First look images from coming supernatural horror The Punishing have arrived, and the cast alone is worth the attention. Cara Delevingne is headlining the marketplace horror film alongside Star Wars alum John Boyega. This is a project that has already started to heat up at Cannes.
The film is written and directed by Chris Sparling of Buried and currently in post. Based on Scandinavian folklore it is set on a remote Icelandic island. A place “where a man miraculously recovers from a terminal illness. But his wife soon discovers the land’s healing powers come at a terrifying price.”
That foundation is a killer. A miraculous recovery may sound promising. What happens next definitely is not.
In addition to acting, Boyega is also producing alongside Steven Schneider of Spooky Pictures. William Shockley and Tom Brady of Tiki Tane Pictures are also producing. Luke Daniels of Redwire Pictures and Andrew Corkin of Uncorked Productions. Co-stars include Shockley, Elin Petersdottir, Elle Haymond and Thorvaldur Kristjansson.
Ignite, which is handling international sales and starting to make deals at Cannes. They are joined by WME Independent and UTA Independent Film Group for domestic rights.
For Delevingne, this is a natural next step into genre territory. The Punishing will signal another genre move on her part after starring alongside Kim Kardashian and Emma Roberts in Ryan Murphy‘s American Horror Story: Delicate. Boyega is also building a post-Star Wars filmography with bold, varied choices.
Sparling is a natural fit for this type of material. He has already shown that his debut feature Buried could build dread with very few resources. A folklore tale set in the remote Icelandic landscape obviously plays to that instrumental strength.
The film follows a desperate couple forced to confront a centuries-old curse. Putting both their love and survival into question. The tension between two people held under impossible circumstances is precisely where Sparling is great.
No release date has been announced yet. As sales begin kicking off at Cannes, deals in all territories are expected to come subsequent. The Punishing is one of the more exciting titles in the mix this year.
