The Smith family hatch a plan to murder their estranged matriarch for her insurance money. They hire Killer Joe Cooper, a police detective and part-time contract killer, to do the job. But once he enters their trailer, their simple plan spirals out of control.

Tracy Letts's shocking and unforgettable first play, originally staged in 1993 in a cramped theatre in Evanston, Illinois, quickly became a must-see and ran for eight months before later runs in Edinburgh, New York and London, including four months in the West End. Killer Joe has been performed in fifteen countries in twelve languages, and became an acclaimed feature film directed by William Friedkin and starring Matthew McConaughey in 2011.