If you’ve seen Green Room or Blue Ruin, chances are you haven’t forgotten them – dark, searing thrillers with bursts of stomach-churning violence and lashing of claustrophobia. Now director Jeremy Saulnier is back with his third film – and while it doesn’t follow on the colour-themed names, Hold The Dark will continue the other Saulnier traditions. The film, a Netflix original, casts Westworld star Jeffrey Wright as wolf expert Russell Core who ventures to the Alaskan village of Keelut when three children go missing – assumed to be the work of lupine activity.
Empire has an exclusive new image from the film, as seen in the new issue on sale now, showing Alexander Skarsgård as Keelut-dweller Vernon Sloane alongside Beckham Crawford as his son Bailey.
Speaking to Empire, Saulnier revealed that the film includes both more carefully-crafted character moments – and even more blood and guts than his previous work. “This film has so many firsts for me,” he said. “It has my record number of intimate dialogue scenes and my highest body count. It has my first war scene, my first aerial sequence, my first time working extensively with animals. So in that regard it was a huge challenge.”
Read more about Hold The Dark in Empire’s Greatest Star Wars Characters issue, on sale now. The film arrives on Netflix on 28 September.
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