MY DEAD FRIEND ZOE Official Trailer 2 (2025)

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Check out the new trailer for My Dead Friend Zoe starring Morgan Freeman, Natalie Morales, and Sonequa Martin-Green!
US Release Date: February 28, 2025
Starring: Morgan Freeman, Natalie Morales, Sonequa Martin-Green, Ed Harris
Director: Kyle Hausmann-Stokes
Synopsis: Merit is a U.S. veteran who keeps seeing the presence of Zoe, her best friend who died in combat. When her estranged grandfather is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, she decides to become his caretaker while also trying to heal herself.

Check out the new trailer for My Dead Friend Zoe starring Morgan Freeman, Natalie Morales, and Sonequa Martin-Green!
US Release Date: February 28, 2025
Starring: Morgan Freeman, Natalie Morales, Sonequa Martin-Green, Ed Harris
Director: Kyle Hausmann-Stokes
Synopsis: Merit is a U.S. veteran who keeps seeing the presence of Zoe, her best friend who died in combat. When her estranged grandfather is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, she decides to become his caretaker while also trying to heal herself.

Briarcliff Entertainment announced on Wednesday that its dark veteran dramedy My Dead Friend Zoe, starring Sonequa Martin-Green, Natalie Morales and Ed Harris, will now open in theaters nationwide on February 28, 2025.

Exec produced by Travis Kelce, the film, which won the Audience Award in its SXSW world premiere, had previously been scheduled to open on November 1.

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‘My Dead Friend Zoe’ Review: Kyle Hausmann-Stokes Film Unveils The Invisible Wounds Of War – SXSW
Marking the directorial debut of Kyle Hausmann-Stokes, a former U.S. Army infantry paratrooper and Iraq War Bronze Star veteran, My Dead Friend Zoe follows the journey of Merit (Martin-Green), a U.S. Army Afghanistan veteran who is at odds with her family thanks to the presence of Zoe (Morales), her dead best friend from the Army. Despite the persistence of her VA group counselor (Morgan Freeman), the tough love of her mother (Gloria Reuben) and the levity of an unexpected love interest, Merit’s cozy-dysfunctional friendship with Zoe keeps the duo insulated from the world. That is, until Merit’s estranged grandfather (Harris) — holed up at the family’s ancestral lake house — begins to lose his way and needs the one thing he refuses… help. At its core, this is a buddy film about a complicated friendship, a divided family, and the complex ways in which we process grief.

In her review of the film, which is currently rated 100% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, Deadline’s Valerie Complex observed that it “weaves a complex tapestry from trauma, memory and the enduring strength of human connection.”

Watch on Deadline
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Complex called the pic “a powerful testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the imperative to provide better support for our veterans…a film that challenges its audience to reflect on the collective responsibility to ensure their well-being long after their service has ended.”

Written by Hausmann-Stokes and A.J. Bermudez, the project is the former’s creative take on the post-war experience and a tribute to veterans of all generations. Pic is produced by Paul Scanlan, Hausmann-Stokes, Terri Lubaroff, Ray Maiello, Mike Field, Richard Silverman and Robert Paschall Jr. Exec producers included Kelce, Harris, Martin-Green, Morales, Jeff Annison, David Baxter, Brandi Plants, Nancy Masterson, Joe Masterson and Igor Tsukerman.

Up next for release by Tom Ortenberg’s Briarcliff is the hot-button Trump biopic The Apprentice, which opens on October 11.

