The stars of The Order are very aware that their next thriller film, although set in the 1980s, tackles themes that seem more relevant than ever.
Director Justin Kurzel's fact-based crime drama hits theaters on December 6 from Vertical after premiering over the summer at the Venice Film Festival. Starring Jude Law, Nicholas Hoult, Jurnee Smollett and Tye Sheridan, the film follows an FBI agent (Law) who investigates a white supremacist group called the Order and its possible connection to a series of robberies and other crimes in the Pacific Northwest.
Law, Hoult and Smollett took part in an onstage conversation about the project following a screening hosted by SAG-AFTRA in Los Angeles on Tuesday. During the chat, Law, who is also a producer of The Orderdiscussed the contemporary resonance of the film that screenwriter Zach Baylin adapted from the 1989 nonfiction book by authors Kevin Flynn and Gary Gerhardt The Silent Brotherhood.
“It was a fantastic script with so much potential: the relevance; the relevance of the themes within it; the fact that, in many ways, it's strangely sort of the origin of where we are now, which we thought was a good way to investigate without being too heavy-handed,” Law told the crowd. “Then, of course, it gets turned into a genre film. And that was something that, when we brought in our director Justin Kurzel, it became really clear that he wanted to lean into the thriller genre and the cat and mouse element, but really elevate it through the character, through truth and narrative.
Nicholas Hoult (left), Jurnee Smollett, Tye Sheridan and Jude Law pose at a TIFF event for The Order.
Sonia Recchia/Getty Images
Indeed, the film – which hits theaters about a month after the US presidential election – feels particularly timely, arriving at a time of growing debate over the espousal of racist views on social media and the support former President Donald Trump receives by neo-Americans. Nazis and hate groups. This screening coincidentally came days after reports of a Trump-themed boat parade held in Florida on Sunday, where boaters displayed swastika flags and cheered the presidential candidate who will face Vice President Kamala Harris in the election.
“It all starts so young, this level of brainwashing, this us-against-them mentality,” Smollett said of the film depicting young people being encouraged to spread hate. “It all starts in childhood, and yes, we can look at where we are now in our nation and ask, 'How did we get here?' But unfortunately it has been in our fabric since the founding of our nation. It continues to perpetuate itself because it is a disease that we have not been able to eradicate.”
The actress also noted the continuing influence of the 1978 novel Turner's Diarieswritten under a pseudonym by the leader of a white nationalist group and depicted in the film as revered by the Order.
“That book was found on the steps of the Capitol on January 6,” Smollett shared, referring to the 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters. “Unfortunately it's quite relevant today.”
Additionally, the cast recalled Kunzel's memorable tactics to help ramp up the tension, with Hoult – who plays Order leader Bob Matthews – explaining that the director prevented him from meeting Law in person until their first scene together .
“We had been shooting for three, maybe four weeks before,” Hoult said. “It added energy on set, where I felt some excitement. The crew liked to keep us separate and everyone said, “Jude will come here.” Here Nick [away!]'It gave me energy.”
In his review for The Hollywood journalistnicknamed film critic Jordan Mintzer The Order “A gripping and superbly crafted historical thriller.” He also wrote: “The Order It's the kind of tense reflection on American violence that Hollywood rarely puts on the big screen anymore.”