Netflix has released the official trailer for Ben Affleck and Kerry Washington’s upcoming crime thriller, Animals. The new film sees Affleck play a Los Angeles mayoral candidate whose life is thrown into chaos after his son is kidnapped. Animals is Affleck’s first directorial venture since 2023’s Air.
The trailer arrives after positive fan reactions to the cryptic teaser, which revealed no real plot developments. “When their son is kidnapped, an LA mayoral candidate and his wife scramble to raise the ransom while making choices that could tear their world apart,” reads the short synopsis.
Watch the Animals trailer below:
Inside Ben Affleck & Kerry Washington’s high-stakes Animals
The trailer opens with Kimball, a loving family man, receiving a distressing call, set to a speech he’s delivering as he runs for mayor. “Sometimes justice and the letter of the law are exactly aligned,” he says. “Sometimes it requires us to make very difficult, ver very human decisions. And that will be my job as mayor.”
Footage of Kimball at various campaigns is shown as he and his wife stress over making incriminating decisions to save their kidnapped son. While it doesn’t reveal what kind of dirt Kimball’s enemies have on him, it does tease that his son’s kidnapping has larger consequences, derailing his political career. The footage also teases several action sequences and the mysterious role Gillian Anderson’s character plays in its plot.
Besides Affleck, Washington, and Anderson, Animals also stars Adriana Paz, Ray Fisher, Christopher Woodley, Matt Gerald, Jacob Estrada, Luis Gerardo Méndez, and Steven Yeun. The film is directed by Affleck from a screenplay co-written by him, Connor O. McIntyre, and Billy Ray. Michael Beugg, Kevin Halloran, Michael Joe, Graham Taylor, Chris Rice, Christopher Slager, and Dan Guando serve as executive producers.
Animals releases in select theaters and on Netflix on October 9, 2026.
Originally reported on ComingSoon.
