Vertical revealed the official trailer for Poolman, the comedy film directed by and starring Chris Pine as a pool cleaner turned save-the-day hero investigator.

Also starring in the film are Annette Bening, Danny DeVito, Jennifer Jason Leigh, DeWanda Wise, Stephen Tobolowsky, Clancy Brown, John Ortiz, & Ray Wise.

Release Date

Directed by actor Chris Pine making directorial debut, Poolman world premiered at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, and opens in theaters on May 10, 2024.

Synopsis

Poolman tells the story of Darren Barrenman (Chris Pine), a native Los Angeleno who spends his days looking after the pool of the Tahitian Tiki apartment block and fighting to make his hometown a better place to live. When he is tasked by a femme fatale to uncover the truth behind a shady business deal, Darren enlists the help of his friends to take on a corrupt politician and a greedy land developer. His investigation reveals a hidden truth about his beloved city and himself.

Pine commented, “…the film was born from my own feelings of being painfully awkward as I was growing up. With Poolman, I tried to reimagine my experience with as much imagination, joy and compassion as I could; giving Darren a journey where he could be a hero because of his sensitivity not despite it.”

Reviews

Variety review called the film “Chris Pine’s Daffy Absurdist Disaster of an L.A. Noir”, writing, “So I take no vicious pleasure in saying that “Poolman,” a movie that Pine co-wrote, directed, and stars in, is not only the worst film I saw during the fall festival season but would likely be one of the worst films in any year it came out. Okay, maybe I’m taking a bit of vicious pleasure in saying that, since I had to sit through the goddamn thing. At the Toronto Film Festival showing I attended, there were a lot of walkouts.”

Official Trailer

Watch the official trailer for Poolman