Malignant director James Wan posted about his horror movie influences for his upcoming genre film. The story follows Madison (Annabelle Wallis), who suffers from having visions of brutal murders, although discovers that these "dreams" are happening in real time. The screenplay is written by Akela Cooper (Luke Cage) from an original story concept by Wan, Ingrid Bisu (The Nun), and Cooper. Malignant is set to hit theaters and HBO Max on September 10, 2021.
Wan shook horror cinema to its core with Saw back in 2004, which spawned several sequels. While he hasn't been attached as a director since the original or an executive producer since Saw: The Final Chapter, he's moved on in favor of other projects. He directed horror phenomenons including the first two Insidious films and the first two installments of The Conjuring. However, he has expanded his horizons by getting into the director's chair for big Hollywood action flicks, such as Aquaman and Furious 7. The majority of his other credits are in the role of a producer.
Wan posted on Facebook to provide a bit of insight into Malignant. He wanted to return back to his independent genre roots. While he noted that this is an original story, he was inspired by the works of Mario Bava, Dario Argento, Brian De Palma, and David Cronenberg. This film will be his love letter to the horror/thrillers of the 1980s. See below for Wan's Facebook post:
Click here to see the Facebook post.
Malignant recently released its trailer, which very much displays the inspirations that Wan mentioned in his Facebook post. This isn't the first time that he's spoken about his appreciation for these filmmakers, either. Bava is best known for works including The Mask of Satan, Kill Baby Kill!, and A Bay of Blood. Argento is also recognized as a "master of horror" for his work on films such as Suspiria, Tenebrae, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, among many others. De Palma's psychological thrillers have made waves across the genre with titles including Carrie, Blow Out, and Dressed to Kill. Finally, Cronenberg is typically associated for his body horror sub-genre with works such as The Fly and Videodrome. These are all legendary filmmakers that have provided great contributions to genre filmmaking.
Wan's reference to the back shelves of video stores in his Facebook post is a piece of nostalgia that many moviegoers will always hold onto. Even though Malignant will be heading to HBO Max on the same day that it hits theaters, it's exciting to see Wan reach into this style of filmmaking. The trailer very much wears the inspirations he mentioned on its sleeve, as it fits right in with the aesthetic he's aiming for in terms of both its narrative and its visuals. Malignant is looking like it will be an exciting thrill ride and hopefully this won't be the last time that Wan returns to the director's chair for the horror genre.
Source: James Wan