Netflix teases cops and orcs for Will Smith film 'Bright'
Netflix wants to add "fantasy blockbuster movie" to its resume and it hopes "Bright," starring Will Smith, will do the trick.
When you hear Will Smith's name attached to a new movie, you usually expect a big action film that will land in theaters around the world with a huge splash. His upcoming movie "Bright," however, may land mostly on small screens. The Netflix-backed genre-bender combines an urban police story with the sort of creatures you expect to find in "The Lord of the Rings."
Netflix says "Bright" takes place in an "alternate present-day where humans, orcs, elves, and fairies have been co-existing since the beginning of time." A teaser released Monday hints at strange magical happenings.
Smith plays a cop (Ward) on a routine night patrol with orc-officer Jakoby (played by Joel Edgerton). They "encounter a darkness that will ultimately alter the future and their world as they know it." Netflix's page for the film refers to it as a "prophesied turf battle."
The brief teaser kicks off with the Woody Guthrie song "This Land is Your Land" and looks like a gritty drama up until a large-toothed orc pulls out a shotgun. There's a fascinating clip of Smith holding up a sword while in full police uniform.
It will be interesting to see if Netflix can bring a new twist to the fantasy tropes of elves, orcs, a forgotten relic and prophesies.
Netflix sometimes releases its productions for small theater runs (as with its "Crouching Tiger" sequel) to qualify for film awards, but it may not do that this time around with "Bright." The end of the teaser reads "Exclusively on Netflix," which may indicate a streaming-only approach.
"Bright" will debut on Netflix in December.
Batteries Not Included: The CNET team reminds us why tech is cool.
CNET Magazine: Check out a sample of the stories in CNET's newsstand edition.
