Abigail premieres on sky cinema (UK) on Saturday night 9pm
[Universal Pictures/TV and Satellite Week]
Thanks to @kathg35.bsky.social for the heads up!
Video on demand is available to purchase from 20th May and can be pre-ordered now in the UK.
ComicBook.com interviewed Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin [Radio Silence] about their horror-comedy. Extract about casting Matthew Goode –
Matthew [Goode] did not have to audition because we are mega fans, specifically, of his portrayal of Robert Evans in The Offer. It’s like a 10 out of 10, if you haven’t seen it. But when he said he’d do it … Sometimes you’re looking for something and then, at a certain point, it’s like it fits the box and you go, “Oh, my God, there it is. That’s it.” And as soon as he said he was in or was interested or his name came to us, I don’t really remember how that exactly happened, but we immediately went, “Oh, my God, he would be f-cking perfect.” And then in our opinion, he nailed it and is.
Gillett: We needed somebody to … The way that they carry themselves actually to bring a level of mystery and nuance to what that character is instead of this just big, brute force. There’s something very graceful and ethereal and strange about how Matthew looked in the teeth and the costume. And I think it implies so many interesting little pockets of history and story that exist off-screen. I mean, look, I think what being a talent like him is, right? You bring that sense of it, feeling lived in, even if you’re on-screen for a minute and 40 seconds or whatever that scene actually is, it was really wild to watch that come together. It’s such a short amount of time, but so important and so essential to the end of the movie.
Full interview here [Contains spoilers!] – https://comicbook.com/horror/news/abigail-tyler-gillett-matt-bettinelli-olpin-interview-radio-silence-easter-eggs-danzig/
Abigail VoD is available from the usual sources.
[Poster – Universal Pictures]
We’re holding off on posting anything that will spoil the plot but we will just highlight this from ‘Variety’ –
When asked why they cast Goode, Gillett and Bettinelli-Olpin alternate describing the actor as “imposing,” “beautiful” and “charismatic,” with a “gravitas” they knew the character needed to have the necessary impact for the ending. The actor shot on the final day of production, when the main set had already been caked in layers of blood, guts and viscera.
“He walked into this room covered in fucking blood and was like, ‘Okaaaaaay — so what am I doing?’” Bettinelli-Olpin says with a laugh. “We were like, ‘There is no ceiling. We will tell you if it’s too much. Let’s just take some swings here.’ Man, Matthew gave it a 100% for that day.”
“Melissa had kind of primed him,” Gillett says. “He had asked her, having read the script, ‘What is this fucking movie? What is the tone of this thing? What have I gotten myself into?’ And Melissa was like, ‘Don’t worry about it. Just do the weirdest, craziest thing that you can think of and they’ll love it and it’ll be great.’ And he did.”
[Variety]
Matthew has a memorable cameo role towards the end of the movie.
Collider has published details of their set visit to ‘Abigail’. Full article here – https://collider.com/abigail-set-visit/
We thought this extract might interest Goode fans –
As this is a reimagining of Dracula’s Daughter, you may be wondering: where the hell is Dracula? The identity of the actor playing him and how large a part he’ll have in the film was kept very much under wraps during our set visit. In the film, we know that he is an extremely wealthy underground crime boss, making Abigail the perfect target for a ransom. Via Zoom, Bettinelli-Olpin likened his presence to The Usual Suspects‘ Keyser Söze. “He’s a big part of the story. His presence is like the shadow that kind of just goes over everything that’s happening.” Alisha Weir also teased more details about her character’s relationship with her father, saying that the two have a complicated cast that will unfold over the film’s runtime. Beyond that, Dracula is still kept under lock and key inside a stuffy coffin, and we’ll just have to wait and see. While no one has confirmed the identity of the actor playing the iconic vampire, it’s important to note that Matthew Goode’s name has appeared on the cast list since our set visit… [Collider]