Movie: Jackpot! (2024) Caution Spoiler Alert

 Jackpot

Came out; 2024

Time; 1 hour 46 Minutes

Watched: Amazon

Rated: R for pervasive language, violence and sexual references

IMDB Rating; 5.8/10

Caution; Spoiler Alert

Staring.

John Cena as Noel

Awkwafina as Katie

Simu Liu as Louis Lewis

Seann Willaim Scott as Rugged Manipulate

Murray Hill as Johnny Grand

Story Line.

In the very near future, the Grand Lottery has been established in economically challenged California. The only catch? Kill the winner before sundown and you can legally claim their prize. New LA transplant Katie accidentally finds herself with the winning ticket and must join forces with amateur jackpot protector Noel to make it to sundown in order to claim her multi-billion dollar prize, all while dealing with Noel's protection rival Louis Lewis, who also wants to get her to sundown in order to claim his rich protection commission.

Thoughts:

This one started low and ended strong. It was certainly different than what we normally see, and it was pretty funny!

It was almost purge meets anything to do with lottery money.

I found it different, funny and easy to follow along with

CAUTION; Spoiler Alert

By 2030, the financially desperate government of California creates the deadly Grand Lottery: each Lottery Day, the randomly selected winner must survive until sundown; anyone with a losing ticket can kill the winner to claim the multi-million dollar prize instead, but no one may use guns.

Former child actor Katie Kim arrives in Los Angeles with hopes of reentering show business, unaware of the Lottery and its record $3.6 billion jackpot. Renting a room from money-hungry Shadi and her boyfriend DJ, Katie attends a disappointing audition, and inadvertently enters and wins the Lottery. Attacked on sight by everyone around her, she is soon found by Noel Cassidy, a freelance Lottery protection agent who offers his services in exchange for ten percent of her winnings. Fighting off dozens of Katie's murderous "fans" using non-lethal means, Noel and Katie escape in his car, and he explains that a drone tracking Katie will post her location every 14 minutes, but she can officially quit the Lottery by reaching the Grapevine on the outskirts of the city.

Unwilling to trust Noel, Katie realizes that even the police want to kill her and flees on foot. A sympathetic security guard lets her hide inside a wax museum, but a phone call from Shadi leads her and DJ to Katie’s location. She escapes and is rescued by Noel, pursued by Shadi, DJ, and a sightseeing bus full of tourists. They drive to MGK’s mansion and commandeer his panic room, shooting him with tranquilizer darts, and Noel assures Katie of his commitment to helping her. Shadi coerces MGK to give up the panic room’s passcode, forcing Noel to call in a favor with the Lottery Protection Agency. Before the mob can break in, the LPA short-circuits their phones and drives Katie and Noel to safety.

At LPA’s high-tech facility, Katie meets Louis Lewis, the head of the agency, who agrees to protect her in exchange for the LPA and Noel each receiving thirty percent of the prize money. Noel reveals that he and Louis are the sole survivors of a team of mercenaries, and Noel uses his protection earnings to support the families of their fallen comrades. Katie is given an elaborate prosthetic disguise and prepares to be driven to safety, but Noel suspects that the LPA has been murdering their clients, keeping the winners anonymous and claiming their winnings. He allows the crowd of “fans” into the facility, allowing Katie to drive away alone, and is captured by Louis.

Before Katie can reach the Grapevine, Louis calls, threatening to kill Noel unless she surrenders. Louis brings Noel to an abandoned theater, admitting that he killed their fellow mercenaries to keep a stash of gold for himself. Katie arrives and forces Louis to spare Noel by threatening to kill herself and forfeit the jackpot, livestreaming on her phone as proof. The livestream summons Katie’s “fans”, and she and Noel fight off the mob and the LPA. Cornered by Louis high above the stage, Katie manages to kill him with his own grenades, but falls from the scaffolding. However, she is caught by a crowd of genuine fans who have arrived to help, just as the Lottery deadline runs out. She and Noel celebrate her victory.

Six months later, Katie and Noel have used her prize money to open a variety of businesses and non-profits, including their own protection agency that guards Lottery winners for free. Mid-credits scenes reveal that they have bought a superyacht, acknowledging that money has changed them, while MGK orders an improved panic room and more darts, and the Grand Lottery prepares to expand across the country.