A Forgotten Edge-Of-Your-Seat Heist Movie With Tons Of Star Power Is Finding New Life On Netflix
Netflix has a knack for giving movies that never quite took off at the box office a second chance to find their audience. That seems to be what's happening to Steven Soderbergh's Logan Lucky, a 2017 heist comedy with an outrageously impressive cast.
Set in North Carolina, Logan Lucky follows the Lucky family as they attempt to rob the Charlotte Motor Speedway during one of the biggest races of the year. Channing Tatum leads the cast as Jimmy Logan, a Charlotte Motor Speedway construction crew member who was fired after the manager found out that he failed to disclose his prior leg injuries.
Tatum is joined by Adam Driver, Daniel Craig, Riley Keough, Katie Holmes, Hilary Swank, Seth MacFarlane, Sebastian Stan, and Jack Quaid, among others. Fox NASCAR commentators Jeff Gordon, Darrell Waltrip, Mike Joy, and Adam Alexander also appear as themselves.
Nearly as fascinating as the movie is the true identity of its screenwriter, "Rebecca Blunt." The film's production notes state that Blunt was a first-time screenwriter from West Virginia, but only Soderbergh and Adam Driver have ever claimed to have met her. Right before the film released, The Playlist reported that, in reality, Jules Asner, Steven Soderbergh's wife, wrote the script, but she wanted to avoid any distractions her involvement might cause.
The Hollywood Reporter also wrote a story about whether or not Rebecca Blunt existed. When Entertainment Weekly asked him about the report in July of 2017, Soderbergh said this: "Well, that's going to be news to Rebecca Blunt."
Despite making under $50 million at the global box office, Logan Lucky was critically acclaimed, scoring 92% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie has since developed something of a cult following, as evidenced by recent posts on social media:
I have said in the past that Hollywood hasn't made a zeitgeist comedy in over a decade and I'll stick to that, that's not to say there haven't been funny movies in the last 10 yrs though
Take Logan Lucky, it has lots of heart and is a criminally underrated heist comedy pic.twitter.com/IJvjlBCK9y
— scott (@whiterpp) September 10, 2024
Time for Soderbergh to do Logan Lucky 2
— Mr. Chau (@Srirachachau) September 5, 2024
LOGAN LUCKY is on netflix
— Shea Serrano (@SheaSerrano) August 25, 2024
Watching Logan Lucky it's interesting how Soderbergh manages to create tension and suspense while watching a plan unfold almost perfectly.
— Arthouse Shawn Levy (@firagawalkwthme) September 1, 2024
Logan Lucky is now streaming on Netflix, so put it on your watchlist.