The Jamie Foxx Sci-Fi Comedy On Netflix That’s Full Of Wacky Twists
After suffering a significant health scare earlier this year, Jamie Foxx is back on the small screen in his latest hit film, They Cloned Tyrone, which is currently available to stream on Netflix. The film serves as an intersection of a number of genres, including comedy and science fiction, with an element of mystery that drives the plot deeper and deeper into a web of thrilling conspiracy. The film is the feature film directorial debut of Juel Taylor, who’s previous work includes screenwriting credits on Creed 2 and Space Jam: A New Legacy.
Jamie Foxx headlines They Cloned Tyrone, a genre-bending sci-fi hit streaming now on Netflix.
Jamie Foxx stars in the film, in addition to serving as a producer. They Cloned Tyrone also boasts an all-star cast of John Boyega, Teyonah Parris, David Alan Grier, and Kiefer Sutherland. The film premiered at the American Black Film Festival before receiving a limited theatrical release and ultimately landing on Netflix as of July 21, receiving excellent reviews from critics and general audiences alike.
Jamie Foxx leads the cast of They Cloned Tyrone in the role of Slick Charles, an addict who purchases illicit narcotics from John Boyega’s Fontaine. The film takes place in a retro-futuristic neighborhood where crime is rampant, resulting in Fontaine being brutally killed by a rival drug dealer named Isaac. Much to the shock of Slick Charles and the viewing audience, Fontaine shows up again the following day to collect his money, with no recollection of the previous day.
Jamie Foxx and John Boyega then meet up with a sex worker named Yo-Yo, portrayed by Teyonah Parris, in order to determine how this is all possible. After tracking some leads to a high-tech underground lab, the trio discovers a corpse identical to Fontaine being experimented on alongside a host of dystopian futuristic narcotics, including a white powdered substance similar to cocaine which causes users to laugh uncontrollably. They Cloned Tyrone then leaps into a series of breakneck social commentary regarding the consumerist nature of modern society.
After Jamie Foxx and his compatriots escape the lab and the effects of the powder, they begin to see many people in the general public afflicted with the laughing curse. Before long, the characters trace the laughter to a local fried chicken restaurant, which has utilized the drug as a new secret ingredient. The tension in They Cloned Tyrone begins to spiral out of control when it is discovered that Fontaine lies at the center of a complex cloning procedure and that the entire city is under surveillance for a series of sick scientific experiments.
Jamie Foxx, John Boyega, and Teyonah Parris play characters scraping by each day before getting wrapped up in a clone conspiracy in They Cloned Tyrone.
The genre-bending film was first optioned from The Black List in February of 2019, with Jamie Foxx signing on to produce a year later. They Cloned Tyrone takes inspiration from a number of iconic blaxploitation films of the 1970s and beyond, as well as the classics of modern science fiction and absurdist fantasy, including Groundhog Day, Napoleon Dynamite, and It Follows.
Thankfully, principal photography was completed before Jamie Foxx had undergone his medical journey, which plagued him for much of 2023, allowing him to commit to the role without any significant breaks in production. They Cloned Tyrone opened to excellent reviews, touting a staggering 94 percent certified fresh rating from critics on the review aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes, alongside a whopping 100 percent audience score.
Among other things, Jamie Foxx’s performance and the incredible direction of Juel Taylor have been lauded by critics, describing the film as a spiritual successor to the 2018 classic surrealist film Sorry To Bother You.
Jamie Foxx finished filming They Cloned Tyrone before his health scare earlier this year.
Like They Cloned Tyrone, Sorry To Bother You was a genre-bending descendant of the blaxploitation era, written and directed by a first-time filmmaker, The Coup lead vocalist Boots Riley. Riley has recently gone on to create the Amazon Prime Video original series I’m A Virgo, which also contains a number of thematic tie-ins to the film and tonal references to the consumerist nature of the modern social landscape.
If you’re looking for a new hit film to scratch your Jamie Foxx itch after the veritable roller coaster ride of emotions the actor’s medical health scare had us all on this past year, be sure to stream They Cloned Tyrone on Netflix today. With the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, it may be some time before we see these performers on the big screen again.
