Dev Patel makes directorial debut with 'Monkey Man'

Dev Patel, the Oscar-nominated actor, ventures into his directorial debut with the action-packed revenge narrative titled "Monkey Man". Universal Pictures is set to theatrically release the film on April 5. Jordan Peele produced the movie under his Monkeypaw Productions banner, with the film unveiling its first trailer on Friday morning.

In the film, Patel takes on the role of Kid, portraying "an anonymous young man who ekes out a meager living in an underground fight club where, night after night, wearing a gorilla mask, he is beaten bloody by more popular fighters for cash," as stated in the release. Inspired by the legend of Hanuman, a deity in Hinduism, the movie delves into themes surrounding this mythological figure.

The trailer exhibits intense action reminiscent of a "John Wick" movie. Patel's character embarks on a journey of violent retribution, engaging in shootings, stabbings, and brutal confrontations with gunmen. In one scene, he ruthlessly stabs a man through the neck while gripping a knife between his teeth.

Patel directed "Monkey Man" based on his original story and screenplay, co-written with Paul Angunawela and John Collee. Initially slated for Netflix, the film now secured a theatrical release under Monkeypaw's film agreement with Universal.

The cast of "Monkey Man" features Sharlto Copley, Sobhita Dhulipala, Pitobash, Vipin Sharma, Ashwini Kalsekar, Adithi Kalkunte, Sikandar Kher, and Makarand Deshpande.

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The producers of the film include Patel, Peele, Jomon Thomas, Win Rosenfeld, Ian Cooper, Basil Iwanyk, Erica Lee, Christine Haebler, and Anjay Nagpal. Serving as executive producers are Jonathan Fuhrman, Natalya Pavchinskya, Aaron L Gilbert, Andria Spring, Alison-Jane Roney, and Steven Thibault. 

"Monkey Man" is presented by Universal Pictures as a Bron Studios production, a Thunder Road film, a Monkeypaw production, and a Minor Realm/S'Ya Concept production, in association with WME Independent and Creative Wealth Media.