They Cloned Tyrone

A series of eerie events thrusts an unlikely trio onto the trail of a nefarious government conspiracy in this pulpy mystery caper.

• John Boyega as Fontaine
• Teyonah Parris as Yo-Yo
• Jamie Foxx as Slick Charles
• Kiefer Sutherland
• J. Alphonse Nicholson

The script for They Cloned Tyrone, written by Juel Taylor and Tony Rettenmaier, was first featured on The Black List.[1] It was announced in February 2019 that Brian Tyree Henry was in negotiations to star in the film, with Taylor set to direct under the production company MACRO.[2] Later that year in October, John Boyega joined the cast, replacing Henry in the lead role, with production expected to begin in early 2020 and Netflix set to distribute.[3] Jamie Foxx and Teyonah Parris joined the cast in September 2020.[4]

Principal photography began in December 2020, in Atlanta, Georgia, with production expected to run through February 2021.[5][6]

They Cloned Tyrone will premiere at the 27th American Black Film Festival on June 14, 2023. It is scheduled to be released on Netflix on July 21, 2023.[7][8]

On February 3, 2022, Foxx shared an image of the lead cast in-costume on the set of They Cloned Tyrone.[9] CinemaBlend complimented the "stylish and cool" aesthetic of the costuming, writing: "To say their looks were interesting would be an understatement. Foxx’s asymmetrical high-top alone is a statement. Each character’s personality comes out through their style. Jamie Foxx personifies the high-end slick talker with his high-top, purple felt suit, and faux leather jacket. Teyonah Parris comes off as a Blaxploitation star mixed with futurism with her natural hair, faux fur yellow coat, leopard print pants, and thigh-high boots. John Boyega goes full grimy hustler in his gold tooth and striped track pants with a green hoodie and padded jacket".[10]

On September 24, 2022, a teaser trailer for the film was released during Netflix's global fan event Tudum.[11] It featured a rendition of the Gap Band's 1982 song "You Dropped a Bomb on Me".[12] Deadline wrote that the trailer "vibes a stylized modern yet 1970s feel".[13] Erin Brady of /Film liked the premise and characters introduced in the trailer and remarked: "If this isn't sci-fi throwback pulp, then what is?"[14] Jeremy Fuster of TheWrap compared the film's conspiracy-theorist plot to the infamous Tuskegee Syphilis Study, a government-funded medical study done on Black subjects in Tuskegee, Alabama between 1932 and 1972.[15]

In their May 2023 issues, Empire and Entertainment Weekly published stories on They Cloned Tyrone, accompanied by a several images from the film.[16][17]

• They Cloned Tyrone at IMDb