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Dave Bautista is currently at the center of one of the biggest streaming hits on Netflix — one that hails from the mind of M. Night Shyamalan. Ever since “The Sixth Sense” became the must-see box office sensation of the ’90s, Shyamalan has been living in its shadow. There have been highs, like “Unbreakable,” and lows, like “The Lady in the Water.” But in recent years, Shyamalan has hit something of a stride, making movies his way with a lot less regard for how they might be received. Now, his 2023 apocalyptic team-up with Bautista, “Knock at the Cabin,” is finding a new audience.
The movie centers on a tight-knit family who is taken hostage by four armed strangers while vacationing at a remote cabin. The strange visitors demand that the young girl and her parents make an unthinkable choice. That choice? to save their family or save humanity by sacrificing one of their own.
“Knock at the Cabin” is, for the moment, the fourth most-streamed movie on Netflix in the U.S. It trails only a few titles, including Henry Cavill’s “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare,” the massive sequel “Top Gun: Maverick,” and the comedy “Best of the Best.” That’s not bad company to be in. M. Night Shyamalan may not have ever achieved the same level of success that he did with his feature debut, but he’s still very popular.
In “Knock at the Cabin,” Bautista plays Leonard, the leader of the group who is forcing this family to make an impossible choice. Filming the movie had Bautista in a constant state of doubt, but viewers wouldn’t know it watching the final product. It remains one of the finest performances he’s ever put to screen during the course of his impressive career thus far.
Knock at the Cabin features Dave Bautista at his best
“Knock at the Cabin” proved that Dave Bautista is our best wrestler-turned-actor. He is an absolute unit in the movie, but Leonard doesn’t use his size to intimidate Jonathan Groff’s Eric or Ben Aldridge’s Andrew. Instead, Bautista is surprisingly gentle when needed and subdued for much of the runtime. Still, there’s a quiet menace and a conveyed sense of purpose to everything he’s doing. It’s an unconventional casting choice on the surface, but one that works incredibly well.
Bautista broke out to the wider world as Drax in the “Guardians of the Galaxy” movies, but he’s truly spread his wings over the years. From his silent henchmen in “Spectre” to playing a hilariously heightened version of himself in “The Naked Gun,” he’s earned the trust of audiences at this point. That’s a big reason why this movie is gaining traction on Netflix three years after its initial release.
The film does have a unique place in cinema history, aside from being considered something of a return to form for M. Night Shyamalan. “Knock at the Cabin” knocked “Avatar: The Way of Water” from the number one spot at the box office, dethroning James Cameron’s epic sequel after a seven-weekend stint atop the charts. For that reason, Shyamalan’s thriller carved its way into the history books, even if it wasn’t a huge hit at the end of the day.
Next up, Shyamalan has teamed with romance maestro Nicholas Sparks for “Remain,” which hits theaters in February 2027. As for Bautista, he’s keeping himself busy with several major projects coming down the pipeline, including the “Highlander” remake and starring as Kratos in Amazon’s “God of War” TV series.
You can also grab “Knock at the Cabin” on 4K, Blu-ray, or DVD from Amazon.
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