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Eleanor Worthington-Cox on the Process of Becoming ‘Gwen’

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Eleanor Worthington-Cox

Eleanor Worthington-Cox was only 16 years old when the role of Gwen, the titular character of writer/director William McGregor’s thriller appeared on her radar, and if you ask the young actress, she’ll tell you it was one of the luckiest moments of her life.

Set in the isolated landscape of Northern Wales, Gwen is the story of a young woman who lives with her mother (Maxine Peake) and younger sister (Jodie Innes) on their family farm. As life spins out of control and the local mining company looming over their land, Gwen must step forward and take the lead to save her family and her home.

Worthington-Cox received the script for the film only four to six weeks before shooting began and within the space of two meetings was cast in the role which she calls a dream due to the freedom she was given by McGregor to explore the character.

“It was one of the most unusual jobs I’ve done because while were filming I was able to really create her with Will,” the actress explained in an interview with iHorror. “He spent eight years creating this project and this character. For him to trust me and let me do what I felt was right with the character…that was invaluable.”

That kind of trust was an asset on a project filmed entirely on location dealing with unexpected blizzards and numerous night shoots, but she says that kind of relationship permeated the entire crew and cast as filming progressed.

It especially came in handy with her co-stars.

“Honestly, I can say that it was one of the most rewarding experiences as an actor,” she says of working with Maxine Peake in the role of her mother, Elan. “To tap into that intensity and feel safe in that environment, that’s a rare thing. We managed to forge such a solid working relationship where we had trust and respect for each other so that we could actually deliver something where we had a lot of love underlying all the uncertainty that these characters go through.”

It was young Jodie Innes, however, who became her light through the darkness in a film filled with constantly building dread.

“We had this little six year old on board and she was the most incredible little sister I could have wished to work with,” Worthington-Cox explained. “She’s this little ray of sunshine bouncing around between scenes. It’s hard to feel upset or weighed down by the material when you have that by your side.”

McGregor immersed his cast in the environment of the film, going so far as to find a home that was built in the time period in which Gwen takes place and bringing in crew that was local to the area to repair it and make it “livable.”

“We were in Snowdonia in the wild,” she said. “It really transported us all. When you find yourself in a blizzard at 3 am wearing only a night dress, it not only makes you think about what this young woman would have gone through, but it also makes you appreciate how lucky you are to be able to escape back to a heated room when the scene is finished.”

As I mentioned earlier, the pressures on the character were many. Gwen’s mother falls ill and it’s up to her to take in crops and carry vegetables to market to sell, only to discover that no one will buy from her.

In one pivotal scene, she takes a crucifix hanging on the wall of the home and stares into the fire before finally throwing it into the flames.

“This is the story of a young woman who is keeping her family together despite the pressures of a patriarchal community and a society where it’s almost impossible for someone to have a different belief system,” the actress pointed out. “I think in that moment, Gwen was completely giving up on hope. Her faith, not so much in a God, but in her entire situation had dwindled to nothing at that point in the film.”

Watching Eleanor Worthington-Cox in this role is a bit of a revelation, and it’s not surprising that by the time she was cast as Gwen she’d already earned a BAFTA nomination.

Gwen is out in theaters and available on demand today. Make sure to check out this brilliant young actress in this inspired thriller!

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Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

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Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

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Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

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The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
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Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

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Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

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