‘Andor’ Creator’s Forgotten Espionage Comedy Starring Julia Roberts Heads to New Streaming Home
Filmmaker Tony Gilroy has always been fascinated by the dynamics between individuals and organizations. His crowning achievement, the Disney+ series Andor: A Star Wars Story, explores corporate corruption in the context of political oppression. Previously, Gilroy examined similar themes in his capacity as a writer on The Bourne Ultimatum, and as the director of The Bourne Legacy and Michael Clayton. However, his sophomore film Duplicity tackled the idea more directly. Set in the world of corporate espionage, the film underperformed at the box office and earned mixed reviews from critics in its theatrical run. It has largely faded from public consciousness in the years since, but now has a chance of being discovered when it debuts on the Peacock streaming service this February.
Starring Julia Roberts and Clive Owen as two corporate spies who fall for each other, the movie was released in 2009. It grossed around $78 million at the worldwide box office, against a reported budget of $60 million. Duplicity also featured Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson in supporting roles, and now holds a 65% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes. The aggregator’s consensus reads, “Duplicity is well-crafted, smart, and often funny, but it’s mostly more cerebral than visceral and features far too many plot twists.” The audience’s less-than-favorable opinion is reflected in the film’s 37% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, and a C on CinemaScore.
Julia Roberts Is Coming Off a Failed Oscar Bid
Gilroy joined the Star Wars universe when he was brought in as a Hail Mary on Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, which was in trouble after director Gareth Edwards turned in a dissatisfying cut. Andor serves as a prequel to that film, which made over $1 billion globally and earned strong reviews. It has been hailed as the single best Star Wars streaming project, and one of the best shows of the last five years. Roberts, on the other hand, recently starred in Luca Guadagnino‘s critically panned box-office bomb After the Hunt. The movie made just $9 million worldwide against a budget that has been reported to be as high as $80 million. Additionally, it scored a 37% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, dashing any hopes Roberts might have had for an Oscar nod.
You can watch Duplicity on Peacock this February, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
Release Date
March 18, 2009
Runtime
125 minutes
Director
Tony Gilroy
