The writers of the HBO comedy Insecure, Issa Rae and Syreeta Singleton, have announced that they’ve been developing a remake of F. Gary Gray’s heist film Set It Off back in 2019. Little news has been revealed since then and both have gone on to other projects. Notably, Singleton is recently coming off of the comedy, One of Them Days, which our own Tyler Nichol enjoyed as he said in his review, “I tend to be a tough sell when it comes to comedy and One of Them Days managed to really tickle my funny bone. The laughs per minute were high, with several subtle jokes that are easy to miss. It does what any great comedy does: blend comedy with emotional stakes for a fun time.”

Singleton is now giving an update on the state of the Set It Off remake. According to The Wrap, the writer expounded,

It’s going to be a good one. It’s something that we were very careful about, because it’s Set It Off, and we want to make sure we do it right. I feel like it’s a story that people are going to be really, really excited about. We’ve infused a lot of humor into it in an organic way. But it was like, when you get four Black women together, how you not gon’ laugh? Even in the middle of robbing some s–t.”

She would also explain why the film is taking its time to gain forward momentum, “It’s also been a really long process. Interestingly enough, I sold Jungles first and Set It Off probably like a month or so later. So it’s been about six or seven years in the making, and many different iterations of that. But I think we turned in a draft maybe a few months ago now, and they’re all like, ‘This is the version we want to make,’ and I feel really good about it. I have a writing partner on that, Nina Gloster, and we feel really, really good about that story.”

The original Set It Off featured Jada Pinkett Smith, Queen Latifah, Vivica A. Fox and Kimberly Elise as four women who resort to robbing banks in order to take care of their financial hardships. Friday and Straight Outta Compton director F. Gary Gray would helm the original. “We’ve brought it to life in a way that I think is going to feel fresh, but also really nostalgic at the same time,” Singleton concluded.

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Mel Gibson’s Flight Risk has taken off to become #1 at the box office this week, pulling in $12 million during its debut. This is a pretty unimpressive number to head the box office, and considering Flight Risk had a budget of $25 million, it has a bit of a way to go to recoup its expenses. But those that did check it out over the weekend no doubt did so in part to support Gibson, who hasn’t directed a movie since 2016’s Hacksaw Ridge.

Flight Risk’s take – which we knew would help it get to #1 this weekend based on early projections – would also mean the dethroning of franchise fare at the 2025 box office so far. Even though we’re still in January (yes, we’re still in January…), it’s worth noting that there have only been sequels at the top of the box office so far this year: Mufasa: The Lion King (a late 2024 release) and Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, with the former obviously being the dominant picture.

Now in its sixth week, Mufasa wouldn’t yet retreat entirely into the jungle, earning $8.7 million, which was good enough for the number two spot, its second bump there so far. It has now grossed $221 million domestically. As for Den of Thieves 2, that ended up dropping all the way down to #9, a 55% tumble. Indeed, Flight Risk would be the only non-holdover from previous weeks to crack the top five. The only key debut this weekend, Steven Soderbergh’s Presence, managed $3.4 million, putting it at #6.

In the #3 spot was One of Them Days in its second week, taking in $8 million from its word of mouth, which helped it get #2 in its opening week. That spot saw it fending off returning sequels Sonic the Hedgehog 3, now in its sixth week, and Moana 2, in week nine. Those movies rounded out the top five with $5.5 and $4.3 million, respectively. Notably, both have already outgrossed their predecessors. Landing at #7 in its second week was Wolf Man, which underperformed in its debut weekend and disappointed in quality considering what had been done with Blumhouse’s The Invisible Man.

Oscar contenders also left their mark towards the bottom of the top 10, with A Complete Unknown – James Mangold’s biopic on Bob Dylan, earning eight nominations – landing at #8 with $3.1 million. Meanwhile, The Brutalist – which could be on its way to a Best Picture victory and Best Actor statue for Adrien Brody – coming in at the bottom spot with $2.87. That’s not an incredible showing for The Brutalist. Still, we’re glad it is finally opening up to more theaters (it added nearly 800 this week) after having peaked at just seven during its Oscar-eligible opening.

Next week, we will see the wide releases of Universal’s animated Dog Man, the Briarcliff action flick Valiant One, and New Line horror Companion, which could get a little bump from IMAX. Worth mentioning, too, is You’re Cordially Invited. Even though it will be on Amazon Prime Video, You’re Cordially Invited is yet another reminder of the state of the theater vs. streaming war, as Will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon would’ve made bank together back in the day.

As for the weeks after that, we won’t have powerhouse franchise movies until next month, with Captain America: Brave New World and Paddington in Peru arriving on February 14th (after Paddington’s run in its native U.K.). Additionally, The Day the Earth Blew Up is dropping on February 28th, letting us see just how well a Looney Tunes pic can do on the big screen.

What did you catch at the movies this weekend? Which movies do you expect to round out the top five next week?

