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Freaks (2019)

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If you checked the Netflix Top 10 recently, you might have noticed Freaks on Netflix, a Canadian-American science-fiction horror film. Freaks didn’t make a huge splash when it was released in the U.S. in 2019, but it’s finding a larger audience now on Netflix, perhaps in part thanks to the number of people staying inside due to the rapid spread of coronavirus.

As cynical as it is, while the virus is bad news for traditional film studios who are delaying premieres, for Netflix, more people trapped inside with nothing to do is a good thing. If that’s you, and you’re curious about Freaks on Netflix, here’s what you need to know.

What is Freaks on Netflix?

Freaks is a science-fiction thriller movie about a 7-year-old girl who is forced by her paranoid father to stay indoors at all times, which she does—until a mysterious man convinces her to escape. It first premiered at Toronto Film Festival in 2018 to positive reviews, where it was acquired for distribution by Well Go USA Entertainment, a small independent studio that also released Train to Busan and Burning. Freaks played in limited theaters in the U.S. and Canada in September 2019, before being released on VOD and DVD in December.

Freaks was written, directed, and produced by filmmakers Zach Lipovsky and Adam B. Stein, who also co-directed the live-action Kim Possible movie together for Disney Channel in 2019. So you could say that Freaks is something of a different direction for the filmmakers.

Who is in the Freaks cast? Who is Amanda Crew?

Lexy Kolker stars in Freaks as Chloe the little girl, while Emile Hirsch co-stars as her paranoid father. Freaks is Kolker’s first big role, though some may know her as Robin Hinton from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D or Mary Swagger on Shooter. Many will likely recognize Hirsch from his lead role in Into the Wild, in which he played Chris McCandless, the young man who goes to live alone in the wilderness.

The creepy Mr. Snowcone who convinces Chloe to escape is played by Academy Award-nominated actor Bruce Dern, who is perhaps best known for his lead role in the 2013 film Nebraska, but can also be seen in The Hateful Eight, The Cowboys, and more.

Then you have actor Amanda Crew as Mary Lewis, Chloe’s mom. You might know Crew as Monica Hall on Silicon Valley, or from her roles in movies like The Haunting in Connecticut, Sex Drive, or Final Destination 3.

Additional Freaks cast include Grace Park (Battlestar Galactica, Hawaii Five-0), Aleks Paunovic (Van Helsing), Michelle Harrison, and Ava Telek.

What is Freaks on Netflix about? What is the Freaks (2019) plot?

I don’t want to give away any Freaks spoilers before you watch the movie, but the basic premise is this: Chloe is forced to stay inside at all time by her father, who insists she is “not normal” and that it’s not safe outside in the real world for either of them. We’re not sure if he’s just an unstable paranoid person, or if there really is danger outside. Chloe longs to have a real-life and also demonstrates superhuman abilities when she wills a friend to bring her ice cream with her mind.

One day, she escapes and runs away with the ice cream truck driver, Mr. Snowcone. Mr. Snowcone is being really weird, and perhaps presents a danger to Chloe… but he is not who he says he is. OK, that’s all I say for now. If you want to know more, watch the movie!

Will there be a Freaks sequel?

It’s possible! In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the filmmakers said that they “had lots of ideas for other stories that could happen in this world. And we told one slice of it, focused on this particular family. If people go see it and there’s a demand for more stories in the Freaks world, we’d love to get back into it.”

The film made $338,576 at the worldwide box office according to The Numbers, but perhaps if there is enough interest on Netflix, the streaming service would be willing to foot the bill for a Freaks sequel. Who knows!