Watch ‘The King of Queens’ Star Kevin James’ Shocking Transformation to Chilling Villain in Trailer for ‘Becky’

The King of Queens star Kevin James recently underwent a shocking transformation for his role in the new suspense-horror movie Becky. The first trailer for the movie just dropped and fans are sure to be surprised at how different the comedian looks, as compared to his previous roles. Notably, this marks James’ first-ever villainous role, and, arguably, his first-ever dramatic role as well.

Per and official synopsis of the film “Spunky and rebellious, Becky (Lulu Wilson, from Annabelle: Creation) is brought to a weekend getaway at a lake house by her father Jeff (Joel McHale) in an effort to try to reconnect. The trip immediately takes a turn for the worse when a group of convicts on the run, led by the merciless Dominick (James), suddenly invade the lake house.” James’ neo-Nazi criminal role sees him with a massive beard and shaved head with a swastika tattoo. He also seems to have met his match in Wilson, whose character might be even more sadistic than he is, in this brutal flick that feels like a bizarrely effective amalgam of Home Alone, Rambo: First Blood, and Panic Room.

In addition to James, Wilson, and McHale, Becky also costars Amanda Brugel and Robert Maillet. It is directed by Cary Murnion and Jonathan Milott, who also helmed the bleak alt-realty film Bushwick (2017), starring Dave Bautista and Brittany Snow. Murnion and Milott also directed the hilariously gruesome Cooties (2014), which starred Elijah Wood, Rainn Wilson, Alison Pill, Jack McBrayer, Leigh Whannell, Nasim Pedrad, and Jorge Garcia. Becky is written by Nick Morris and Ruckus Skye & Lane Skye.

Interestingly, the new trailer reveal comes less than two weeks after Polygon writer Karen Han published an argument that the traditionally funny man deserves his shot at proving that he has the ability to do darker and more dramatic roles. She referred to shorts that James has featured on his YouTube channel as the most prevalent evidence that he both wants to do less cheery roles, and should be allowed to do so. “It feels revelatory to see James venture away from not just playing likeable characters, but from turning everything into a joke,” Han wrote.

“He’s capable of digging deeper, and he’s showcasing that ability on his YouTube channel,” Han continued. “The big question is just whether he’ll ever be invited to tap that vein in movie form. He’s expressed interest in working with Bong Joon-ho. (‘I wanna work with this guy,’ he wrote, albeit in a caption of a picture of Bong saying he couldn’t stop eating on set.) Maybe that’s the Sandler-plus-Safdies match that James needs. Through his YouTube shorts, James is proving he has the talent to pull off a dramatic turn, one that’s totally different from the film roles he’s taken before. He just needs the right project to let loose.” Becky will be available on VOD and Digital on June 5.