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Martin Luther King Jr. weekend is upon us, though people looking to celebrate could have other plans than heading to cinemas. How do we know this? The starting totals for two brand-new movies are off to a grim start. Then again, we’ve been surprised by dark horses before. Analysts said Leigh Whannell’s body horror film Wolf Man howled during Thursday previews with $1.4M, while Lawrence Lamont’s comedy, One of Them Days, led by Keke Palmer and SZA, banked $1.3M.

Wolf Man comes in low out of the gate. Still, the Blumhouse feature only cost $25M to produce before promotional materials. The horror movie starring Christopher Abbott (It Comes at Night, Possessor, Poor Things) and Julia Garner (Fantastic Four: First Steps, Ozark) could transform its 4-day holiday weekend total into $20M, but only if people show up. Wolf Man‘s Thursday total is slightly surprising, given the success of Whannell’s 2020 psychological thriller The Invisible Man, which earned a global total of $144M during its theatrical run. Positive word of mouth helped The Invisible Man make an impression on horror fans, and the film’s popularity has only grown with time. Unfortunately, reviews for Wolf Man are mixed, with some critics saying the movie lacks bite.

Sony’s One of Them Days could surprise us, as the film holds a 96% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with an Audience Score of 94%. Tyler Nichols reviewed One of Them Days for JoBlo, saying, “the laughs per minute were high,” while the film also presents engaging emotional stakes. The story focuses on best friends and roommates Dreux (Keke Palmer) and Alyssa (SZA), who discover Alyssa’s boyfriend has blown their rent money. The duo then finds themselves going to extremes in a race against the clock to avoid eviction and keep their friendship intact. Maude Apatow, Lil Rel Howery, Katt Williams, and Vanessa Bell Calloway star as primary cast members.

Are you going to the movies this Martin Luther King weekend? Do you think Wolf Man will find an audience in the coming weeks? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below, and enjoy your holiday!

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PLOT: When best friends and roommates Dreux and Alyssa discover Alyssa’s boyfriend has blown their rent money, the duo finds themselves going to extremes in a race against the clock to avoid eviction and keep their friendship intact.

REVIEW: It’s a downright shame how few comedies get a theatrical release these days. We’re far from the days of the Hughes or even Apatow era in terms of frequency, and it seems that when we do get them, they’re straight to streaming. Rising marketing costs have made it so studios only seem to want to take a gamble on low-budget horror or big-budget tentpole films based on a popular IP. So it’s nice to see an original comedy release in theaters as there’s nothing quite like laughing in a crowded auditorium. And if there’s one thing you’ll definitely get out of One of Them Days: it’s plenty of laughs.

One of Them Days follows roommates Dreux and Alyssa as they struggle to come up with rent money after getting screwed over. Not wanting to be put out on the streets, they look to get enough money, all while their day gets more and more out of control. Hijinx ensue. Keke Palmer is much more subdued here than I’m used to and it really works. She’s the more level-headed of the pairing, but still eccentric enough to get plenty of laughs. You’d never know that this was SZA‘s first lead role as she’s a natural. She’s able to nail the comedic beats while never feeling out of place. Keke and SZA are far from being an odd couple, as they’re two peas in a pod, but they’re just different enough to be an interesting dynamic.

A common pitfall for these comedies is to add more and more ludicrous stakes as the film goes along, getting to the point of absurdity. One of Them Days rides that line nicely, that just when you think it’s going to jump the shark, they manage to keep things relatively grounded. Don’t get me wrong, there’s still plenty of broad humor and unrealistic situations but the film manages to never get out of control. They steadily ramp up the stakes, introduce fun new characters, and never get too convoluted. And I lost track of the number of satisfying payoffs to even smaller moments; a mark of a great film. Writer Syreeta Singleton sure did her homework.

Like any good comedy, One of Them Days has a fantastic supporting cast. Katt Williams, Lil Rel Howery, Keyla Monterroso Mejia, and Janelle James all have standout moments. James and Meija, in particular, feel destined to break out as nearly every line they say gets a massive laugh. Maude Apatow also feels properly utilized as the white girl moving into the primarily black apartment complex. Her cluelessness may be a caricature to some, but I found it fitting for the type of hipster she’s meant to portray.

I tend to be a tough sell when it comes to comedy and One of Them Days managed to really tickle my funny bone. The laughs per minute were high, with several subtle jokes that are easy to miss. I’m excited for this to come to digital to be able to see some of the gags I may have missed. It does what any great comedy does: blend comedy with emotional stakes for a fun time. Comedies are hard to review, as humor is so subjective, but I feel this manages to be satisfying even if you’re not a laugher. Like any good onscreen partnership, Keke and SZA are a blast to watch and make the running time fly by.

ONE OF THEM DAYS IS PLAYING IN THEATERS ON JANUARY 17TH, 2025.

One of Them Days

GREAT

8

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