We’ve all been there. Thanksgiving surrounded by immediate family and then the topic of politics arises in conversation and a friendly family gathering quickly turns contentious. Now, as the country has been as politically divided as ever (with the notable exception of the Civil War, of course), Ike Barinholtz makes his writing-directing debut with The Oath, an upcoming comedy that uses those horribly uncomfortable familial confrontations over a holiday dinner as the foundation for a comedy of errors.
Alongside Barinholtz at the immensely uncomfortable comedy are Tiffany Haddish, John Cho, Carrie Brownstein, Billy Magnussen, Meredith Hagner, Jon Barinholtz, Nora Dunn, and Chris Ellis. Everyone at the table unleashes their fury when a controversial new policy is proposed, striking the tempers of everyone present for dinner. Of course, the wine at the table will further complicated the enflamed passions. The Oath really looks to be part of the ongoing tension at dinner tables from coast to coast.
It’ll be interesting to see how Barinholtz fares as a writer-director since he’s further established himself as a premiere comedic actor recently with his roles in the Neighbors movies and Blockers. He’s been a vocal opponent of the current administration on social media and is keenly aware of the large rift that is expanding across the nation. Roadshow Attractions will release The Oath in theaters on October 12, 2018. Here’s hoping that the Thanksgiving dinner portrayed doesn’t hit too close to home.
The official synopsis for The Oath:
A controversial White House policy turns family member against family member in THE OATH, a savagely funny dark comedy about surviving life and Thanksgiving in the age of political tribalism. When Chris (Ike Barinholtz), a high-strung 24-hour progressive news junkie, and his more levelheaded wife Kai (Tiffany Haddish) learn that citizens are being asked to sign a loyalty oath to the President, their reaction is disbelief, followed by idealistic refusal. But as the Thanksgiving deadline to sign approaches, the combination of sparring relatives, Chris’s own agitation and the unexpected arrival of two government agents (John Cho and Billy Magnussen) sends an already tense holiday dinner gathering completely off the rails. As timely as it is outrageous, THE OATH is a gleefully wicked reinvention of the traditional holiday comedy for our divisive political times.