The Knives Out franchise have consistently brought whodunnits back to theaters (and streaming for those with a Netflix subscription). Along with stellar ensemble casts, they’ve also each contained subtle voice cameos by frequent Rian Johnson collaborator Joseph Gordon-Levitt. His new movie Wake Up Dead Man is no exception, and he told CinemaBlend where to spot the latest cameo.
What we know about Wake Up Dead Man has been limited, as the franchise tries to guard its secrets. But the latest mystery is now officially in theaters ahead of its release on Netflix in December. As you can see above, Johnson spoke to CinemaBlend ahead of its release, and revealed the sly way he snuck Gordon-Levitt into the threequel. In his words:
Listen, he’s the baseball announcer on the TV, and you can hear him in one scene in particular, you really hear him talk. And I got to write baseball commentary for him to say. So, got him in.
Mind blown. This is another blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, especially since the 500 Days of Summer actor isn’t physically seen on screen. Instead his voice can be heard as an announcer when Thomas Haden Church’s Samson Holt is shown watching a baseball game in his garage. It’s certainly not the focus of the scene, which is why it’s so easy to miss on the first watch.
While Johnson said Wake Up Dead Man was the hardest Knives Out movie to write, he seemingly didn’t have that same struggle with finding a way to include Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Good thing, as now it’s something that fans of the franchise look forward to.
For those who don’t remember, JGL has had a voice cameo in all three of the Knives Out movies. In the 2019 original movie he can be heard voicing a TV detective in a show Marta’s sister is watching. For Glass Onion things got even sillier, with Levitt voicing the dong that goes off every hour for Edward Norton’s Miles Bron.
Only time will tell if the Inception actor gets to actually grace the screen in a Knives Out movie. All three installments have featured incredible ensemble casts, and Gordon-Levitt is a versatile talent who could play a variety of roles. It’s actually surprising it hasn’t happened yet, but these cameos are thoroughly delightful for cinephiles.
Obviously the Knives Out franchise first and foremost stars Daniel Craig, who plays the charming detective Benoit Blanc throughout the trilogy. And while the franchise is very much set up to be an anthology piece, there have been a few other recurring actors. Noah Segan has chewed the scenery in small but hilarious roles in all three titles, and Jeremy Renner’s likeness was used ahead of him playing an actual role in Wake Up Dead Man.
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is in theaters now as part of the 2025 movie release list. It will become available to stream after its premiere on Netflix December 12th. We’ll just have to wait to see what Rian Johnson has up his sleeve for the next installment, and how Joseph Gordon-Levitt ends up being incorporated.