First trailer for James Gunn’s Belko Experiment redefines corporate headhunting

It was last summer that we first began compiling the reports on James Gunn’s mission to cast roughly every single character actor in Hollywood in upcoming horror thriller The Belko Experiment, written by the Guardians Of The Galaxy director and helmed by Wolf Creek’s Greg McLean. The first trailer for the film has just been released, and while there’s still a number of performers who didn’t get roped in, those present look like they’ll be more than sufficient to fulfill your quota of “Hey, it’s ____!” moments while watching the screen (preferably through your fingers, if Gunn and McLean are successful in their efforts).

The movie follows a day in the life of employees at an anonymous corporate headquarters in South America, where the usual routine gets upended by a mysterious announcement over the building’s loudspeaker system: The workers must kill three people from among their ranks, or six will be murdered at random. Then, the entire building goes into lockdown mode, with armed guards posted outside to keep them from escaping. From there, things start to deteriorate in much the way you’d assume, as everyone starts to weigh their own lives versus those of their coworkers, and then act accordingly. (Just take stock of everyone currently working in your building, and you’ll see where this goes.) This feels very much in keeping with the pitch-black tenor of Gunn’s earlier films (Slither, Super), only with less overt humor and more blood-spattered carnage. The Belko Experiment opens March 17, 2017.