A trailer has dropped for “The Assistant,” Kitty Green’s Harvey Weinstein-inspired thriller. Julia Garner stars as Jane, a new college grad who gets a coveted position as junior assistant to an industry legend. As expected, her duties include mundane tasks such as doing dishes, ordering lunch, and answering phones.
But something is amiss. Jane is scheduling meetings in hotel rooms, prepping checks for her boss without names on them, and lying to his wife about his whereabouts. She witnesses a woman leaving his office looking visibly shaken. While Jane is concerned, her male co-workers simply laugh it off the same way they joke about never sitting on their boss’ couch.
The spot suggests that Jane brings her concerns to someone higher up, presumably in HR. “Whatever’s going on, you can tell me. That’s what I’m here for,” he tells her. But he doesn’t seem worried about workplace safety so much as covering her boss’ ass.
Garner won an Emmy this year for her supporting role in “Ozark.” “Dirty John,” “The Americans,” and “Maniac” are among her other credits. She’ll topline “Inventing Anna,” Shonda Rhimes’ upcoming Netflix limited series. Based on real events, the drama tells the story of Anna Delvey, a woman who tricked New York’s richest socialites into believing she was a billionaire heiress.
Green previously helmed docs “Casting JonBenet” and “Ukraine Is Not a Brothel.”
“The Assistant” premiered at Telluride earlier this year. The film opens January 31.
