- Jenna Ortega, Will Poulter, Paul Rudd, Richard E. Grant
- April 4th 2025
- 107
- Alex Scharfman
Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega have to deal with the horrifying consequences when they accidentally run over a unicorn.
Given the title, it should come as no surprise that Death of a Unicorn revolves around a unicorn being killed!
In this horror comedy, Paul Rudd plays a widowed corporate lawyer named Elliot, who drags his teenage daughter Ridley (Jenna Ortega) along to a weekend stay at the plush estate of pharmaceutical giant Odell Leopold (Richard E. Grant).
Elliot works for the Leopold family – also including wife Belinda (Téa Leoni) and son Shephard (Will Poulter) – and is there to discuss business. However, things go awry when he hits a unicorn with his car on the way and stuffs it into the back of his car.
When they find out that the unicorn’s purple blood contains healing properties that can magically clear up acne and cure cancer (among other benefits presumably), the Leopolds want to capitalise on this groundbreaking discovery and make the most out of the mythical creature. Their greedy money-making plans are hindered by the arrival of the youngster’s extremely angry parents.
Death of a Unicorn is a mixed bag. It should have a laugh-out-loud riot that knew the concept was ridiculous and leaned into it. While there are some moments of silliness, it isn’t tongue-in-cheek or self-aware enough.
The film is primarily an eat-the-rich satire, a genre which has been overdone lately but is still appealing and funny, before becoming a full-on horror film in the final act, which is gory, super bloody and the laughs mostly disappear.
In general, director Alex Scharfman struggles to balance the comedy and horror and ends up with a tonally confused film that isn’t consistently funny or particularly scary (the kills are good though).
Ortega grounds proceedings as the voice of reason and Rudd plays against type as the spineless suck-up who listens to his employer more than his own daughter.
But the star of the show is Poulter as an entitled rich snob. Everything he says and does is hilarious, particularly his line deliveries, facial expressions and physical comedy. He is comedy gold here and responsible for the majority of the laughs.
There are some great moments of both comedy and horror in Death of a Unicorn but it feels overall quite hit and miss.
In cinemas from Friday 4th April.
By Hannah Wales.
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