How to Make a Killing (2026) A24/Comedy-Thriller RT: 105 minutes Rated R (language, some violence/bloody images) Director: John Patton Ford Screenplay: John Patton Ford Music: Emile Mosseri Cinematography: Todd Banhazi Release date: February 20, 2026 (US) Cast: Glen Powell, Margaret Qualley, Jessica Henwick, Bill Camp, Zach Woods, Topher Grace, Ed Harris, Bianca Amato, Raff Law, Sean Cameron Michael, James Frecheville, Stevel Marc.
Rating: ***
I didn’t realize going into How to Make a Killing that it was a remake of the 1949 British comedy Kind Hearts and Coronets. That’s one I still haven’t seen, but maybe that’s a good thing in this case. I have a feeling the new version would pale in comparison. It’s true more often than not.
Written and directed by John Patton Ford (Emily the Criminal), How to Make a Killing stars Glen Powell (The Running Man) as Becket Redfellow, a man brought up to believe he’s entitled to the life of privilege denied to him after his mother was disowned by her obscenely wealthy family. He’s eighth in line to inherit a $28 billion fortune and intends to get his hands on it by murdering his way to the top of the list. Achieving this goal proves to be murder.
The seed of Becket’s diabolical scheme is planted by a chance encounter with his childhood friend Julia (Qualley, Drive-Away Dolls) at the suit store where he works. He always had a thing for her so he’s understandably disappointed when she shows him the engagement ring on her finger. That’s when he comes up with the idea to reconnect with his estranged family in a most macabre way.
You know what they say about best laid plans. They tend to go awry. Becket didn’t count on falling in love with Ruth (Henwick, Cuckoo), the girlfriend of one of the cousins he kills. They have an easy rapport and soon they’re moving in together. This, of course, doesn’t set well with Julia who has a plan of her own. He also comes to admire his uncle (Camp, Sound of Freedom) who gives him a job at his financial firm. Predictably, he’s one of the names on Becket’s hit list. Also, a couple of FBI agents show up and start sniffing around.
Although I was entertained by How to Make a Killing, it feels somewhat off and not in the right way. It’s strangely light for a dark comedy. Here we have a protagonist who kills people, relatives no less, for money, a lot of money. The humor should have been sharp and savage. Ford should have mercilessly skewered the 1% and the mentality that comes with great unearned wealth. Becket’s victims should have been terrible people doing terrible things. Ford goes too easy on them. Most of them aren’t that bad; they’re just idle and aimless. Only two of the targets deserve what Becket has in mind for them, a con man cousin (Grace, That 70s Show) and the family patriarch (Harris, The Truman Show), a truly vile person.
It also feels like Ford didn’t think the whole story through. For instance, does anybody else find it odd that the Redfellows so readily accepted Becket as their cousin? Not one of them demands he take a DNA test. Is it because he has a honest face? In a movie like the one How to Make a Killing wants to be, nobody is honest. It doesn’t follow its own rules.
Powell underplays it as Becket. You never get the sense he’s ruthless or capable of murder. He’s just too darn likable. He stays that way the whole time. You never see any sort of transformation. It could be argued that it’s the right way for him to play his character, but I would counter that characters in a dark comedy need to have a nasty side. Even William H. Macy’s character in Fargo had a dark side hidden beneath his overt ineptitude as a criminal. It’s not a bad performance per se, I just wanted to see Powell get more down and dirty.
Qualley is one of my favorite young actresses. She has a way of delivering lines that’s uniquely hers. She’s very dry. It serves her well here playing a femme fatale of sorts. I suppose it wouldn’t be much of a spoiler to tell you that Julia is a schemer. She’s playing Becket. You can see it in the careful but controlled way she carries herself through her scenes. Henwick is okay as the love interest and one of the film’s only decent characters. Harris is at his rotten best as a wealthy creep who not only refuses to go down without fighting, he also makes sure he has every unfair advantage.
How to Make a Killing has its share of flaws, but it’s not a bad movie. I rather enjoyed it myself. At the same time, I found myself wishing it went at its target with sharper knives. It’s not as edgy as it should be in this day and age when billionaires have all the advantages. Isn’t it time somebody came at them with weaponized wit? If only Ford had fully taken off the gloves.
