David Fincher Returns To Netflix With Michael Fassbender’s Cold-Blooded Assassin In ‘The Killer’ Trailer

Michael Fassbender is playing an assassin constantly reminding himself to “forbid empathy” in the first trailer for David Fincher‘s The Killer — which will begin streaming on Netflix later this year.

Based on Alexis Nolent and Luc Jacamon’s French graphic novel series of the same name, the psychological action thriller follows a cold-blooded assassin (Fassbender) who begins to form a conscience. According to the movie’s logline, the hitman “battles his employers and himself on an international manhunt he insists isn’t personal.”

“Stick to your plan. Trust no one. Stick to the plan. Forbid empathy. Stick to the plan,” Fassbender tells himself in the newly released teaser. “Anticipate. Don’t improvise. Stick to your plan. Never yield an advantage. Stick to the plan.”

He continues, “Fight only the battle you’re paid to fight. Ask yourself, ‘What’s in it for me?’ Stick to the plan. Trust no one. Empathy is weakness. Weakness is vulnerability. This is what it takes if you want to succeed. Simple.”

Aside from Fassbender, the upcoming movie also stars Charles Parnell, Arliss Howard, Sophie Charlotte and Tilda Swinton.

The Killer marks Fincher’s return to Netflix following 2020’s Mank — which was based on Herman J. Mankiewicz, the real-life screenwriter of Citizen Kane. The biographical drama went on to garner 10 Oscar nominations and two wins.

Like Fassbender — who referred to Fincher as “one of the best filmmakers out there” in a behind-the-scenes video from The Killer — Netflix’s head of global films, Scott Stuber, had nothing but praise for the famed director.

“It’s a really provocative and interesting movie,” Stuber hinted about The Killer in a 2021 interview with Variety. “It is about the methodology of that world, which David details better than anyone. He’s so good in the detail of method… of watching something unfold. It’s a really fun, big movie in the hands of one of the best filmmakers.”

The Killer is set to premiere at the 2023 Venice Film Festival on Sept. 3. It will eventually release in select theaters on Oct. 27, before making its streaming debut on Netflix on Nov. 10. Check out the full trailer above.