Over Your Dead Body (2026) is directed by Jorma Taccone and features a screenplay by Nick Kocher and Brian McElhaney. It stars Jason Segel, Samara Weaving, Timothy Olyphant, Juliette Lewis, Keith Jardine, Paul Guilfoyle, Jake Curran, and Danusia Samal. Based on the Norwegian film The Trip (2021), this American remake follows Lisa (Weaving) and Dan (Segel), a highly dysfunctional married couple who head to their cabin for a weekend getaway. It’s soon revealed that both of them have separate plans to murder the other for the insurance money, but it quickly becomes clear that neither is cut out for cold-blooded murder when their cabin is besieged by three violent escaped convicts (Olyphant, Lewis, Jardine). For either of them to make it out alive, they’re forced to set aside their differences and work together, possibly finding common ground in the process. 

The film works as a fantastic showcase of Segel and Weaving’s various strengths. They skillfully balance absurd humor, authentic emotion, and Tarantino-esque violence, which is one of the main reasons the film’s mismatched tones mostly live in harmony. These two aren’t morally commendable characters, but they do come across as authentically imperfect. We probably shouldn’t personally forgive them so quickly for planning to murder one another, but we do. However, what’s even more impressive is that we buy the actual characters forgiving each other as quickly as they do. It’s an effective experience for Jason Segel fans, but it’s most notable for finally testing the painfully underrated skills of Samara Weaving against A-list caliber talent. That being said, there isn’t a single actor here who’s miscast or gives an underwhelming performance. Olyphant, Lewis, and Jardine are perfect as a violent but dimwitted trio of escaped convicts, even though their dynamic is one you’ve seen countless times before. Despite their cruel deeds, we’re still able to laugh at their 3 Stooges-like lack of intelligence. 

Director Jorma Taccone proves that the cult love for his debut film, MacGruber (2010), and the more traditional, critical success of his sophomore effort, the Spinal Tap-inspired mockumentary, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (2016), were no flukes. He proves that the comedic chops on display in his SNL-originated band, The Lonely Island, translate well to film. This really shouldn’t be a surprise, given his fellow bandmate Akiva Schaffer’s success directing last year’s highly praised remake of The Naked Gun, but I guess I simply underestimated them as a consistent creative force.

The first act sets up the viewer for a surprisingly compelling exploration of toxic relationships and the specific emotional needs of each gender. Taccone sprinkles in a handful of seemingly innocuous details that eventually have a big impact, showing that a certain level of care went into the script. Unfortunately, the film mostly loses this introspective, careful quality once the action kicks off. Granted, it’s still an effective blend of bloody violence and sharply timed dark humor, but it lacks any profound commentary on its inherent themes.

Overall, Over Your Dead Body is a mostly effective dark comedy that rarely allows its clashing tones to diminish one another. Its beats are mostly predictable or, at the very least, familiar, and it offers little beyond surface-level laughs and thrills. A bit more consistent exploration of its themes would have set it apart from other comedically bloody, Tarantino-style romps, but it’s a good time nonetheless. If you don’t have the capacity to find violence funny in any form, this isn’t for you. For the rest of us who are keenly aware that staged violence is nothing but corn syrup and dress-up, this is a fun 100 minutes despite its clear flaws. B-