Collider is excited to exclusively reveal the brand-new trailer for The Civil Dead, a dark comedy from the minds of cult favorite comedian/musician Whitmer Thomas and longtime friend and collaborator Clay Tatum. The Civil Dead is written by both Thomas and Tatum, with Tatum also serving as the director, and it also stars the duo as Thomas haunts Tatum and tries to get his friend back on his feet.
The story of The Civil Dead follows Clay (Tatum), an unemployed photographer who lives with his artist wife Whitney (Whitney Weir) in Los Angeles. One day while trying to find his creativity again, Clay meets up with a childhood friend Whit (Thomas). The two of them catch up before Whit drops a bombshell: he is actually dead and Clay is the only one that can see him. As the two spend time together, Whit tries to help Clay with his mundane life while causing the struggling photographer to question face his own shortcomings as well as question his sanity.
The introduces viewers to the premise as Clay, fresh off a self-caused haircut mishap is sent out by Whitney into LA to try to find his spark again. This is where he reunites with Whit. The two return to Clay’s place, share a beer, watch some TV, and reveal that one of them is actually a ghost, which is confirmed when Clay takes a picture of Whit only for him not to appear in the photo. Whit decides that he is here to help Clay, who pushes back by saying that he doesn’t need help. “I’ve been following you around for a week now, man. You’re a loser.” While Clay does say that Whit is haunting him like Casper (to which Whit points out he is a friendly ghost), Whit does try and calm his living friend down by pointing out all the scary things going on in the world and in Clay’s life, a friendly spirit isn’t that bad.
The Civil Dead Q&A Tour
Thomas and Tatum will tour with the film for live Q&As, starting on 2/3 with Alamo Drafthouse in Downtown LA before heading out across the country. The film will eventually become available to watch On-Demand starting on February 17, 2023. The pair have worked together frequently in the past, with Tatum having previously directed Thomas’ celebrated HBO special “The Golden One.” The film premiered in January 2022 and has since gone on to win the Audience Award at Slamdance 2022. You can get your tickets for the Q&A tour here and check out the stops below:
- 2/3 Alamo DTLA
- 2/4 Alamo New Mission
- 2/6 Alamo Sloans
- 2/8 Alamo South Lamar or Mueller
- 2/10 Alamo Lower Manhattan
On 2/10 they’ll look to expand NY/LA with weeklong runs, with non-Alamo event screenings nationally on 2/14. The Civil Dead will be available On-Demand on February 17, 2023. You can watch the exclusive trailer for the upcoming film, check out the poster, as well as read its official description down below.
Clay is a loner photographer who enjoys a mundane life with his artist wife Whitney in Los Angeles. Whitney advises Clay, who has been creatively stagnant and unemployed for months, to go out and be productive while she’s out of town and not to “just lay in the living room and drink beer”. While taking photos out in a park, Clay happens upon his long-lost friend, Whit. After a night of catching up, Whit discloses an unsettling secret to Clay, which puts a strain on his marriage and causes him to question his own sanity.
