving next to.”

This sounds like a cross between Falling Down and Changing Lanes, and honestly, it doesn’t look half-bad. But the push behind the film is a little…questionable. Speaking with Deadline, CEO Mark Gill of Solstice Studios, who are releasing the film, said that Solstice did their “own private poll of 1000 moviegoers on how many wanted to return to the theaters in July,” and the results were positive.

“We thought maybe 40% would say they were eager to return to the theaters, but we were surprised to see the number at 80%,” Gill said. “We became convinced that enough theaters will have been open for a couple of weeks, playing repertory and not new films. This is a relatively modest budget movie at a $33 million budget, and so if we earn $30 million at the box office, we will be fine.”

In an official press release for the film, Gill adds: “We made this decision after extensive consultation with the National Association of Theater Owners and leading theater chains. Those conversations have convinced us there is a way to meet pent up demand for the theatrical experience safely.” Here are some more details about the release strategy:

The U.S. release of “Unhinged” will follow or coincide with theater openings in nations around the globe, including Australia, China, The Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Taiwan—with a number of additional countries likely to announce openings in late June or July.

Theater plans to open safely across the United States will comply with all state public health department guidelines and are expected to include such measures as socially distant seating (capacities of 25-50%), staggered show times to reduce crowding, and more time between each show to allow for increased cleaning.

Look, I get it. People want to get back to the movies, and Solstice sees this as a big opportunity to push a film that would otherwise end up being obscure. But the whole thing still feels a bit icky, especially since we really have no idea if theaters will be safe to reopen in July. But if they are, you can catch Unhinged there on July 1.

The post ‘Unhinged’ Trailer: This Russell Crowe Thriller Wants to Be the First New Movie You See When Theaters Reopen appeared first on /Film.