Overview
- Paramount releases Primate in U.S. theaters on January 9, with a swift 89-minute runtime and an R rating for bloody violence and gore.
- The story follows a family’s pet chimp, Ben, who becomes rabid after a mongoose bite and menaces the group at their Hawaii home, with a central standoff built around a cliffside pool.
- Critics highlight the production’s commitment to on-set creature work, with movement performer Miguel Torres Umba inside an animatronic suit enhanced by prosthetics and puppetry.
- Early reaction has been largely favorable, with Rotten Tomatoes tallies reported in the low-to-mid 80s and comparisons to Cujo and references to Nope’s infamous chimp sequence.
- Directed by Johannes Roberts and co-written with Ernest Riera, the film stars Johnny Sequoyah and Oscar winner Troy Kotsur, and has been noted for its gore-forward, no-frills execution.