MaXXXine had its premiere at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles on June 24, 2024, and is scheduled to be released in the United States by A24 on July 5, 2024.
Premise
After surviving a massacre in Texas,[a] Maxine continues to pursue her dreams of becoming a famous actress, all while evading the Night Stalker in 1985 in Los Angeles.[2][3]
In March 2022, West announced that he was working on the script for a third film in the X series, to be set chronologically after the events of X. The project will explore another sub-genre of horror and will continue the depiction of cinema's influence on society, exploring how the development of home video releases did so. West states, while a viewer can watch each movie independently without seeing the previous film, they are made to "complement each other."
In June 2022, executive producer Peter Phok confirmed that a third film is officially in development, with West attached to the project.[5] In September 2022, at the first Midnight Madness showing of Pearl for the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival, a third film was officially announced, with a short teaser played after the post-credits. The clip was later released online for those not present at the event. West once again serves as writer/director and one of the producers, while Mia Goth will reprise her role from the first movie. Taking place in 1985 and titled MaXXXine, the plot was confirmed to center around Maxine, the only survivor of the "Massacre of X," as she continues to pursue her future in Hollywood. The teaser trailer was shot with the film fast-tracked to being green-lit by A24, following the successes of the previous two installments. Jacob Jaffke, Kevin Turen, and Harrison Kreiss will be producers, while Goth will additionally serve as an executive producer.[6][7][8]
In January 2023, Goth stated that the script is complete and that the story is, in her opinion, the best of the series so far. The actress stated that many of the previous production team members are returning, with principal photography scheduled to commence later that year.[9]
Principal photography took place from April to May 2023 in Los Angeles for seven weeks.[11][12][13] The film was towards the end of editing in February 2024.[14]
Controversy
In January 2024, it was reported that Goth was being sued by background actor James Hunter, who played a corpse on set, for intentionally kicking him in the head and then taunting him about it. The suit also includes a wrongful termination claim against A24 and West.[15]
On May 1, 2023, a first-look image of Goth and Halsey in costume as their respective characters was shared on A24's and the film's social media accounts. They were captioned "The life she deserves," referencing the personal mantra spoken throughout X by Maxine.[19] Glenn Rowley of Billboard noted Goth's dramatic costume shift from her "Little House on the Prairie–esque look" to a "tousled blonde mane and iridescent green windbreaker."[20]
Music
Tyler Bates composed the film's score, as he did for X and Pearl.[21]
Release
MaXXXine had its premiere at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles on June 24, 2024.[22][23] It is scheduled to be released in the United States by A24 on July 5, 2024.[24][25]
Reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 90% of 31 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.0/10.[26]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 71 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[27]
Future
Though MaXXXine was originally developed as the end of the X trilogy, Ti West later stated in February 2024 that he has plans for a fourth installment, which would depend on the film's reception.[28] Later that year, West confirmed that he was working on a fourth film and that he may develop it as his next project.[29]
