Clint Eastwood was famously fired by Universal Studios in the 1950s, and his future co-star Burt Reynolds would later quip that it was because “he talked too slow and he had a chipped tooth and he wouldn't get it fixed.” The studio must’ve quickly regretted their decision, as Eastwood became a major star in the subsequent decade after starring in Sergio Leone’s western films A Fistful of Dollars, For A Few Dollars More, and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.
When he stepped behind the camera with his 1971 directorial debut Play Misty For Me, Eastwood returned to Universal. However, Eastwood signed a deal with Warner Brothers in 1975, and served ever since as the one of the studio’s most loyal directors. Following the release of the 1977 action thriller The Gauntlet, Eastwood directed countless hits for Warner Brothers, including the Best Picture winners Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby. There are some directors who’ve declined in relevancy within the later part of their careers, but Eastwood isn’t one of them. It was only 10 years ago that Eastwood’s Chris Kyle biopic, American Sniper, earned six Academy Award nominations and became one of the highest-grossing R-Rated movies of all-time.
Eastwood has a reputation as one of the most relaxed, methodical directors of all-time. He often does not call “action” or “cut,” rarely gives actors time to rehearse their scenes, and has consistently delivered films on time and under budget. Eastwood isn’t a director that spends years in development before finally settling on a new project. In fact, production began on his latest film, Juror #2, only months after he read the script. The only reason that the 94-year-old filmmaker didn’t complete the film sooner is that the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes led to a halt in production.
Despite Eastwood’s loyalty, Warner Brothers went out of its way to ensure that Juror #2 would be treated as unceremoniously as possible. Under the leadership of David Zaslav, the head of the Warner Brothers Discovery conglomerate, Juror #2 was released in less than 50 theaters in the United States after premiering at the AFI Film Festival. Zaslav had reportedly been upset that the studio greenlit Eastwood’s previous film, Cry Macho, under the understanding that it would likely underperform. Warner Brothers refused to give any box office reports on how much Juror #2 actually made, but inside tracking indicates that it has one of the highest per-screen averages of the year. It has done particularly well in Europe, where critics have always been kind to Eastwood.
It’s rather that a living legend isn’t given the pomp and circumstance that’s warranted for what’s likely his final film; despite dismissive reviews, Francis Ford Coppola still earned a fully-fledged IMAX release for his divisive science fiction epic Megalopolis in September. The case of Juror #2 is more curious, because given the small budget and warm critical response, there’s reason to believe that the film would’ve been a decently-sized hit. Warner Brothers has a few major flops in 2024, including the derided Joker sequel and the underrated action prequel Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. Releasing a quality legal thriller to a built-in audience of Eastwood fans may have allowed the studio to recoup at least some of their losses.
Eastwood’s remained a successful filmmaker because of his ability to understand what audiences want. Moderately-budgeted films aimed at older viewers are often either released directly on streaming services or turned into streaming shows, but 2024 has proven to be successful for dramas like Conclave, We Live In Time, and Challengers. Juror #2 is a return to form for the “courtroom drama” genre, which used to be a staple of the American box office in the 1990s thanks to many John Grisham adaptations. The same audiences may have turned out in droves to see Juror #2 if the studio had bothered to give it a marketing campaign.
Juror #2 stars Nicholas Hoult as the journalist Justin Kemp, who’s recovering from alcoholism as he cares for his pregnant wife, Ally (Zoey Deutch). After called in for jury duty, Kemp realizes that he may have been involved in the murder case that’s being argued. However, coming clear about the truth would place Kemp behind bars. In an interesting twist on the 12 Angry Men formula, Kemp must convince his fellow jurors to save the defendant, all while trying to avoid looking suspicious.
Juror #2 is set in the current decade, but the story is timeless. The legal system that currently exists in America is only effective to a point, as it doesn’t account for the fact that some people cheat their way out of facing consequences. Eastwood has never been shy about his political leanings, but Juror #2 is keen to show that there are flaws within the court system, the police, and the climate surrounding culpability.
Many of Eastwood’s most iconic hero roles, such as Harry Callahan in the Dirty Harry films, were branded as outsiders who had to work around the system to achieve justice. It’s not a coincidence that the protagonist in Juror #2 is also searching for a way to bend the rules to fit his goals. Eastwood understands that people are fundamentally flawed, and that even those who make mistakes still have a conscience they have to deal with. While a majority of the audience will need to wait until it’s available to watch on the streaming service Max, Juror #2 is as fitting a closing statement as an icon like Eastwood could make.