An unsettling James McAvoy won’t allow his guests to leave in the trailer for Speak No Evil. Written and directed by James Watkins, Speak No Evil is the English-language remake of the 2022 Danish film by Christian Tafdrup.
Ben (Scoot McNairy) and Louise Dalton (Mackenzie Davis) travel with their daughter, Agnes (Alix West Lefler), to a picturesque country estate owned by Paddy (McAvoy), whom they met on vacation. Paddy lives with his wife, Ciara (Aisling Franciosi), and son, Ant (Dan Hough). What starts as the perfect getaway becomes a nightmare, as Paddy wages psychological warfare against the Daltons.
“They are going to kill us,” Louise tells Ben as she prepares her family for a fight against Paddy.
Speak No Evil is Watkins’ first horror feature since 2012’s The Woman in Black. The Speak No Evil remake stems from Universal Pictures and Blumhouse Productions, with Jason Blum and Paul Ritchie attached as producers. Upcoming Blumhouse Productions include Afraid, an AI-inspired horror starring John Cho, and The Wolf Man, a remake of the 1941 monster movie of the same name.
In an interview with Tech Reader, Tafdrup, an executive producer on the remake, explained how he set out to disturb the audience and make a relatable horror film without relying on supernatural elements.
“I want them to be disturbed by it because that was one of our main intentions,” Tafdrup said. “But I also wish that they can reflect upon how we live our lives, what we do to ourselves, and maybe we should sometimes be more honest about what we feel, and trust that intuition.”
Speak No Evil arrives in theaters on September 13, 2024.
