Over Your Dead Body – Movie Review (3/5)

OVER YOUR DEAD BODY is a dark comedy thriller available on VOD in the US (and on Prime Video internationally). It’s a remake of a Norwegian movie, and while this is a good movie, the original is better. I do love the casting of this one, though. Read our full Over Your Dead Body movie review here!

OVER YOUR DEAD BODY is a true genre hybrid that encompasses dark comedy, action, thriller, and straight-up slasher moments. Oh yeah, it gets very bloody and brutal as the story evolves and escalates. It’s a 2026 production that was out in theaters in April, is available on VOD in the US now, and has just been released on Prime Video internationally.

This dark comedy-thriller is a remake of The Trip, which I really enjoyed, so I wasn’t the least bit surprised when I heard they were doing a remake. I love that Samara Weaving stars in this remake, and while Jason Segel is good, I somehow found myself wishing they had cast Mark Duplass instead.

However, I absolutely think you should check this out. The runtime of 1 hour and 45 minutes may seem long, but there is surprisingly much storyline to be covered, so it fits the plot like a glove.

Continue reading our Over Your Dead Body movie review below.

When marriage ends in attempted murder

Over Your Dead Body is pretty much the plot explained as a wordplay on the old “over my dead body”. We meet the clearly miserable married couple, Dan and Lisa (Jason Segel and Samara Weaving), who both have plans for their upcoming retreat. They are heading out to a remote cabin owned by his dad.

Quick sidenote: The dad thinks his son is weak and needs to experience actual war to grow some balls, but he adores his daughter-in-law.

Anyway, the couple heads to this cabin for a romantic reset. Well, that’s the official reason, anyway.

In reality, both are planning to murder the other. They want the life insurance money and a chance to start over without debt and a nagging spouse. Of course, nothing goes as planned, and when a dangerous trio of intruders appears, Dan and Lisa must work together if either is to survive.

First comes survival, then maybe they should also consider saving their marriage?

This is a gross oversimplification of all that happens in Over Your Dead Body, but you really shouldn’t know too much. A huge part of the joy you’ll get from watching this comedy, thriller, slasher hybrid is seeing it all unfold in crazy ways.

The remake is good, the original is better

Now, before you go, “Isn’t the original always better than the remake?”, I have to state very firmly that this is not my opinion. Sure, often this is the case. However, if you think about it, isn’t that just because you already know the twists and turns? Watching the same plot play out again is rarely as interesting. Unless some definitive changes are made.

For Over Your Dead Body, the changes are not too big, and I can’t quite figure out whether I would’ve enjoyed this more if I hadn’t watched the original Norwegian movie I onde dage (English title: The Trip).

Even the details about the married couple not speaking exactly the same language. In the Norwegian original, Noomi Rapace (the original and best Lisbeth Salander, in my opinion) speaks her native Swedish. While Scandinavians can understand most of what each other is saying in their native languages, some things do differ.

In Over Your Dead Body, we get Samara Weaving speaking in her native Australian dialect. Again, it’s English, but there is a difference between American and Australian English. To me, this was a brilliant way to incorporate that element into the remake.

Casting Samara Weaving or Juliette Lewis is always right

Also, it meant having Samara Weaving in a lead role, which is always a bonus. It’s almost typecasting, but of the very best kind. Having watched Samara Weaving fighting for survival, or beating others, in the Ready or Not movies, Borderline, or The Babysitter, we all knew she was perfect for this role!

Another perfect casting is Juliette Lewis, who seems to be having a real blast in her role alongside Timothy Olyphant (Alien: Earth) and Keith Jardine (Love Lies Bleeding).

I feel like saying that casting Samara Weaving or Juliette Lewis is always the right choice. Almost paraphrasing Cameron from Modern Family, when he says: “Meryl Streep could play Batman, and be the right choice,” because the casting of these two seems always to be spot-on.

Watch Over Your Dead Body on VOD or Prime Video

Over Your Dead Body was directed by Jorma Taccone, who also seems like the right choice for this remake. Previously, Jorma Taccone directed episodes of iconic comedy shows like Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Parks and Recreation, Saturday Night Live, and MacGruber. Interestingly, for me, the comedy wasn’t the strongest trait of this movie.

I felt the movie was at its very best in the third act, when it practically becomes a comedy-slasher. Of course, ending on a high note is always so much better than starting strong and ending with an anticlimax.

The screenplay comes from Nick Kocher and Brian McElhaney (writer-director duo of Pizza Movie), but is based on the Norwegian movie I Onde Dager by Tommy Wirkola. You’ll know Tommy Wirkola from English-language movies such as Thrash (2026) and Violent Night (2022). Horror fans will surely also know his zombie movie: Dead Snow.

Whether you’ve watched the original or not, I recommend checking out this one for the amazing cast and the wild slasher-comedy elements. Also, if you haven’t watched the original, then you have an awesome treat in store with The Trip (org. title: I onde dager).

Over Your Dead Body is on VOD in the US now and streaming on Prime Video internationally from June 10, 2026.

Details

Director: Jorma Taccone
Screenplay: Nick Kocher, Brian McElhaney (based on Tommy Wirkola’s “I Onde Dager“)
Cast: Jason Segel, Samara Weaving, Timothy Olyphant, Juliette Lewis, Keith Jardine, Paul Guilfoyle, Jake Curran