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Read More About:
Briarcliff Entertainment
My Dead Friend Zoe
Release Dates
Original title
My Dead Friend Zoe
Year
2024
Running time
98 min.
Country
United States United States
Director
Kyle Hausmann-Stokes
Screenwriter
Kyle Hausmann-Stokes, Amanda Bermudez. Story: Kyle Hausmann-Stokes, Cherish Chen
Cast
Music
Dan Romer
Cinematography
Matt Sakatani Roe
Producer
Legion M, Radiant Media Studios, ReCre8 Entertainment
Genre
Comedy. Drama
Synopsis
Engaged in a mysterious relationship with her dead best friend from the Army, a female Afghanistan veteran comes head to head with her Vietnam vet grandfather at the family's ancestral lake house.
My Dead Friend Zoe
Directed by Kyle Hausmann-Stokes
Screenplay by Kyle Hausmann-Stokes
A. J. Bermudez
Based on Merit x Zoe
by Kyle Hausmann-Stokes
Produced by
Paul Scanlan
Terri Lubaroff
Richard Silverman
Ray Maiello
Mike Field
Travis Kelce
Starring Sonequa Martin-Green
Natalie Morales
Ed Harris
Morgan Freeman
Gloria Reuben
Utkarsh Ambudkar
Production
companies
Legion M
Radiant Media Studios
Distributed by Briarcliff Entertainment[1]
Release dates
March 9, 2024 (SXSW)
February 28, 2025 (United States)
Country United States
Language English
My Dead Friend Zoe is a 2024 American war comedy-drama film written by Kyle Hausmann-Stokes and A. J. Bermudez, directed by Hausmann-Stokes and starring Sonequa Martin-Green, Natalie Morales, Ed Harris, Morgan Freeman, Gloria Reuben and Utkarsh Ambudkar. It is based on Hausmann-Stokes's short film Merit x Zoe. It is also Hausmann-Stokes's feature directorial debut.[2][3] It premiered at South by Southwest on March 9, 2024, where it won the Audience Award, and is scheduled to be theatrically released in the United States on February 28, 2025 by Briarcliff Entertainment.[4]

Plot
Merit must try to be socially present while also being with the ghost of her dead best friend.

Cast
Sonequa Martin-Green as Merit
Natalie Morales as Zoe
Ed Harris as Dale
Morgan Freeman as Dr. Cole
Gloria Reuben as Kris
Utkarsh Ambudkar as Alex
Thom Tran as Rufus[5]
Production
According to Variety, the film is the first to be financed with green energy tax credits under an innovative model created by Mike Field and Ray Maiello at Radiant Media Studios (Maiello produced the film).[6] Radiant Media Studios brought Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce to the project as an executive producer (Kelce's first production credit).[7][8] Legion M co-financed under their crowdfunding model.

In May 2023, it was announced that Harris, Martin-Green, and Morales were cast in the film.[2] In June 2023, it was announced that Freeman, Reuben, and Ambudkar were cast in the film.[3] Filming occurred in Portland, Oregon, Forest Grove, Oregon and Molalla, Oregon in 2023.[9]

In September 2023, it was announced that filming wrapped.[10]

Reception
Critical response
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 100% of 17 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.9/10.[11] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 72 out of 100, based on 5 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[12]

Valerie Complex of Deadline Hollywood called the film "a powerful testament to the resilience of the human spirit."[13] Matt Donato of Collider praised Martin-Green's performance,[14] while Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com also commended Harris, describing him as "one of our best living actors" in the supporting cast.[15]

