This is the first time Denzel Washington and Spike Lee have worked together since 2006’s Inside Man.
It’s weird that it’s been almost 20 years since Inside Man, the last film Spike Lee directed Denzel Washington in. Up to that point they had a pretty fruitful creative partnership: Mo’ Better Blues (1990), Malcolm X (1992), and He Got Game (1998) were all bangers. While both of them have done great work in the interim (I love Denzel in action movie mode, myself), the two strike sparks when working together, which makes the imminent Highest 2 Lowest a very exciting prospect.
Highest 2 Lowest Trailer
What’s the plot?
Adapted from legendary Japanese director Akira Kurosawa‘s 1963 crime drama High to Low, Highest 2 Lowest sees Denzel as record mogul David King. After his teenage son is kidnapped, Washington’s self-made man must confront his own guilt, as well as the fact that his decades of wealth and success have severed him from his roots. So, it’s a kidnapping drama, but also a meditation on class, race, and identity, which sounds par for the course for Spike.
Who’s in it?
- Denzel Washington as David King.
- Jeffrey Wright as Paul Christopher.
- Ilfenesh Hadera as Pam King.
- ASAP Rocky as Yung Felony.
- Ice Spice as Marisol Cepeda.
- Dean Winters as Detective Higgins.
- John Douglas Thompson as Detective Earl Bridges.
- LaChanze as Detective Bell.
- Aubrey Joseph as Trey King
- Michael Potts as Patrick Bethea
- Wendell Pierce as Gabe
- Elijah Wright as Kyle Christopher
- Eddie Palmieri, Anthony Ramos, and Rosie Perez appear as themselves.
When’s it out?
Highest 2 Lowest hits Apple TV+ on 6 September 2025.
What’s the vibe?
Look, it’s pretty simple: one of the greatest actor-director partnerships of all time are back together to adapt a classic work from one of cinema’s true masters. I don’t think you’re allowed to be blasé about this one – they tear up your film nerd card or something.
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