Men in Black: International release date, early reviews, plot, cast and more
Here come the Men in Black … for a fourth installment.
- She has a master's degree in journalism from Syracuse University.
Tessa Thompson and Chris Hemsworth suit up.
Defending the Earth against alien threats is a never-ending job. So much so, that Men in Black is back for a fourth movie -- Men in Black: International.
After 22 years, three movies and a canceled sequel, Men in Black: International promises new aliens, weapons, agents and locales. Among the new faces to the MIB franchise are Agent M, played by Tessa Thompson, and Agent H, played by Chris Hemsworth (both Thor: Ragnarok alums).
The original Men in Black came out in 1997, starring Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones as Agents J and K , members of a mysterious yet well-dressed organization.
So far, MIB: International is projected to hit $40 million in its opening weekend -- shy of its predecessors. Perhaps audiences will be ready for another round of quirky aliens and tricked-out cars. Or it'll be quickly neuralyzed off their brains as another '90s reboot.
Release date and where to watch
Men in Black: International hits theaters in Australia on Thursday, June 13 and releases in the US on Friday, June 14.
Early reviews
Reviews are in, and they're not great. CNET reviewer Sean Keane called it "a film that will be forgotten in a flash," and the New York Post dubbed it an "unfunny buddy-cop flop." USA Today isn't the biggest fan either, saying the film "replicates the first movie, but not in a good way." Read more reviews on our sister site Metacritic.
What's the plot?
Tessa Thompson plays a woman who saw the Men in Black agents wiping her parents' memories as a child, and managed to escape the neuralyzer herself. Since then, she's been trying to track down the agency. When she finally does, she asks for a job, and shenanigans ensue when she's paired up with Chris Hemsworth.
This intallment's scum of the universe is some type of shape-shifting aliens called The Hive. In an April interview with Empire, VFX supervisor Jerome Chen said that in their natural state, the aliens are pure energy and can transition between states of matter (like solid to liquid, for example). Chen also said they can "reform things and use them as projectiles."
"Men in Black has been compromised," Liam Neeson says in the trailer, gravely.
Cast and crew
F. Gary Gray directs. The screenplay is by Matthew Holloway and Art Marcum.
Chris Hemsworth as Agent H
Tessa Thompson as Agent M
Emma Thompson as Agent O (Thompson is returning to her role from the earlier movies)
Liam Neeson as Agent T
Kumail Nanjiani as Pawny
Les Twins as shape-shifting aliens
Originally published May 28 and updated as more news comes in.