‘The Monkey’ Director Teases Gory Stephen King Adaptation With Exploding Bodies

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We’re about more than a month from “The Monkey,” directed by Osgood Perkins, gracing theaters, yet marketing for this newest Stephen King adaptation is already buzzing. Scheduled to premiere on February 21st, the movie revolves around twin brothers who discover their father’s antique monkey toy in the attic, only to witness a series of terrifying deaths occurring mysteriously around them. Perkins teased that these horrifying deaths will involve at least two people undergoing a gruesome explosion.

In an interview with Empire before the upcoming release of “The Monkey” next month, the director of “Longlegs” revealed that although the film falls under the horror genre, it also emphasizes its comedic aspects, which veer towards the absurd. A sneak peek into the movie was provided in a recently released extended clip (see below), and Perkins hinted at even more such scenes filled with exaggerated violence featuring an excessive amount of blood that may not adhere to scientific facts.

If you aim for comedy, it means you go for dramatic extremes rather than subtlety. We often include more blood in our characters than what’s actually found in a human body. In this film, when characters explode (and there are a few instances of this), it results in quite a mess. Every death scene was challenging to create. They all have an intricate chain reaction similar to a Rube Goldberg machine – one event leads to another, and so on.

Featuring Theo James, Tatiana Maslany, Elijah Wood, and Christian Convery among others, “The Monkey” is a film adaptation from Stephen King’s story found in his 1985 collection “Skeleton Crew.” Distributed by Neon, this movie carries an R rating for its strong violent content, graphic scenes, frequent language use, and some sexual references. Given the film’s bizarre appearance, it seems destined to be another box office success, much like Perkins’ previous hit from last year titled “Longlegs.

‘The Monkey’ Is a “Morbidly Surreal Horror Comedy”

In 2024, “Longlegs” was a gritty horror movie that stirred quite a buzz in the genre, but don’t expect the same reaction to “The Monkey”. Perkins himself noted it veers towards the comically absurd, and he went a step further by stating it’s so distinct from his past work that viewers might be taken aback. For him, such a departure is an extraordinary sensation.

I must say, I’m absolutely thrilled by the distinctiveness of “The Monkey” compared to “Longlegs”. It’s hard to find another film that combines morbidly surreal horror comedy with heartwarming and redemptive elements, all while featuring a genuine cinematic heartthrob. This is fantastic news for fans of “Longlegs” – our productions are incredibly diverse. Why settle for the same dish every day?

Besides “The Monkey,” Perkins’ other film distributed by Neon this year will be “Keeper,” a horror movie set for release in 2025. Starring Maslany, the story revolves around a woman who finds herself alone in a cabin and encounters an evil force that uncovers dark secrets. You can catch it in theaters on October 3, while be sure to watch “The Monkey” when it premieres in North America on February 21.

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2025-01-14 21:01