Daniel Craig’s Wake Up Dead Man Gets 100% RT Score! (Photo Credit – Instagram)
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Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, the third installment in Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc series, has mesmerized critics. A chapter that has been deemed tantalizing since its announcement took its inaugural premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on Saturday, September 6, 2025, by storm.
As reactions continue building momentum across social media platforms, an adequate number of certified critics have already given their verdict regarding Rian Johnson’s eagerly awaited murder mystery.
Following Glass Onion and the original Knives Out, all spaced precisely three years apart, the review embargo of Wake Up Dead Man has not disappointed either. With minimal reviewers contributing their assessments, the whodunnit is destined to satisfy the remaining critical consensus.
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Not all secrets can stay buried.
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is in select theaters November 26 and on Netflix December 12. pic.twitter.com/D1e88r7UwI
Holidays Come Early For Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery currently maintains a flawless 100% Rotten Tomatoes rating after 10 reviews have been tallied, achieving both perfect scoring and certified fresh status on the platform. If the tempestuous and varying perspectives prove any indication, this pristine number is susceptible to an inevitable decline, though early enthusiasm suggests the drop may prove minimal.
Major industry publications, including Variety and Deadline Hollywood, have contributed glowing assessments. Variety praises the film’s bold experimentations and thoughtful descent into spiritual inquiry, while The Hollywood Reporter favorably compares its intricate mystery elements and crowd-pleasing qualities to beloved Scooby-Doo adventures. Metacritic reports an impressive 85 score, at the time of writing, based on four professional reviews, indicating universal critical acclaim across multiple evaluation platforms.
WAKE UP DEAD MAN is Rian Johnson’s gothic mystery masterpiece.
Type of film where leaves blow in when the door opens. Faces draped in red light. Lamp-lit rooms, slow zooms, and overexposed windows.
Style with substance is a formula not many can crack, but Rian has perfected it. pic.twitter.com/9wteICsO3i
Wake Up Dead Man Could Become The Best Knives Out Mystery, Early Reviews Indicate
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery positions itself advantageously against its celebrated predecessors through both scoring metrics and critical reception quality. The original 2019 Knives Out achieved 97% on Rotten Tomatoes alongside an 82 Metacritic score, conveniently surpassing every James Bond and Marvel Cinematic Universe entry to claim the top prize in both Daniel Craig and Chris Evans’ respective careers.
The mystery originally introduced audiences to Blanc’s charismatic and peculiar investigative methods and flamboyant personality. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery earned 94% and 81%, respectively, though general audiences proved less enthusiastic about this sequel. Some deemed it a betrayal of traditional murder mystery atmosphere and criticized it for introducing new characters midway through the narrative.
Knives Out 3 Extends Consistent Excellence Across Rian Johnson’s Directorial Career
Wake Up Dead Man easily outpaces Rian Johnson’s most recent non-Knives Out directorial effort, the divisive Star Wars: The Last Jedi, which garnered 91% on Rotten Tomatoes despite complete and notorious audience rejection. The current score also beats Looper’s 93%, and together these five films propel the Breaking Bad director’s consistently certified fresh streak.
For Daniel Craig specifically, Wake Up Dead Man delivers superior scores compared to his award-bait drama Queer (77%) and his final 007 outing, No Time to Die (83%). Within the cozy whodunit mystery category, Wake Up Dead Man currently sits alongside Charade (94%), as well as Alfred Hitchcock classics like Rear Window (99%) and North by Northwest (97%) — cinema’s greatest puzzle films.
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is the best one yet. Heavier themes yet also the funniest one, Daniel Craig and Rian Johnson should never stop making Benoit Blanc tales. Josh O’Connor steals the movie. What a good time!@KnivesOut#KnivesOut#TIFF#TIFF50#TIFF25pic.twitter.com/raFidtr3XL
When Does Knives Out 3 Arrive In Theaters & Streaming?
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery launches its theatrical journey on November 26, 2025, through limited release across select venues nationwide. Following this initial theatrical window, Netflix subscribers worldwide can access the film beginning December 12, 2025.
The cast of Knives Out 3 also includes Jeremy Renner, Mila Kunis, Andrew Scott, and Kerry Washington, joining Craig’s returning detective Blanc as he investigates supernatural occurrences at a secluded spiritual retreat.
