Peter Sarsgaard, the actor in movies likeJarheadandDead Man Walking, isset to appear soonin a film that’s been labeled as a bizarre re-imagining of ahorrorclassic.The Bride!, by writer/director Maggie Gyllenhaal (also Sarsgaard’s partner in real life), will offer horror fans a “punk” variation on the gothic horror tale of Frankenstein’s monster when he finds his other half. Though the film has remained under wraps, Sarsgaard has disclosed some details, sayingThe Bride!will surely be controversial with viewers.
According to a report byDeadline, Sarsgaard was recently honored at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival. TheMemoryandJackieactor talked about projects like the vastly overlookedSeptember 5as well as the upcoming adaptation of the cyberpunk heist classicNeuromancer. He also talked aboutThe Bride!, the project that’ll reunite him with Gyllenhaal after she directed him inThe Lost Daughter:
“I’m going to say that it’s going to be controversial. I mean, it’s very punk. It’s very radical in some ways, and the main characters in it are very imperfect. It’s also a love story, basically. It’s about the monster in all of us.”
The 10 Best Frankenstein Movies, Ranked by Rotten Tomatoes
These Rotten Tomatoes rankings of Frankenstein movies are as fresh as the corpses used by Doctor Frankenstein.
The project has been surrounded by controversy since its conception. Some insiders don’t believe that it calls for such a high budget (it’s been reported as $100 million), with Warner Bros. co-CEO Pamela Abdy candidlyaddressing the discourse a few months agoas gender-related:
“It’s so concerning to me, that [media outlet Puck] thinks it’s okay for every male director that’s gone from making an independent film to getting hired to direct a $150 million Marvel film, which is a budget thatThe Bride!does not have, but yet it’s still not okay for Maggie? If it was a male director it would be a non-story, but because it’s a female director …. I’m sorry, it’s just wrong… I don’t know why they’re so focused on Maggie. I do feel it’s a little about her gender — I have to be honest.”
‘The Bride!’ Is Set to Be a Unique Re-Imagining of the Classic Story
AlthoughThe Bride!was rumored to be a musical at some point, it has been confirmed that it’s a straight-up monster horror film. However, Sarsgaard did say that he’ll “certainly dance if given the opportunity. I’m known as the first one on and the last one off the dance floor. I shake it until my moneymaker’s wet.”
The Bride!also stars Jessie Buckleyand Christian Baleas the bride and the monster, respectively. Other performers include Penélope Cruz, John Magaron, Jake Gyllenhaal, Annette Bening, among others. The film’s release has been moved from 2025 to 2026, and now it will land in theaters on March 6. Per the official synopsis listed on Letterboxd:
In the 1930s, a lonely Frankenstein travels to Chicago to seek the aid of a Dr. Euphronius in creating a companion for himself. The two reinvigorate a murdered young woman and the Bride is born. She is beyond what either of them intended, igniting a combustible romance, the attention of the police and a wild and radical social movement.
Source:Deadline
The Bride!
