Between two movies, Ari Aster has made a name for himself in horror, and now he turns a new direction with the A24 film, Beau Is Afraid, which previously went under the title Disappointment Blvd. The poster below shows a child of what might be Joaquin Phoenix’s character in pajamas with the titled character’s name printed on them.
With Hereditary and Midsommar under his belt, Ari Aster has gone away from horror with Beau Is Afraid. It is unclear if this was a previous idea he had teased or something else based on the description of the film. The director said he wanted to make a “nightmare comedy” that would be approximately four hours long. What was called Disappointment Blvd., the next movie has been described as an “intimate, decades-spanning portrait of one of the most successful entrepreneurs of all time.”
A24 reveals the title of the next Ari Aster film: Beau Is Afraid
Ari Aster. Joaquin Phoenix. Next year, BEAU IS AFRAID. pic.twitter.com/SuXZgcrfHB
— A24 (@A24) December 13, 2022
Although he is taking a break from horror, the director has become one of the most beloved filmmakers in the genre. Hereditary followed a family grieving from the loss of a child who fell prey to a plot by a religious cult. Midsommar followed a group of friends and a couple within that group who took a trip to Sweden, where they were victims of a cult (yes, he loves his cults). The former was led by Toni Collette, Milly Shapiro, Alex Wolff, and Gabriel Byrne. The latter starred Florence Pugh, Jack Reynor, Will Poulter, and William Jackson Harper.
Before making his 2018 feature-length, Ari Aster had shorts, one of which may hint at what Beau Is Afraid is about. He had directed a 2011 short called Beau. It followed a neurotic man going on a trip to visit his mother, but after losing his keys, spooky things started to happen to him. Although it falls more into horror, the similar titles does make us wonder if there is a connection.
Beau Is Afraid will star Phoenix, Parker Posey (Lost in Space), Stephen McKinley Henderson (Dune), Denis Ménochet (The French Dispatch), Hayley Squires (In the Earth), Michael Gandolfini (The Many Saints of Newark), Nathan Lane (Penny Dreadful: City of Angels), Patti LuPone (Hollywood), Amy Ryan (Only Murders in the Building), and Kylie Rogers (Yellowstone). It will release in 2023.