The Story of Slice: Pizza, Ghosts, and Crime
In the Ghost Town neighborhood of Kingfisher, something's gone horribly wrong. A series of murders targeting pizza delivery boys has gripped the small community, and nobody quite knows who—or what—is responsible. Director Austin Vesely's 2018 film Slice drops viewers directly into this premise without apology: werewolves exist here. Ghosts exist here. Witches exist here. There's apparently a portal to hell. And if you don't like it, well, that's the world you're getting. The film follows the efforts of various townspeople—including a ghost (Zazie Beetz), a pizza delivery driver (Chance the Rapper), and a handful of other locals—as they piece together clues about the killings. It's a film that refuses to explain its own rules, instead trusting the audience to keep up or get left behind.
Behind the Making of Slice: A Musician's Debut and Indie Spirit
Slice marks the feature directorial debut of Austin Vesely, a music video director best known for his work with hip-hop and indie artists. That background shows in every frame—the film has a visual style that feels more like a fever dream than a traditional horror-comedy. The cast brings together an eclectic mix of talent: Chance the Rapper (the Chicago rapper and singer) plays Korsha, a pizza delivery driver and the film's closest thing to a protagonist, while Zazie Beetz, known for her breakout role in Atlanta, portrays a ghost trying to solve her own murder. The supporting cast includes Will Brill, Katherine Cunningham, Rae Gray, Chris Parnell, and Paul Scheer—a lineup that suggests Vesely was after character actors willing to embrace the film's offbeat tone. The film premiered at South by Southwest (SXSW) in March 2018 before securing limited theatrical distribution. It didn't set the box office on fire, and it arrived with modest expectations—a small indie horror-comedy from a first-time feature director. Yet the very fact that Chance the Rapper signed on to act, rather than simply provide a soundtrack, signaled that this wasn't a cynical cash-grab. Movie OTT tracks films like this across streaming platforms, and Slice has found its audience primarily through digital distribution rather than cinemas.
What Makes Slice Stand Out: Commitment to Strangeness
What's striking about Slice is how earnestly it commits to its own weirdness. This isn't a film that winks at the camera or explains itself. The werewolves don't get a montage explaining their origin. The witch subplot doesn't resolve neatly. The portal to hell is just... there. Some viewers find this approach liberating—the film trusts you to build your own mythology—while others find it frustrating. Chance the Rapper's performance is understated and genuine; he plays Korsha as a working-class kid just trying to deliver pizzas and figure out why his coworkers keep dying. Zazie Beetz, meanwhile, brings a melancholic energy to her ghost character, managing to make the supernatural feel oddly intimate. The film's IMDb rating sits at 4.5/10, which tells you the reception was polarized. Critics and audiences were split on whether the film's refusal to explain itself was bold or simply lazy. But what's undeniable is that Slice doesn't try to be something it isn't—it's a small, weird, ambitious swing by a first-time director who wanted to make something that felt genuinely strange rather than safely quirky. The tone is consistently off-kilter, the murders are taken seriously even as the setting grows increasingly absurd, and there's a real sense that Vesely is more interested in mood and character than in plot mechanics.
Where to Stream Slice Online
Slice is currently available to stream on Prime Video, making it accessible to anyone with an Amazon subscription. Since the film had limited theatrical distribution, streaming has become its primary home—and honestly, that's not a bad thing. The intimate, unsettling tone of the film works well on a smaller screen, and the horror-comedy elements hit differently when you're watching late at night in your own space. If you're hunting for where to watch it, the "Where to Watch" widget at the top of this page will show you current availability and any platform changes. Beyond Prime Video, availability may vary by region and season, so it's worth checking movieott.com to confirm before you start searching.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Who directed Slice?
Austin Vesely directed Slice as his feature film debut. He's primarily known as a music video director before taking on this horror-comedy project.
Q: Is Slice based on a true story?
No, Slice is an original screenplay written by Austin Vesely. The plot about pizza delivery boys investigating murders in a supernatural town is entirely fictional.
Q: Does Chance the Rapper sing in Slice?
Chance the Rapper appears as an actor in the film, playing Korsha, a pizza delivery driver. He doesn't perform music in the movie itself.
Q: What's the runtime of Slice?
The film runs 82 minutes, making it a relatively lean horror-comedy that doesn't overstay its welcome.
Q: Where can I watch Slice?
Slice is available to stream on Prime Video. Check the "Where to Watch" widget at the top of this page for current availability in your region.
Final Thoughts on Slice
Slice isn't for everyone—and it knows it. This is a film that prioritizes atmosphere, character, and weirdness over plot clarity and audience comfort. If you're the type of viewer who wants everything explained, who needs your horror-comedies to resolve neatly, you'll probably find it frustrating. But if you're willing to sit with strangeness, to let a film establish its own rules without spelling them out, there's something genuinely compelling here. Chance the Rapper and Zazie Beetz carry the film with real humanity, and Austin Vesely's visual sense is confident and distinctive. It's a small film with big ambitions—and sometimes that's exactly what makes it worth watching.
