Netflix has unveiled its latest psychological thriller, “Animals,” a taut kidnapping drama written, directed by, and starring Ben Affleck that reworks the ransom genre around a set of pointed moral questions. The film arrives in select theaters and on Netflix on October 9, placing it squarely amid Los Angeles’s own heated mayoral race for added topical weight.
“Animals” follows Mark Kimball, an affluent tycoon running as an independent candidate to become the next mayor of Los Angeles. A middle-aged white man and Army veteran with progressive views, Mark is married to Abigail (Kerry Washington), a therapist, and is father to their mixed-race son, Denny (Christopher Woodley). He has taken no outside campaign funding and speaks fluent Spanish — traits that, as the film itself acknowledges, would make him an ideal candidate in the eyes of any cynical political strategist.
A Ransom That Exposes a Fracturing Family
The story opens on Halloween, with Los Angeles just days from choosing its next mayor. Despite a vigorous self-funded campaign, Mark finds himself behind enough that he could lose — and with it, the fortune he has poured into his bid. Abigail is unaware of how deeply their savings have been drained by the campaign, while another secret looms: as revealed in the film’s trailer, she is having an affair with a man played by Affleck’s Justice League co-star Ray Fisher.
The couple’s fragile equilibrium shatters when they receive a call from an unknown man who says he has kidnapped their son, Denny. The kidnapper demands a $7 million ransom — money the family does not have on hand because it is tied up in Mark’s campaign. In desperation, they heed the advice of Mark’s campaign manager, Sam (Steven Yeun), and bring in a mysterious fixer named Dayle Burton (Gillian Anderson) who can procure the ransom for additional fees. Coldly professional and unflinching, Dayle instructs the parents on how to deal with their captor while also dismantling any illusions they may hold about human nature.
A Twist That Reframes the Genre
The film’s central twist — deliberately withheld from promotion — pivots “Animals” into markedly more compelling territory, reshaping both its plot and its themes. Before that turn arrives, the picture functions as a fairly conventional entry in the ransom subgenre, echoing earlier films through its questions of trust, its harrowing phone calls, and its mounting tension. Afterward, however, it launches Mark and Abigail into a series of moral quandaries, forcing them to confront uncomfortable truths about one another and their marriage.
Affleck and Washington both play their characters as fully realized but deeply flawed individuals — capable at times of hypocrisy and selfishness, and long unable to speak honestly with each other until the unthinkable crime forces everything into the open. Their performances capture the strains within the relationship without resorting to melodrama.
“The new Netflix thriller Animals is tautly directed by Ben Affleck, who keeps the emphasis on the characters’ flawed humanity. None of the choices available to the protagonists are good ones.”
NF Reviews
An LA as Microcosm of America
“Animals” is set against a Los Angeles still reeling from fires that devastated the city in 2025, and the palpable anger directed at the political establishment — along with how both the haves and have-nots have fared since — forms a key pillar of the film. While it reflects the metropolis’s socioeconomic layers and diverse population, LA here operates as a microcosm of the United States, carrying a broader commentary on wealth inequality, class division, and the treatment of undocumented immigrants.
The result is a picture that grows increasingly bleak and cynical in its depiction of human nature and the price of victory. Throughout, “Animals” poses a steady stream of hypotheticals — what would you do in this scenario? — keeping the story compelling even when its kidnapping plot dips into familiar territory.
Looking Ahead
“Animals” opens simultaneously in select theaters and on Netflix on October 9, giving audiences the option to watch it on the big screen or from home. As Affleck’s latest outing as both director and lead, the film marks a return to form for the actor-producer behind the camera and sets up what promises to be an early contender in the fall release window.
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