Rian Johnson returns with the highly anticipated sequel to 2019’s mischievous murder mystery movie, “Knives Out.” Like the first film — which starred Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Daniel Craig and Jamie Lee Curtis — “Glass Onion” provides not only a complex case (complete with comedy), but also some social commentary.
Craig returns as Benoit Blanc and of course some classy cameos are made as well, but we’ll save those for after you have a chance to spot them yourselves.
For now, here’s a complete spoiler-free “Glass Onion” cast and character guide. The film is currently streaming exclusively on Netflix.
Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig)
Daniel Craig reprises the role of Detective Benoit Blanc, who expresses in his signature southern (?) twang that he has felt a bit out of sorts lately without an intriguing case to solve. Luckily, after spending copious amounts of contemplative moments in the bath, a mysterious wooden box arrives for Blanc, summoning him to an exclusive island in Greece where a layered mystery is about to unfold.
Daniel Craig also portrayed Blanc in Rian Johnson’s “Knives Out” (2019). He just recently wrapped his time as James Bond, appearing as 007 first in “Casino Royale” (2006) then “”Quantum of Solace” (2008), “Skyfall” (2012), “Spectre” (2015) and finally “No Time To Die” (2021). And he played another weird Southern dude in Steven Soderbergh’s “Logan Lucky.”
Miles Bron (Edward Norton)
Miles Bron fits the trope of eccentric billionaire in a laid back Jack Johnson-esque way. Played by Edward Norton, the charismatic wealthy man connects all of the other cast. He co-founded Alpha, a technological company (a la Google or Telsa) with one Andi Brand (Janelle Monae), but the vibes between them have soured since the success that they accomplished together.
Norton is known for “Fight Club” (1999) as well as roles like Aaron in “Primal Fear” (1996), Derek in “American History X” (1998) and Mike in “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Innocence).” He has also appeared in “The French Dispatch,” “Collateral Beauty,” and “The Grand Budapest Hotel.” Norton has been nominated for Oscars for his roles in “Primal Fear,” “American History X” and “Birdman.”
Cassandra ‘Andi’ Brand (Janelle Monáe)
Janelle Monae portrays Miles’ mysterious, estranged business partner, Cassandra Brand. She goes by Andi, and she shows up on the island just the same as everyone else, though nobody really understands why since she and Miles went their separate ways a while ago. Andi sort of bonds with Benoit over their outsider status. Janelle Monáe, makes music in addition to their acting career. They have voiced characters like Mandy in “UglyDolls,” Peg in “Lady and the Tramp” (2019) and Dr. Monae in “Rio 2” (2014).
They are most well-known for portraying Teresa in “Moonlight” (2016), Mary Jackson in “Hidden Figures” (2016) and Veronica in “Antebellum” (2020). Other appearances include roles like Dorothy Pitman Hughes in “The Glorias” (2020), Jackie in the TV show “Homecoming” (2020) and Marie Buchanon in “Harriet” (2019).
Birdie Jay (Kate Hudson)
Birdie Jay, played by Kate Hudson, calls to mind the vibrant plumage of her namesake as she parrots with a certain dress she wears. Birdie modeled for magazine covers before she started her own sweatpants brand “Sweetypants.” But Birdie can be a bit problematic at times, making several moves that deem her cancellable, like tweeting or speaking offensively without thinking. Her handler Peg (Jessica Henwick) keeps diligent tabs on her phone so that she can’t run her mouth without some sort of filter.
Hudson is most well known for portraying Penny Lane in “Almost Famous” (2000) — for which she received an Oscar nomination — “Andie in “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” (2003), Tess in “Fool’s Gold” and Liv in “Bride Wars” (2009). She made an appearance as Cassandra July in “Glee,” and more recently she has appeared in “Deepwater Horizon” (2016), “Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon” (2021) and even some music videos like one for Sia’s song “Together.”
Peg (Jessica Henwick)
Peg monitors Birdie’s social media to make sure she doesn’t say anything stupid. Peg is accessory to Birdie’s glamourous party-filled life, and she even accompanies her client to the Greek Island to participate in Miles’ murder mystery. Henwick has portrayed Aimee in “Love and Monsters” as wel as Suzanne Brewer in Netflix’s “The Gray Man” (2022). She also played Bugs in “The Matrix Resurrections” (2021).
Claire Debella (Kathryn Hahn)
Claire Debella is the governor of Connecticut, though her lax COVID protocol adherence (down to the mask below her nose) points toward what kind of politician she might be. She leaves behind her husband and kids to join the party on Miles’ island right after she gets interviewed by Jake Tapper on CNN. Hahn is known for playing Rachel in “Afternoon Delight” (2013), Raquel Fein in the show “Transparent” (2014-2019), Helen in the show “Free Agents” (2011-2012) and Carla in the film “Bad Moms” (2016). She has lent her voice to animated characters like Doc Ock in “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” (2018) and Ericka in “Hotel Transylvania 4: Transformania” (2022) as well as Jessica in “Bob’s Burgers.”
Most recently she has portrayed Agnes aka Agatha Harkness in the Marvel TV series “WandaVision,” and she will reprise the role in her own feature show “Agatha: Coven of Chaos” alongside Joe Locke (“Heartstopper”) and Aubrey Plaza.
Lionel Toussaint (Leslie Odom Jr.)
Lionel Toussaint works for Miles at Alpha. The brilliant scientist and engineer is one of the first to crack all the clues in the wooden box contraptions that Miles sends his “closest circle” of friends. Leslie Odom Jr. has become known for his performance as Aaron Burr in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical “Hamilton.” He also played Dr. Arbuthnot in “Murder on the Orient Express” (2017). More recently he has portrayed Sam Cooke in “One Night in Miami” (2020). He has also appeared in an episode of “Abbott Elementary” as well in many more episodes of “Central Park” voicing Owen Tillerman.
Duke Cody (Dave Bautista)
Duke Cody (who looks a lot like Joe Rogan with his tats and attitude) has become an influencer with quite the following. He carries a gun (and holster) on him at all times (even when all he wears in the pool is a speedo) and lives on the edge, like when he rides his motorcycle. Duke is currently dating Whiskey (Madelyn Cline) whom he brings along to Greece. Dave Bautista is known for playing Drax, one of Peter Quill’s crew in the “Guardians of the Galaxy” franchise, as well as other MCU movies in which galaxies collide. He has also appeared as Diaz in “Riddick” (2013), Sapper Morton in “Blade Runner 2049” (2017) and Glossu Rabban Harkonnen in “Dune” (2021).
Whiskey (Madelyn Cline)
Whiskey, like Birdie, is the life of the party in her own way, only younger, so there’s some tension between the two women. Whiskey accompanies Duke to the Grecian island for Miles’ exclusive get-together summer trip, but she seems pretty familiar with the billionaire too. Madelyn Cline is known for portraying Sarah Cameron in Netflix’s show “Outer Banks,” which so far has two seasons. She has also appeared in “Boy Erased” (2018), and she even has a small role in “Stranger Things” Season 2.
