When someone wrongs you, how do you respond? A new Netflix film claims that you “don’t just get even,” but rather “do retribution.” The use of correct grammar is of little relevance here. The new teaser trailer for Do Revenge, starring Maya Hawke of “Stranger Things” and Camila Mendes of “Riverdale,” showcases a bright Gen Z dark comedy about the one dish that is (usually) best served cold. Directed by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson (who also wrote this year’s smash hit Thor: Love and Thunder), the film follows two high school students, Eleanor (Hawke) and Drea (Mendes), as they form an alliance to get revenge on their tormentors.
Drea wants to get back with the male who betrayed her and revealed their sex tape, while Eleanor harbours resentment toward the girl who spread the false allegation that damaged her reputation. Netflix has provided an official synopsis for the show, which reads as follows: “A dethroned queen bee at a wealthy private high school establishes a secret bargain with an unassuming new student to seek revenge on each other’s adversaries.”
The tone of the trailer is comic, despite the dark comedy being billed as having thriller-like aspects, with both Drea and Eleanor expressing their personal grievances at each other and letting their fury grow until they are ready to pull it all down. The depths to which the two will go to “take revenge” on people who harmed them are anyone’s guess, given that their dialogue is intercut with scenes of total pandemonium erupting at their posh private school.
Until Netflix unveils the whole trailer, it will be difficult to get a feel for the movie’s story. Robinson told Elle in July about her plans to adapt this narrative for the big screen, saying, “I believe there are different periods where everyone’s the villain and everyone’s the hero in this story.” That’s a big part of maturing, too. My goal was to create something that “fills the canvas with the vivid hues of the teenage years.” Sansa Stark herself, Sophie Turner of Game of Thrones fame, makes a cameo appearance in the film with performers Jonathan Daviss, Alisha Boe, Rish Shah, Maia Reficco, Paris Berelc, Ava Capri, and Talia Ryder.
On September 16, 2022, Netflix will debut the first episode of Do Revenge.