Accolades
Award Date Category Result Ref.
SXSW Film & TV Festival Audience Award 26 March 2024 Narrative Spotlight Won [16]
References
Lang, Brent (18 June 2024). "Briarcliff Entertainment Buys SXSW Audience Award Winner 'My Dead Friend Zoe'". Variety. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
Grobar, Matt (May 17, 2023). "Ed Harris, Sonequa Martin-Green & Natalie Morales Board Dark Veteran Dramedy 'My Dead Friend Zoe'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
Grobar, Matt (June 27, 2023). "Morgan Freeman, Gloria Reuben & Utkarsh Ambudkar Board Veteran Dramedy 'My Dead Friend Zoe'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
Grobar, Matt (September 11, 2024). "Briarcliff's SXSW Audience Award Winner 'My Dead Friend Zoe' Pushes Release To 2025". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved September 11, 2024.
Gervasi, Alessia (September 29, 2023). "Actor from Buffalo uses comedy to tell serious stories". WGRZ. Retrieved October 20, 2023.
Siegel, Tatiana (February 13, 2024). "'Travis Kelce's Debut as a Film Producer Is Also the First Movie Financed Using President Biden's Green Energy Tax Credits (EXCLUSIVE)'". Variety. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
"How Travis Kelce Became A Producer Of My Dead Friend Zoe". YouTube. Screen Rant. June 26, 2024.
"Award-winning movie produced by Chiefs' Travis Kelce to be released after Super Bowl". KansasCity.com. October 22, 2024.
Bourgeois, Michaela. "Oregon-made film 'My Dead Friend Zoe' set for world premiere at SXSW". KOIN. Retrieved March 6, 2024.
Grobar, Matt (September 12, 2023). "'Star Trek: Discovery's Sonequa Martin-Green Inks With IAG". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 20, 2023.
"My Dead Friend Zoe". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 4 September 2024. Edit this at Wikidata
"My Dead Friend Zoe". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
Complex, Valerie (10 March 2024). "'My Dead Friend Zoe' Review: Kyle Hausmann-Stokes Film Unveils The Invisible Wounds Of War — SXSW". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
Donato, Matt (11 March 2024). "'My Dead Friend Zoe' Review: Sonequa Martin-Green Gives One of the Year's Best Performances | SXSW 2024". Collider. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
Tallerico, Brian (10 March 2024). "SXSW Film Festival 2024: Babes, My Dead Friend Zoe, Y2K". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
Cruz, Olivia (26 March 2024). "2024 SXSW Film & TV Festival Audience Award Winners Announced". South by Southwest. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
External links
My Dead Friend Zoe at IMDb
Categories: 2024 films2024 directorial debut films2024 comedy-drama films2024 independent films2020s female buddy films2020s ghost filmsAmerican female buddy filmsAmerican comedy-drama filmsAmerican ghost filmsFeatures based on short filmsFilms about grief2020s English-language films2020s American filmsFilms shot in OregonBriarcliff Entertainment films
Film
Titel My Dead Friend Zoe
Produktionsland USA
Originalsprache Englisch
Erscheinungsjahr 2024
Länge 98 Minuten
Stab
Regie Kyle Hausmann-Stokes
Drehbuch Kyle Hausmann-Stokes,
AJ Bermudez
Produktion Mike Field,
Kyle Hausmann-Stokes,
Terri Lubaroff,
Ray Maiello,
Denny Nolan,
Robert Paschall Jr.,
Paul Scanlan,
Richard Silverman
Musik Dan Romer
Kamera Matt Sakatani Roe
Schnitt Ali Greer
Besetzung
Natalie Morales: Zoe
Sonequa Martin-Green: Merit
Ed Harris: Dale
Morgan Freeman: Dr. Cole
Utkarsh Ambudkar: Alex
Gloria Reuben: Kris
My Dead Friend Zoe ist eine Tragikomödie von Kyle Hausmann-Stokes. Der nach einem Einsatz einer Soldatin im Afghanistan-Krieg spielende Film mit Natalie Morales, Sonequa Martin-Green, Ed Harris und Morgan Freeman in den Hauptrollen feierte im März 2024 beim South by Southwest Film Festival seine Premiere. Der US-Kinostart ist Ende Februar 2025 geplant.

Inhaltsverzeichnis
1 Handlung
2 Produktion
2.1 Regie und Drehbuch
2.2 Besetzung und Dreharbeiten
2.3 Filmmusik
2.4 Veröffentlichung
3 Rezeption
3.1 Kritiken
3.2 Auszeichnungen
4 Weblinks
5 Einzelnachweise
Handlung
Nach ihrem Einsatz im Afghanistan-Krieg, bei dem ihre Freundin Zoe ums Leben kam, führt die US-Soldatin Merits ihre Beziehung mit deren Geist weiter. Merits Großvater ist ein Vietnam-Veteran. Er hält sich im angestammten Seehaus der Familie versteckt, hat die Orientierung verloren und lehnt das Einzige, was er eigentlich bräuchte, ab: Hilfe.[1]

Produktion
Regie und Drehbuch
Regie führte Kyle Hausmann-Stokes. Es handelt sich um sein Regiedebüt bei einem Spielfilm. Auch sein letzter Kurzfilm Merit x Zoe war im Dunstkreis des Afghanistan-Krieges angesiedelt und handelt von zwei Soldatinnen namens Merit und Zoe, die dort auf einem abgelegenen Außenposten der US-Armee stationiert sind. Die Titelrollen waren mit Morgan Dixon und Haskiri Velazquez besetzt.

