Spike Lee just unveiled the teaser trailer for his highly anticipated new film, Highest 2 Lowest. In a Monday (May 5) post on social media, the teaser clip showcased what looks to be an action-packed blockbuster with appearances from Denzel Washington, ASAP Rocky, Jeffrey Wright, Ilfenesh Hadera, and more.
“I know you have been waiting H**LA LONG,” wrote Lee on Instagram. “Here is [the] teaser trailer (finally) for [the] fifth return of [Denzel] and Lee — HIGHEST 2 LOWEST. And [that’s the] Washingtons/Lees’ family truth, Ruth. Ya dig? Sho nuff. Straight up.” That caption alone let audiences know that this production is personal, historic and steeped in culture.
Spike Lee and Denzel Washington reunite for music industry thriller Highest 2 Lowest
As explained in GQ, the collaboration reimagines Akira Kurosawa’s High and Low with a modern New York twist. In this version, Washington plays a revered music mogul known for having “the best ears in the business,” whose entire empire is thrown into crisis after a kidnapping forces him to make a moral decision. The original Kurosawa tale, a 1963 noir thriller based on King’s Ransom by Evan Hunter (published under his pseudonym, Ed McBain), focused on a shoe executive forced to choose between financial ruin and a child’s life. Lee, of course, sets his version in the world of contemporary Hip Hop, culture and capitalism.
Other details about the plot remain mostly under wraps, but hints from set photos and previous interviews suggest a layered story about class struggle, loyalty and survival in an unforgiving system. Rocky plays Yung Felon, a character many speculate is based on the original film’s antagonist — a man whose career has faltered and who seeks revenge against the executive he blames for his downfall. One striking image from the teaser showed Rocky in a prison jumpsuit, signaling the intensity of his role and the stakes at play.
Highest 2 Lowest is set to premiere at Cannes Film Festival
Backed by Apple and A24, Highest 2 Lowest is already one of the most anticipated films of 2025. The Cannes premiere date is no coincidence: It marks the 36th anniversary of Lee’s breakthrough film, Do the Right Thing, which first screened there in 1989. Although Highest 2 Lowest is not competing, the significance of its debut on that date pretty much confirms the film’s symbolic weight in Lee’s career arc. The last time Lee competed at Cannes, he brought home the Grand Prix for BlacKkKlansman, which later earned six Oscar nominations.
The teaser’s release also came at a moment when Spike Lee is actively championing Black filmmakers. In March, he praised Sinners as “the greatest experience” he’s had in a theater in years. “My brother Ryan Coogler invited me to experience his new film... in IMAX,” Lee wrote. “His magnificent artistry as a storyteller [is] on [another] level... Word [is] bond, I haven’t felt this way in a movie theatre in a minute.” That same energy and reverence for Black storytelling is clearly coursing through Highest 2 Lowest.