John J. Budion will direct Alan S. Kim, the young star of A24’s acclaimed Minari alongside Elsie Fisher, the young star of A24’s Eighth Grade, in his upcoming comedy Latchkey Kids. Budion specializes mainly in VFX, having worked on Ari Aster’s horror Midsommar and Wes Anderson’s pastel-laden The Grand Budapest Hotel. Latchkey Kids will be Budion’s second time donning the director hat after his 2018 debut Rockaway. According to Variety, the feature—written by Meaghan Cleary—follows “an eccentric teenage girl” (Fisher) who befriends nine-year-old Shae (Kim), a bright boy whom local law enforcements suspects of killing his babysitters.
Media exploration of latchkey kids, children who spend significant amount of time alone at home, is not uncommon. John Mulaney nearly named his 2019 special John Mulaney & the Sack Lunch Bunch after latchkey kids. But if the film’s synopsis is any indication, Cleary’s script is sure to contain darker elements that build off this familiar cultural concept.
Latchkey Kids will be Kim’s first feature since his debut performance in Minari, which—alongside Chloe Zhao’s Nomadland—has garnered significant buzz for this upcoming awards season. Fisher was also a breakout young actor from a few years back, receiving critical acclaim and a Golden Globe nomination for her performance in Bo Burnham’s 2018 coming-of-age film Eighth Grade
Production on Latchkey Kids is set to start this June.