Das Drehbuch für My Dead Friend Zoe schrieb Hausmann-Stokes gemeinsam mit AJ Bermudez. Auch für sie handelt es sich um den ersten Spielfilm.[2]

Besetzung und Dreharbeiten

Sonequa Martin-Green spielt Merit
Natalie Morales, bekannt aus Filmen wie The Little Things, If You Were the Last und Self Reliance, spielt in der Titelrolle Zoe. Sonequa Martin-Green spielt ihre Freundin Merit. In weiteren Hauptrollen sind Ed Harris als Dale und Morgan Freeman als Dr. Cole zu sehen. Auch Utkarsh Ambudkar und Gloria Reuben finden sich auf der Besetzungsliste des Films.[1]

Kameramann Matt Sakatani Roe war zuletzt für Filme wie den Thriller The God Committee von Austin Stark und den Liebesfilm Purple Hearts von Elizabeth Allen Rosenbaum tätig.

Filmmusik
Die Filmmusik komponierte Dan Romer, der zuletzt für den Musicalfilm Dear Evan Hansen von Stephen Chbosky, den Pixar-Film Luca von Enrico Casarosa, die Filmkomödie Self Reliance von Jake Johnson und den Historienfilm King's Land von Nikolaj Arcel tätig war. Einen Song für den Film schrieb Romer gemeinsam mit der kanadischen Singer-Songwriterin, Klavier- und Banjospielerin und Gitarristin Kaia Kater.[2]

Veröffentlichung
Die Weltpremiere von My Dead Friend Zoe fand am 9. März 2024 beim South by Southwest Film Festival statt.[1] Im Oktober 2024 wurde er beim Woodstock Film Festival gezeigt.[3] Im Februar 2025 wird er beim Santa Barbara Film Festival vorgestellt.[4] Die Rechte in den USA liegen bei Briarcliff Entertainment. Am 28. Februar 2025 soll der Film in die US-Kinos kommen.

Rezeption
Kritiken
Von den bei Rotten Tomatoes aufgeführten Kritiken sind alle positiv bei einer durchschnittlichen Bewertung mit 7,9 von 10 möglichen Punkten.[5]

Auszeichnungen
Leiden International Filmfestival 2024

Nominierung im American Indie Competition[6]
South by Southwest Film Festival 2024

Auszeichnung mit dem Publikumspreis in der Sektion Narrative Spotlight[7]
Woodstock Film Festival 2024

Auszeichnung mit dem Gigantic Pictures Award als Bester Spielfilm
Auszeichnung mit dem Haskell Wexler Award für die Beste Kamera (Matt Sakatani Roe)
Lobende Erwähnung beim Narrative Editing Award (Ali Greer)[8]
Weblinks
Commons: My Dead Friend Zoe – Sammlung von Bildern, Videos und Audiodateien
My Dead Friend Zoe bei IMDb
My Dead Friend Zoe im Programm des South by Southwest Film Festivals (englisch)
Einzelnachweise
My Dead Friend Zoe. In: sxsw.com. Abgerufen am 10. Februar 2024.
Dan Romer Scoring Kyle Hausmann-Stokes’ 'My Dear Friend Zoe'. In: filmmusicreporter.com, 10. Januar 2024.
Matthew Carey: 25th Woodstock Film Festival Announces Lineup Featuring 'Anora', 'Blitz', Paul Shrader Tribute, 'The Bibi Files', World, U.S. Premieres & More. In: deadline.com, 16. September 2024.
Pete Hammond: Santa Barbara Film Festival Sets Full 2025 Program, Will Partner With Direct Relief To Raise Funds For L.A. Wildfires. In: deadline.com, 17. Januar 2025.
My Dead Friend Zoe. In: Rotten Tomatoes. Abgerufen am 1. November 2024.
My Dead Friend Zoe. In: liff.nl. Abgerufen am 16. Oktober 2024.
Matt Grobar: ‘Bob Trevino Likes It,’ Dev Patel’s ‘Monkey Man,’ A24’s ‘Sing Sing’ & Dramedy ‘My Dead Friend Zoe’ Among SXSW Audience Award Winners. In: deadline.com, 18. März 2024.
'My Dead Friend Zoe', 'Porcelain War', 'Brooklyn, Minnesota' Among Big Winners At 25th Woodstock Film Festival. In: dnyuz.com, 20. Oktober 2024.
Kategorien: Filmtitel 2024US-amerikanischer FilmFilmdramaFilmkomödieKriegsfilm