Wasteman (2025)
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12-month trend
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2025-09 to 2026-08
A prison cook facing release must navigate a dangerous drug trade and a volatile new cellmate.
The story
Taylor, a prison cook who has been incarcerated for 13 years, is informed he is eligible for early release on the basis he maintains good behaviour. Taylor regularly does haircuts for fellow prisoners Gaz and Paul, from whom he buys drugs to fuel his addiction. He manages to make contact with his now 14-year-old, estranged son Adam. While struggling to fill out the form for his release, Taylor is assigned a new cellmate, Dee, who starts selling drugs not long after his arrival, taking business away from Gaz and Paul. Taylor and Dee start to form a friendship, with Taylor opening up about how he accidentally killed a teenager by selling him drugs to provide for Adam, which landed him in prison with a manslaughter charge.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Taylor, a prison cook serving 13 years, is eligible for early release but faces a complex dynamic within the prison. He maintains a relationship with fellow prisoners Gaz and Paul, who provide him with drugs. When a new cellmate, Dee, begins selling drugs and taking over their trade, a tense friendship forms between Taylor and Dee. However, the rivalry between Dee and the established drug dealers leads to violence. After Dee is beaten and later returns, he forces Taylor to become a mule for his drug distribution. Tensions peak when a video is circulated by Gaz and Paul to incite others to kill Dee. Simultaneously, Taylor attempts to go 'cold turkey' from his addiction. Dee eventually blackmails Taylor into attempting to kill Gaz and Paul with a stolen knife, threatening to harm Taylor's son. On the eve of Taylor's release, Taylor prepares a meal for Dee and refuses to go through with the murder. Instead, he finds Dee has overdosed on spiked food. Taylor shares a final moment with the dying Dee before staging the scene to look like a natural overdose. The next morning, Taylor is released from prison.
- First release year
- 2025
- Runtime (minutes)
- 90
- Production countries
- United Kingdom
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Cal McMau
- Writers
- Hunter Andrews · screenplay; Eoin Doran · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- David Jonsson · Taylor; Tom Blyth · Dee; Corin Silva · Gaz; Alex Hassell · Paul; Neil Linpow · Robbie; Paul Hilton · Browning; Layton Blake · Maxi; Jack Barker · Cook Up Prisoner; Fred Muthui · Prisoner in Cell
- Genres
- prison film; thriller
- Themes
- addiction; fatherhood; loyalty; consequence
- Tone and mood
- gritty; tense; suspenseful
- Premise and plot tags
- prison drama; crime; thriller
- Reception
- The film received generally favorable reviews, with critics praising the performances of the two lead actors and the transition from drama to suspense.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 76 · scale: 100 · review count: 12
- Production trivia
- The film was originally intended to be directed by the Safdie brothers.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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