The Version
| The Version | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Alex Brow |
| Written by | Alex Brow |
| Produced by | Alex Brow |
Production company | Mob Productions |
| Distributed by | Mob Productions |
Release date | September 1, 2026 |
Running time | 75 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $125.6 million |
The Version is a 2026 psychological drama film written by Alex Brow. Presented in real time as a single continuous shot, the film is set entirely inside the consulting room of psychologist Dr. Claire Nolan and stars Felix Mallard as Matt Ryder and Kate Box as Nolan. In the film, Ryder attends his first therapy session three weeks after prosecutors decline to charge him over a rape allegation made by Tess Warren. The film explores memory, consent, uncertainty, reputation, anxiety, and the distinction between a legal outcome and personal certainty.
Brow conceived The Version as a contained two-character drama in which the audience would never be shown an objective reconstruction of the alleged assault. The first screenplay draft was completed in September 2026 and specified that the entire film would unfold in one room over approximately 75 minutes without a visible cut. The decision to exclude flashbacks and keep Tess physically absent was intended to leave viewers dependent on the same incomplete and disputed information available to Nolan. Mallard and Box were cast as Ryder and Nolan, respectively, with the film relying almost entirely on their performances and dialogue rather than changes in location or conventional dramatic set pieces. The production was designed around the continuous-shot format, with the office's wall clock marking the progression of the session in real time.
The Version received mixed-to-negative reviews from critics. The performances, psychological tension, and examination of memory and uncertainty were praised, as was the film's refusal to provide a definitive answer regarding the allegation. Criticism was directed at its 75-minute runtime, repetitive and frequently over-constructed dialogue, and the decision to centre almost the entire narrative on Ryder while leaving Tess absent from the screen. The latter choice proved particularly divisive, with some critics considering it essential to the film's ambiguity and others arguing that it created an unavoidable imbalance in how the two accounts were represented.
Plot
Three weeks after prosecutors decline to charge him with rape, 28-year-old cabinet installer Matt Ryder attends his first appointment with psychologist Dr. Claire Nolan. Matt explains that Tess Warren, a woman from his wider social circle, accused him following a sexual encounter nine months earlier. He maintains that the encounter was consensual but is frustrated that the prosecution decision was based on an insufficient prospect of conviction rather than a finding that Tess's allegation was false. Nolan asks Matt to recount the night without reducing it to legal conclusions. At their friend Aaron's thirtieth birthday, Matt and Tess drink heavily, flirt throughout the evening, and kiss before joining several friends at an Airbnb. After the others retire, Matt and Tess remain together and eventually enter a bedroom. Matt remembers asking whether she was okay and believes she answered affirmatively, although he admits that after months of repeating the memory he can no longer distinguish her response from his recollection of telling investigators about it.
Matt remains certain that Tess never told him to stop, while Tess alleged that she froze during sex and asked him to stop twice. Matt remembers her becoming less responsive but cannot determine whether he noticed this during the encounter or only after detectives repeatedly questioned him about it. Afterward, Tess dresses, moves to another bedroom and leaves before the group wakes. She initially responds normally to Matt's messages but later tells him that she does not feel good about the previous night. The following day, Aaron informs Matt that Tess has told their friend Mel that Matt continued after being asked to stop. Six days later, police interview Matt. During the investigation, he begins interpreting ordinary behaviour as potential evidence of guilt and later acknowledges that, regardless of what occurred, he should have communicated more clearly rather than relying on kissing, touching and Tess's earlier participation to assume she wished to continue.
Police seize Matt's phone, and an online post identifies him as being investigated for rape. His employer transfers him from installation work in customers' homes to warehouse duties, coworkers begin treating him differently, and Aaron eventually ends their friendship because he does not want to be caught between Matt and Tess. Matt withdraws from social life, stops dating and drinking publicly, avoids places where he might encounter people connected to Tess, and begins compulsively preserving messages, photographs and timelines relating to the investigation. Evidence considered before prosecutors decline to proceed includes discrepancies in Tess's original timeline, surveillance footage contradicting her claim that she could barely stand, messages exchanged after the encounter and witness accounts that Matt and Tess had been openly flirting; however, no one witnessed what occurred inside the bedroom, and Tess continues to maintain her allegation. Matt eventually tells Nolan that he no longer believes Tess is deliberately lying and instead thinks she genuinely remembers the encounter differently, a possibility he struggles to accept because her memory defines him as a rapist while his necessarily makes her account incorrect.
Nolan learns that Matt now experiences panic attacks, severe sleep disturbance, hypervigilance and compulsive checking, and that he lost eleven kilograms during the first months of the investigation. He admits to previously thinking that not waking up would be easier, particularly after receiving the no-charge letter, but denies having planned or intended suicide. Matt remains terrified that the investigation could be reopened and repeatedly contacts his lawyer seeking certainty about new evidence, online posts or potential legal action. He fantasizes about confronting Tess and having her admit that she was mistaken, imagining that her apology would restore his friendship with Aaron, his reputation and his former life. Nolan challenges this expectation, telling him that such closure may never occur and that recovery may instead require accepting uncertainty, reducing his compulsive checking and grieving the trust, privacy and normality he has lost.
Near the end of the session, Matt asks Nolan whether she believes him, explaining that reassurance from his family feels meaningless because they love him, while the decision not to charge him concerns evidence rather than belief. Nolan refuses to determine what happened, explaining that she is his therapist rather than an investigator, but tells him that he does not need to continually prove his innocence to her and may discuss details that support, undermine or complicate his own account without uncertainty becoming a verdict. Nolan encourages Matt to resume ordinary activities and asks him not to reopen his evidence folder before their next appointment. As he prepares to leave, Matt says he needs somewhere he can state that he did not assault Tess without immediately being told that his statement proves nothing. Nolan allows him to do so. Matt says that he did not do it, and Nolan simply acknowledges him without agreeing, challenging or recording the statement. Matt schedules another appointment and leaves as the clock reaches 2:15. Remaining alone, Nolan draws a line beneath her notes, marking only the end of the session rather than a judgment on what occurred.
Cast and characters
- Felix Mallard as Matt Ryder: A 28-year-old cabinet installer who attends his first appointment with psychologist Claire Nolan three weeks after prosecutors decline to charge him over a rape allegation made by Tess Warren. Matt maintains that their sexual encounter was consensual, but nine months of police questioning, public scrutiny and compulsive examination of evidence have damaged his confidence in parts of his own memory. Following the allegation, he becomes increasingly isolated and experiences panic attacks, insomnia and hypervigilance. Mallard described Matt as a man whose need to establish exactly what happened has gradually become as damaging to him as the investigation itself.
- Kate Box as Dr. Claire Nolan: A 46-year-old psychologist conducting Matt's first therapy session. Nolan refuses to determine whether Matt or Tess's account is correct and repeatedly distinguishes her role as Matt's psychologist from that of an investigator. Throughout the session, she challenges his compulsive need for certainty while addressing his anxiety, social withdrawal and deteriorating mental health. Nolan ultimately encourages Matt to accept that recovery may not depend on receiving the definitive vindication he wants.
Production
The screenplay for The Version was written by Alex Brow. The first draft is dated 7 September 2026 and describes the project as a "one-room continuous-shot drama".
The screenplay limits the physical setting to Nolan's office, with the narrative designed to occur entirely through dialogue and the performances of Matt and Nolan. The continuous-shot structure prevents the film from using flashbacks to depict the disputed encounter, leaving the audience dependent on the same incomplete and contested information discussed during the therapy session.