The first trailer for Kiwi actor Thomasin McKenzie's latest film The Justice of Bunny King has just been released, a movie the rising Hollywood star shot in New Zealand in 2019.
Alongside McKenzie, star of Jojo Rabbit and Leave No Trace, is multi award-winning Australian actor Essie Davis in a story penned by New Zealand filmmaker Sophie Henderson and helmed by debut feature director Gaysorn Thavat.
The film tells the story of mother of two Bunny King, a rough-cut diamond with a sketchy past. While battling the system to reunite with her children, a confrontation leads her to take her niece Tonyah under her wing.
With the world against her and Tonyah, Bunny's battle has just begun.
"Films like this simply do not get made without the generosity and passion of many. The Justice of Bunny King is a film that celebrates the courage of ordinary women facing extraordinary struggles, and I look forward to bringing it home for the women of Aotearoa who inspired it," said Thavat.
Davis added: "I think it's a really important story and one that gives a voice to people who are often not heard. Bunny is a woman full of life and full of fury who will never give up on her children."
Commenting on what drew her to the project, McKenzie said: "I'm attracted to stories that mean something and that are worth telling. I knew that it was a female lead and it was using a female director, and director of photography, editor, producer, writer and so was really attracted to that power it had behind it."
The year 2021 is shaping up to be a barnstormer for McKenzie. She has a starring role in British director Edgar Wright's latest film Last Night in Soho along with roles in M Night Shyamalan's Old and Jane Campion's The Power of the Dog.
The Justice of Bunny King will have its world premiere at the Tribeca Fim Festival in New York later this month and will open in New Zealand cinemas on July 29.
