Taika Waititi Keeps Mocking Hitler In the Full Trailer for World War II Satire 'Jojo Rabbit'

Overview

He's directed a mockumentary about sharehouse-dwelling vampires in Wellington, one of the most offbeat and adorable fugitive films there is, and the best big-budget blockbuster about a certain cape-wearing, hammer-wielding Norse god- turned-superhero that's reached screens so far. Now, after winning hearts and laughs with not only What We Do in the Shadows, Hunt for the Wilderpeople and Thor: Ragnarok, but New Zealand comedies Eagle vs Shark and Boy too, Taika Waititi has turned his attention to making fun of Hitler.

His latest movie is called Jojo Rabbit, with the beloved filmmaker not only writing and directing, but starring as the Nazi. It's a satire, obviously, following a bullied but nationalistic young German boy called Jojo (newcomer Roman Griffin Davis) who discovers that his mother (Scarlett Johansson) is hiding a Jewish girl (Thomasin McKenzie, Leave No Trace) in their attic. He doesn't quite know what to do, so he asks the obvious person for help: his imaginary friend Adolf Hitler.

World War II-set films are a very common sight on the big screen, so if you feel like you've seen every possible take on that period of history, Jojo Rabbit is here to change your mind. As the movie's initial teaser and its just-released full trailer both show, this isn't your usual grim, serious war flick. Premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival this month, and based on the book Caging Skies by Christine Leunens, it's being badged as an "anti-hate" comedy, should you need more of an idea of the tone that Waititi is going for.

As well as the writer/director himself, the film co-stars the high-profile likes of Sam Rockwell, Rebel Wilson, Stephen Merchant and Alfie Allen.

It's not the only project that Waititi has in the works — it was just announced last week that he'll be directing the next Thor film, Thor: Love and Thunder — but it is the only one where he gets Hitler to call himself a lunatic and a psycho.

Check out the new trailer below:

Jojo Rabbit releases on December 26 in Australia.