The Strangers: Chapter 1
Renny Harlin is the director of the upcoming American horror thriller film The Strangers: Chapter 1, which is based on a story by Bryan Bertino and features a screenplay by Alan R. Cohen and Alan Freedland. Starring as a couple on a road trip, Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez encounter the three psychotic strangers wearing masks.
As the first of a new trilogy of stand-alone films, Chapter 1 will act as a prequel to the first film and follow a similar premise to the first, taking place in the same continuity as the first two installments. It is the third installment in Bertino’s Strangers film series.
On May 8, 2024, The Strangers: Chapter 1 is slated to make its world premiere at Regal L.A. Live. Lionsgate Films is scheduled to release it on May 17, 2024. Later in 2024, Chapters 2 and 3 are scheduled for release.
Production
Producer Roy Lee declared in August 2022 that three movies will go into production one after the other starting in September of that same year.[5] Although he was in talks to direct all of the movies, Renny Harlin was revealed as the director of at least one of them.[6] Lionsgate Films, Fifth Element Productions, and Frame Film created the trilogy, which Lionsgate will distribute.
Harlin’s directorship of the three impending films was revealed later in 2022; the first of the new trilogy is based on a narrative by Bryan Bertino and a script by Alan R. Cohen and Alan Freedland.The three films were assigned to producers Courtney Solomon, Mark Canton, Christopher Milburn, Gary Raskin, Charlie Dombeck, and Alastair Birlingham.[7] Producer Canton has stated that the goal of the new trilogy, which is a relaunch of the series, is to bring the “world of The Strangers” to new viewers.
According to Solomon, the goal of the project was to “expand that world” in addition to telling a larger story than before. As a “character study” in contrast to the first two movies, the producer characterizes the three movies. The performers and director later stated that the new trilogy of films is set in the same universe as the first two films.
Cast
- Madelaine Petsch as Maya
- Froy Gutierrez as Ryan
- Rachel Shenton
- Gabriel Basso
- Ema Horvath
- Ella Bruccoleri
Filming
Madelaine Petsch, Froy Gutierrez, and Gabriel Basso were cast in September 2022.[3] Ema Horvath’s casting was revealed in October of 2022.[12] Rachel Shenton joined the cast the next month.[13]
In September 2022, principal photography on all three films began in Bratislava, Slovakia[3] and concluded in November of the same year.
It was “the challenge of a lifetime, but I also really embraced it,” Harlin said to Entertainment Weekly. I could be filming the first chapter in the afternoon on Monday, the second chapter on Monday morning, and the third chapter on Tuesday morning. It was really hard on the performers, my director of photography, and the continuity of the makeup and costume since the goal was to construct a visual language that would grow and become more epic as the movies progressed. It simply kept our adrenaline flowing constantly.”
