Zero Contact

Zero Contact
Theatrical release poster
Directed byRick Dugdale
Written byCam Cannon
Produced by
  • Peter Toumasis
  • Rick Dugdale
  • Cam Cannon
Starring
CinematographyEdd Lukas
Edited byHåkan Karlsson
Music by
  • Klas Wahl
  • Anders Niska
Production
companies
Distributed by
  • Vuele (International)
  • Lionsgate (United States)
Release dates
  • September 24, 2021 (2021-09-24) (International)
  • May 27, 2022 (2022-05-27) (United States)
Running time
97 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Zero Contact is a 2021 American thriller film directed by Rick Dugdale and starring Anthony Hopkins. It was the first feature film to be released via Vuele, a non-fungible token platform.[1][2]

Zero Contact was released internationally on September 24, 2021,[3] and was released in the United States on May 27, 2022, by Lionsgate.[4]

Cast

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  • Anthony Hopkins as Finley Hart[5]
  • Chris Brochu as Sam Hart[6]
  • Veronica Ferres as Veronica Schultz [7]
  • Aleks Paunovic as Trevor Williams [7]
  • Lilly Krug as Jamie Schultz [7]
  • TJ Kayama as Riku Matsuda [7]
  • Martin Stenmarck as Hakan Nordquist [7]
  • James C. Burns as Doug Mancini
  • David Beatty as William
  • Angella Kostic as Katherine Hart
  • Tova Novotny as Host
  • Rukiya Bernard as Taylor Williams
  • Osman Aboubakr as Omar
  • Adrian Holmes as Phil
  • Linda Darlow as Rebecca
  • Marcus West as Opposing Council

Production

[edit]

In May 2020, it was announced Enderby Entertainment would commence production on a thriller titled 92.[8] The film was shot in 17 countries.[9] It was filmed entirely virtually via Zoom and during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.[10][11] In September 2021, the film's first official trailer officially revealed production details including: Peter Toumasis and Cam Cannon, served as producers alongside Dugdale; Edd Lukas served as cinematographer; and Håkan Karlsson served as editor. It also stated that People in the Park Productions is credited in post-production.[12]

Release

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The film was released as an NFT via CurrencyWorks Inc.'s platform Vuele.[13]

In January 2022, it was announced that Lions Gate Entertainment had acquired distribution rights via its subsidiary Grindstone Entertainment, with a scheduled release date in May 2022.[14] Zero Contact was released on May 27, 2022.[4]

Marketing

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The first trailer was released online, in September 2021. It notably announced many of the production details on-screen.[12] In May 2021, following Lionsgate's purchase of distribution rights, a new poster and trailer was released alongside the official announcement of the movie's official release date.[4]

Reception

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The film has a 10% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 10 reviews.[15]

Rich Cross of Starburst gave the film a positive review and wrote, "High-concept techno-thriller Zero Contact is the latest mainstream movie determined to make a virtue out of the necessity of the Covid lockdown."[16] Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter gave the film a negative review and wrote, "Let’s just say that 'The machine runs on dark matter reactor' is one of the script’s more coherent lines."[17] Dennis Harvey of Variety gave the film a negative review, calling it "a steaming pile of nada."[18]

Future

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In January 2022, it was announced that two sequels will be filmed back-to-back. Anthony Hopkins will reprise his role from the first movie, which was filmed remotely via Zoom. Director Rick Dugdale revealed that principal photography had already commenced, with the projects in various degrees of production. The collaborative development with Lionsgate is noted as being the first feature film to be produced on-location in Antarctica. The production crew worked alongside Sebastian Copeland and David Hatcher Childress to ensure safety in the extreme conditions of the frozen Tundra continent. The production will also take place in 14 other geographical locations.[14][19]

References

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  1. ^ Stephanie Prange (July 7, 2021). "Anthony Hopkins Film 'Zero Contact' to Be Released as NFT on Vuele Platform". Media Play News. Retrieved July 31, 2021.
  2. ^ Feng, Coco (September 16, 2021). "Anthony Hopkins' sci-fi thriller Zero Contact gets NFT debut on Vuele with 11 blockchain-based tokens". South China Morning Post. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  3. ^ "Enderby Entertainment's Pandemic Film 'Zero Contact' to Premiere on New NFT Platform Vuele; Watch the Trailer – Update". 8 September 2021.
  4. ^ a b c Massoto, Erick (May 10, 2022). "Anthony Hopkins Has a Shady Mission For Humanity in the Trailer for 'Zero Contact'". Collider. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  5. ^ Beatrice Verhoeven (July 7, 2021). "Anthony Hopkins Film 'Zero Contact' to Premiere as NFT on New Platform Vuele". TheWrap. Retrieved July 31, 2021.
  6. ^ Goldsmith, Jill (September 8, 2021). "Enderby Entertainment's Pandemic Film 'Zero Contact' To Premiere On New NFT Platform Vuele; Watch The Trailer – Update". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
  7. ^ a b c d e Brent Furdyk (July 7, 2021). "Anthony Hopkins' New Zoom-Shot Pandemic Film 'Zero Contact' To Premiere On NFT Platform". Entertainment Tonight Canada. Archived from the original on July 7, 2021. Retrieved July 31, 2021.
  8. ^ "Enderby Entertainment Sets Virtual Production Of Thriller '92' Spanning Seven Countries". Deadline Hollywood. May 15, 2020.
  9. ^ Ross McLaughlin (July 22, 2021). "New Anthony Hopkins film will be released as NFT. Is it the future in film distribution?". CTV News. Retrieved July 31, 2021.
  10. ^ Jill Goldsmith (July 7, 2021). "Enderby Entertainment's Pandemic Film 'Zero Contact' To Premiere On New NFT Platform Vuele". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 31, 2021.
  11. ^ Gabrielle Sanchez (July 7, 2021). "Virtually produced pandemic movie Zero Contact set to premiere on new NFT platform". The A.V. Club. Retrieved July 31, 2021.
  12. ^ a b IGN (September 8, 2021). "Zero Contact - Official Trailer (2021) Anthony Hopkins". IGN. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  13. ^ "Academy Award®-Winning Actor Anthony Hopkins' Newest Thriller ZERO CONTACT to Premiere Exclusively as an NFT on CurrencyWorks' VUELE Platform". GlobeNewswire. July 7, 2021. Retrieved July 31, 2021.
  14. ^ a b Hayes, Dade (January 14, 2022). "'Zero Contact' With Anthony Hopkins Acquired By Lionsgate's Grindstone; Enderby Entertainment Making Sequels – And History – In Antarctica". Deadline. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  15. ^ "Zero Contact". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved May 28, 2022.
  16. ^ Cross, Rich (May 25, 2022). "ZERO CONTACT". Starburst. Retrieved May 28, 2022.
  17. ^ Scheck, Frank (May 25, 2022). "Anthony Hopkins in 'Zero Contact': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 28, 2022.
  18. ^ Harvey, Dennis (May 26, 2022). "'Zero Contact' Review: The Zoom-Shot Movie Subgenre Dies Yelling". Variety. Retrieved May 28, 2022.
  19. ^ Banks, Richard (January 14, 2022). "Anthony Hopkins Sequel Reportedly Becomes First Film To Shoot In Antarctica". Screen Rant. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
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