Denzel Washington and Spike Lee come together again in the trailer for Highest 2 Lowest: "Can You Handle It?"

      Spike Lee and Denzel Washington reunite for Highest 2 Lowest, a crime thriller that brings the duo, known for Mo’ Better Blues, Malcolm X, He Got Game, and Inside Man, back to the vibrant and energetic backdrop of New York City.

      This A24 film and Apple Original Films release is set to hit select theaters on August 22 and will be available on Apple TV+ starting September 5. In the film, Washington delivers a monologue about money and contemporary life accompanied by the bold rhythms of James Brown’s “The Payback.” The impressive cast features Jeffrey Wright, Ilfenesh Hadera, and A$AP Rocky.

      The story revolves around a prominent music mogul (Denzel Washington), renowned for having the "best ears in the business."

      The collaboration between Lee and Washington is so profound that the A24 announcement refers to them as “brothers,” noting:

      “Brothers Denzel Washington and Spike Lee come together for the fifth time in their long-standing partnership to reinterpret the classic crime thriller High and Low by acclaimed filmmaker Akira Kurosawa, now set against the backdrop of modern New York City.”

      The tagline reads: “All $$ Ain’t Good $$.”

      Here’s the poster:

      The trailer for Highest 2 Lowest showcases one of the most energetic and rapid-paced previews seen in years, featuring stunning visuals of Washington in a suit, walking past gold and platinum records, donning gold headphones while gazing out from a skyscraper office window, and hurrying through a parking garage.

      The trailer also depicts A$AP Rocky’s character entering a courtroom amidst demonstrators, a scene that chillingly reflects the rapper's own recent legal issues. He was acquitted in February of two felony counts of assault involving a semiautomatic firearm after jurors reached a verdict in just three hours following a three-week trial.

      In the trailer, A$AP Rocky's character walks into the courtroom as fans hold signs proclaiming “Free Yung Felon” and “Justice 4 Yung Felon.”

      Other striking images include scenes from a Puerto Rican Day parade, police cars with sirens on, a bag exchanging hands, and various subway activities.

      Washington's rapid-fire monologue in the Highest 2 Lowest trailer echoes some of the finest monologues from Spike Lee's films, including Ed Norton’s powerful speech against New Yorkers in Lee’s acclaimed 2022 film The 25th Hour.

      It culminates with Washington’s character querying: “Can you handle the mayhem, can you handle the money, can you handle the success, can you handle the failure, can you handle the lovers, can you handle the memes, can you handle everything in-between?

      “That’s the question I have for you: Can you handle it?”

      Washington and Lee first worked together on Lee’s 1990 film Mo’ Better Blues, which follows a troubled jazz trumpeter named Bleek Gilliam, portrayed by Washington. Their most iconic collaboration came in 1992 with Malcolm X, where Washington received a Best Actor Oscar for his powerful performance depicting Malcolm Little’s evolution into the Nation of Islam leader Malcolm X and ultimately into the head of the Organization of Afro-American Unity.

      In He Got Game, Washington memorably played Jake Shuttlesworth, a recently paroled father trying to guide his son, Jesus (Ray Allen), toward basketball at the governor’s alma mater.

      Their latest collaboration before Highest 2 Lowest was 2006’s Inside Man, where Washington portrayed an NYPD negotiator attempting to outsmart a criminal mastermind (Clive Owen) and his crew seeking a valuable item in a safety deposit box.

      Washington has won two Oscars for Glory and Training Day, while Lee received an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay in 2019 for BlacKkKlansman, which was nominated for Best Picture. Lee’s most recent films prior to Highest 2 Lowest include 2020’s Da 5 Bloods and David Byrne’s American Utopia.

      Main image: Washington in Highest 2 Lowest. A24.