Wild Horse Nine, a black comedy with John Malkovich, opens in Greek cinemas on 5 November

A 1973 mission on Easter Island

Wild Horse Nine is a 2026 American black comedy directed by Martin McDonagh, running 118 minutes. It is set in Chile in 1973, shortly before the coup that removed the democratically elected Salvador Allende and opened the way for Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship. Two veteran CIA operatives, Chris and Lee, are sent from Santiago to Easter Island, a Chilean territory, on an assignment that looks more like a demotion than a real mission. Chris is gravely ill, addicted to heroin and haunted by a violent past, while Lee, once his protege, stays close to him as a kind of son. Their encounter with two student revolutionaries pulls them away from their objective, and Steve Buscemi plays the eccentric CIA director who sends them.

Performances and awards

John Malkovich plays Chris, a role that reviewers describe as possibly the best of his career. He won the best actor prize at the Venice festival, where the film premiered, and one review says he may also win the Oscar for lead actor. Sam Rockwell plays Lee, and one review says his part is somewhat shortchanged next to Malkovich's showier character. Rockwell won an Oscar for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, another McDonagh film. The supporting cast also includes Mariana Di Girolamo, Tom Waits and Parker Posey.

Satire and tone

McDonagh keeps the buddy-film structure of his earlier Mission to Bruges, building the story around the friendship between the two agents. Reviewers say the film satirises US interventions in other countries, from Cambodia to the United States itself, and it draws on real events from the 1973 coup to the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The black humour arrives through comedy rather than bleak commentary, which keeps the political material accessible. Chris's guilt and his long bond with Lee carry much of the emotional weight. The Easter Island scenes, with their giant stone heads, become a setting where the two men work through their past.

Other releases on the same day

Seven new films open together, and SKAI reports that Wild Horse Nine dominates the lineup. Ramayana, an epic from India, and Club Kid, the directing debut of Jordan Firstman, also draw attention. Club Kid follows a New York promoter in the underground queer scene who learns he has a ten-year-old son from a night out in England. Gazia sto Kokkino, an adventure aimed at Liam Neeson's fans, rounds out the new releases.

Reception and release

One review gives the film four stars out of five, and another calls it one of the season's top films. Reviews agree that the comedy depends heavily on its two leads. The film will open in Greek cinemas on Thursday, 5 November 2026, with a running time of 118 minutes.