Apple TV+ is trying to squeeze its way between leaders Netflix and Disney+

The premise of Apple TV+’s original film Sharper is that not everything is as it seems in New York. The first trailer for the film, which stars Academy Award winner Julianne Moore, was released on the streaming service (Still Alice, Boogie Nights). The film, directed by Benjamin Caron (Andor), will have a limited release in theaters on February 10 and a worldwide premiere on Apple TV+ on February 17.

The trailer only partially reveals the story; to highlight the ensemble cast and the enigmatic setting of New York City. Also featured in the commercial are Brianna Middleton, John Lithgow (The Old Man), Sebastian Stan (Captain America: The Winter Soldier), Justice Smith (Jurassic World: Dominion), and Moore (The Tender Bar). Aside from Darren Goldstein (Ozark), a few other notable actors are in the picture.

Sharper “happens in the hidden nooks of New York, from the mansions on Fifth Avenue to the abandoned buildings in Queens. When nothing is as it seems, intentions are questioned, and expectations are flipped on their heads.” Screenwriters Brian Gatewood and Alessandro Tanaka, who has contributed to shows like Comrade Detective and Superstore, collaborated with Caron on the film’s script. Sharper’s script was featured in the 2020 edition of The Black List, an annual compilation of highly anticipated yet unproduced hands. A24 is distributing the film.

Moore’s previous project with A24 was When You Finish Saving the World, in which she co-starred with Finn Wolfhard, so Sharper is their second time working together (Stranger Things). Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network) directed the picture, and it had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year to rave reviews. When You Finish Saving the World still needs to be given a wide release date.

Sharper is the next original film for Apple TV+ after a busy fall and winter for the streaming service, which has been expanding its library of original movies. Both the drama Causeway (featuring Jennifer Lawrence and Brian Tyree Henry) and the musical comedy Spirited (starring Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds) will debut on the service later this month. Emancipation, a movie about slavery starring Will Smith and directed by Antoine Fuqua, will be released in December. Other films from acclaimed directors like Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon, Ridley Scott’s Napoleon, and Matthew Vaughn’s Argylle are scheduled to be released by Apple in 2023.

On February 10, Sharper will debut in select theaters before premiering worldwide the following week on Apple TV+.

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