Alex Garland, whose previous directorial efforts include Ex Machina, Annihilation, and Men, all of which came after he made a name for himself writing movies like 28 Days Later and Sunshine, has long felt like someone with their pulse firmly on modern society. Now, Garland will give audiences perhaps his most frightening movie yet, Civil War.
The upcoming A24 movie, which is led by Kirsten Dunst, Nick Offerman, and several others on multiple sides of a massive conflict between the American government and rebel states, looks to be up there with everything else Garland has made over the years. If this is the first you’re hearing about it, don’t worry, because we’re about to break down everything we know about Civil War, including its release date, trailer, cast, and more.
What Is The Civil War Release Date?
Civil War is coming to theaters on April 12, 2024, meaning there’s not all that much time until we get to see what Alex Garland has in store for us with his vision of a divided America on the precipice of annihilation. The latest A24 film joins a crowded pack of theatrical releases in April, a slate that also includes Dav Patel’s Monkey Man and Zendaya’s long-awaited Challengers among numerous others.
The Civil War Trailer Shows A Modern-Day America On The Brink Of Disaster
We got our first look at Alex Garland’s version of a divided America in December 2023 when A24 released the first Civil War trailer, which can best be described as a weaponized panic attack, as CinemaBlend’s Mike Reyes put it. Though not a lot of details were revealed in the teaser, we did get to see a modern-day America on the brink of disaster by the time everything was said and done:
Then, in February 2024, we got our hands on the even more terrifying second Civil War trailer, which showed a full-on assault on the nation’s capital. This sequence, which included an explosive battle at the Lincoln Memorial, was just one of the numerous set pieces teased in a trailer that also raised the stakes for characters on all sides of the civil unrest
How To Watch Civil War
Though Civil War will most likely come to Max at some point in the future after the studio signed a streaming deal with Warner Discovery in 2023, initially the only way to see the movie will be in theaters. In addition to standard screenings of Alex Garland’s new thriller, the movie will also be presented in IMAX auditoriums across the country, according to Deadline.
Kirsten Dunst, Cailee Spaeny And Wagner Moura Lead The Civil War Cast
Though we don’t yet know the names of their characters, Kirsten Dunst, Cailee Spaeny, and Wagner Moura lead the Civil War cast. Based on what we’ve seen of the movie thus far, it appears as if the actors will be playing journalists covering the ensuing military conflict and civil unrest caused by various states rebelling against the movie’s version of the United States government.
When Civil War is released in April 2024, it will be Dunst’s first feature film since the 2021 release of Power of the Dog, which won an Oscar for Best Director (Jane Campion). Spaeny is coming off the success of her starring role in Sofia Coppola’s A24 biopic, Priscilla, which earned her a Golden Globe nomination. Moura last appeared in the 2022 animated film, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, in which he voiced Wolf, a.k.a., one of the best DreamWorks villains to date.
The Civil War cast also includes some great supporting actors who’ve made names for themselves on the big screen and in the world of TV over the years. One of those, Nick Offerman, will be playing the President of the United States, who is determined to defeat the rebel states through any means necessary. Jesse Plemons is also set to appear in an unnamed role.
Great character actor Stephen McKinley Henderson, whose credits include everything from Manchester by the Sea to the upcoming Dune: Part Two (he plays Thufir Hawat), also appears as another journalist traveling with Kirsten Dunst’s character on her journey across the battered and war-torn American landscape.
Set In The Near Future, Civil War Follows A Journalist As She Races To The White House While Avoiding Capture Or Death
Set sometime in the near future, Civil War follows a group of journalists as they race to the White House while also navigating the various dangers (and dangerous people) on the road to Washington, D.C. In a race against time and other parties, the team of photographers and reporters also have to avoid capture or death, as any journalist spotted in the area stands the chance of being shot on sight, as alluded to in the movie’s trailer.
While we don’t yet know what preceded the war, we do know that large portions of the country have seceded from the union and are in the middle of a massive nationwide fight in Civil War.
Alex Garland Has Described Civil War As A 'Contemporary War Movie' That Was 'Difficult To Shoot'
Over the years, Alex Garland has given us one of the best sci-fi movies with Ex Machina, an all-time great zombie movie in 28 Days Later, and other gripping films before, between, and since. With Civil War, the writer-turned-director is making a “contemporary war movie,” as he told ScreenDaily:
Well, in the same way that you could say Ex Machina is sci fi, Devs is a tech thriller and Men is a horror film, Civil War is a war movie – a contemporary war movie. It was a staggeringly difficult film to shoot.
Touching on the “difficult film to shoot,” line at the end of his comment, Garland expanded and said that while physical production was completed by the time of the July 2022 interview, he was still having to decide on where and where not to include VFX shots in post-production. He described it as a “non-stop process at the moment.”
Alex Garland Has Said Civil War Could Be The Last Movie He Directs
Though Alex Garland has had a successful run as a director the past decade with movies like Ex Machina, Annihilation, and Men, the filmmaker told the Telegraph that Civil War could be the last film he directs and that he only plans on writing scripts for a while. However, we’ll have to wait and see if Garland stays true to that or returns to helm another movie at some point in the future.
Civil War Is A24’s Most Expensive Production Yet
A24 has become one of the premier names in the movie industry over the course of the past decade or so with all kinds of engaging stories, tremendous performances, and even a Best Picture winner with Everything Everywhere All at Once. And in the coming months and years, the studio has even bigger plans in the works, including Civil War. According to Variety, Alex Garland’s new movie cost approximately $50 million, making it the most expensive in-house production from A24 to date. And judging from the explosive action and impressive effects (both practical and digital) we’ve seen from the movie’s two trailers, it looks like A24 used that money wisely.
What Is The Civil War Rating?
This probably won’t come as a surprise, but Civil War has been given an R-rating, according to FilmRatings.com. The MPA gave the upcoming thriller this restrictive rating on account of the movie’s strong violent content, disturbing images, and mature language. This is definitely a movie you won’t want to watch with your kids or the faint of heart.
What Is The Civil War Runtime?
Despite there being rumors of Civil War having a massive runtime of 3 hours and 15 minutes, the upcoming movie will not be nearly that long. In December 2023, right around the time the speculation about the move being 195 minutes long, A24 told IndieWire that the rumors were not true and that the Kirsten Dunst-led thriller would clock in at 1 hour and 49 minutes. As much as we would love to watch an intense film about a broken-down society on the brink of disaster with a three-hour runtime, that might just be too much to handle, at least in theaters.
Expect to hear much more about Civil War and other exciting titles on the 2024 movie schedule as we get closer to its release this April.
