Strange Darling had a bumpy production and almost lost its lead; digital release is scheduled for next week

As the digital release of Strange Darling approaches, the writer/director reveals he ran into trouble with execs during the production

Just before Halloween back in 2022, it was announced that Willa Fitzgerald and Kyle Gallner – who both have experience working in the Scream franchise, as Fitzgerald was in the Scream TV series and Gallner appeared in the 2022 Scream movie – were set to star in the “cat and mouse thriller” Strange Darling. The movie was given a theatrical release back in August, and JoBlo’s own Tyler Nichols loved it; you can read his 9/10 review at THIS LINK. Strange Darling is now set to receive a digital release next week, on October 1st, and as we approach that date, writer/director J.T. Mollner and producer Roy Lee have revealed that the film had a bumpy production and almost lost Fitzgerald at the demand of the studio!

Speaking on the podcast The Business with Kim Masters, Mollner revealed that Miramax shut down the production after just two days of filming! Mollner said (with thanks to our friends at Bloody Disgusting for the transcription), “It was very traumatic for me. It took almost six years to get [Strange Darling] off the ground. When we started shooting the movie, we were sending dailies back to the financier, and they just did not like what they were seeing. And I was floored because I really liked what we were shooting. But there were a couple executives who just had different tastes than I do, I think is what it came down to. They said, ‘We hate everything you’re sending us, we’re not enjoying this at all, and we’re not sure if this is going to work.’ We were shut down for almost a week.“

Lee added, “You’ve seen the movie, and you’ve seen how great Willa Fitzgerald’s performance is. They wanted to recast. And I said, ‘you cannot recast this movie.’” As Tyler Nichols said in his review, “Willa Fitzgerald absolutely shines as The Lady. She makes every moment she’s on-screen can’t miss.”

Miramax eventually let production resume. Although they did their own linear cut of the non-linear film, they ended up giving Mollner final cut after his version received positive scores at a test screening. So in the end, Mollner can say, “The movie that you’re seeing is the movie I wanted to make. I’m very happy with how the movie turned out.“

Reviews indicate that Strange Darling will work best if viewers have as little information as possible going in. We previously heard that it has something to do with a spontaneous hookup gone terribly wrong. The official synopsis reveals that nothing is what it seems when a twisted one-night stand spirals into a serial killer’s vicious murder spree. 

As mentioned, Strange Darling was written and directed by J.T. Mollner (Outlaws and Angels). Filming took place in Portland, Oregon. The film was produced by former Miramax CEO Bill Block, Chris Ivan Cevic, Steven Schneider, Roy Lee, and actor Giovanni Ribisi, who also served as the director of photography.

Fitzgerald and Gallner were joined in the cast by Oscar nominee Barbara Hershey (The Entity) and Emmy nominee Ed Begley Jr. (Better Call Saul). According to IMDb, the cast of the film also features Madisen Beaty (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood), Bianca A. Santos (Ouija), Steven Michael Quezada (Breaking Bad), Eugenia Kuzmina (Bad Moms), Denise Grayson (The Social Network), and Duke Mollner – who happens to be the director’s father, and also had a role in Outlaws and Angels.

Have you seen Strange Darling? Will you be watching it once it gets a digital release next week? Let us know by leaving a comment below.