Having arrived movie theaters a couple of weeks ago after being in the works for over 20 years, film director Robert Rodriguez's latest action thriller, Hypnotic is available on Digital on all major streaming platforms. Fresh of his latest foray into directing and acting in the Michael Jordan inspired story, Air, Ben Affleck stars as the leading character of this action thriller.
Revisiting a genre he is well accustomed to, Affleck returns to the role of a skillful detective – not Batman – who is stressing over solving a mystery while battling with a psychological breakdown, all in a race against time. Affleck's Daniel Rourke is a hardened, compulsive, get-to-the-root kind of detective who suffers the fate of losing his daughter quite literally in the blink of an eye under mysterious circumstances. Spurred on by his loss and desire to uncover the truth, Daniel digs deeper and soon uncovers a hidden world of psychics, possessing powers with which they can maintain influence on the world around them.
Produced through his Troublemaker Studios, Rodriguez also serves as producer alongside Guy Daniella, Rodriguez's son Racer Rodriguez, Mark Gill and Lisa Ellzey for Solstice, and Jeff Robinov and John Graham for Studio 8. Joining Affleck on set as part of the cast are Hala Finley (We Can Be Heroes) who plays Daniel Rourke's daughter, and the sleuth's driving force in this thriller. Playing the hypnotic Diana Cruz who is on the run from the ruling class in this hidden world is Alice Braga (I Am Legend, The Suicide Squad). Other members of the cast include J. D. Pardo (Mayans M.C.), Dayo Okeniyi (The Hunger Games), Jeff Fahey (Lost), Jackie Earle Haley (Watchmen) and William Fichtner (Prison Break, Invasion). The movie's screenplay was written by the father-son duo of the Rodriguez family.
Hypnotic Is One of Robert Rodriguez's Favorite Story
The journey to the big screen for Hypnotic has been a long time in the making. Called one of his favorite stories, director Rodriguez began the story's journey as a screenplay in 2002. The last Rodriguez production to hit theaters was the impressive 2019 film, Alita: Battle Angel and now after suffering and surviving the COVID-19 lockdowns while incorporating family into his latest production, Hypnotic has been released. Describing his favorite story in an exclusive interview with Collider, Rodriguez said:
“It's like a Hitchcock thriller on steroids. That's all I can say. As soon as you see the first trailer, you'll go ‘I got it. I'm there.’ It's that kind of a movie. A lot of twists, a lot of turns. Very exciting. It’s a not everything you see is real-type movie and it's got a great cast."
Check out Collider's interview with Rodriguez below: