The long and winding saga of propelling The Bikeriders into theaters is nearly over. Although the film tosses out Sons of Anarchy and Goodfellas lovechild vibes, the original release date fell off the calendar in fall 2023 when Disney balked at releasing this star-studded film with a $40 million-dollar budget, yet fortunately, Focus Features decided to do the distributing honors.
What can viewers expect when the charisma-and-action-packed movie arrives?
Plot
A biker movie without Norman Reedus would not be possible, and kudos to Reedus for deciding to grunge up in a different way than on The Walking Dead.
On a more story-based note. Reedus portrays Funny Sunny, who joins The Vandals motorcycle gang based upon the Chicago Outlaws, who were the subjects of photojournalist Danny Lyon’s same-named book about how he embedded with biker club in 1965. The book included some interviews from the bikers, but the observations of a club member’s wife stood out, and director Jeff Nichols thusly made that the inspiration for The Bikeriders‘ narrator, Kathy (Jodie Comer). She is married to Benny (Austin Butler), who is also object of sort-of-obsession of Tom Hardy’s Johnny.
If anyone is the leading star out of this ensemble, that would be Elvis and Masters of the Air star Butler. He revealed that he originally learned to ride from his father. He has also gushed about Jodie Comer’s worth ethic, and Jeff Nichols has, in turn, gushed about Butler as being perfect for Benny. Additionally, Nichols elaborated upon how this Lyon’s book made him obsessed with how this club viewed the outside world:
“I realized pretty quickly what Danny had done, which was to catch the full breadth of a subculture. The photographs are romantic and beautiful, but then you get these interviews, which are unvarnished, sometimes cruel, sometimes hilarious. You start to get an understanding of how these people’s brains worked. Why they didn’t feel like they belonged in the mainstream, why they felt like they needed to move to the outside and the effect that had on them. I fell in love with that idea. It’s not so much that I’m obsessed with motorcycle culture or biker culture. I was obsessed with these people and and how they saw the world.”
According to the film’s synopsis, the film overs a decade as “a Midwestern motorcycle club evolves from a gathering place for local outsiders to a sinister gang, threatening the original group’s way of life.” They probably meant “devolve” rather than “evolve,” yes?
Cast
The main attractions are Butler, Hardy, and Comer, but the supporting cast of bikers is unparalleled other than with Kurt Sutter shows. Norman Reedus, as mentioned above, steps up as “Funny Sonny.” Other members of the club include Boyd Holbrook, Damon Herman, and Michael Shannon.
Release Date
The Bikeriders finally captured a June 21 release date after it turned from semi-awards contender to semi-crowd pleaser. That’s a six-month delay from the originally planned date and an example of how Hollywood does not know what to do with mid-budget projects these days.
Trailer
The riding club takes off in this full trailer: