Sumith Prasad
The shooting of Dakota Fanning-starrer ‘The Watchers’ has begun earlier this month. The film, directed by M. Night Shyamalan’s daughter Ishana Night Shyamalan, revolves around Mina (Fanning), an artist who gets stranded in a dense and untouched forest in western Ireland. She seeks safety in a concrete bunker and ends up in a “room with a wall of glass and an electric light that activates at nightfall, when the ‘watchers’ come above ground. Afraid and trapped among strangers, Mina is desperate for answers. Who are the watchers and why are these creatures keeping them imprisoned, keen to watch their every move?” reveals the logline of the film.
Multiple regions in Ireland serve as the filming locations of the film. The shooting of the movie has begun in Wicklow, a town located in the east of Ireland. Adam Driver’s ’65,’ ‘Cocaine Bear,’ ‘Bad Sisters,’ and ‘Normal People’ are some of the projects filmed in and around Wicklow. After filming in the region, the production is expected to move to Galway, a harbor city on Ireland’s west coast. The city is a significant location of ‘The Banshees of Inisherin.’
Dublin, the capital city of Ireland, will also serve as a location. The city is a filming location of renowned projects such as ‘Foundation,’ ‘Euphoria,’ ‘Vikings: Valhalla,’ etc. The production of the movie is progressing, despite the ongoing strike, upon receiving a waiver from the SAG-AFTRA. Since the shooting is not expected to halt due to the SAG-AFTRA strike, we can expect the film to release on June 7, 2024.
Ishana is making her feature film debut with ‘The Watchers.’ The director also wrote the film based on A.M. Shine’s eponymous novel. She had directed six, including the second and third season finales, and wrote or co-wrote ten episodes of Apple TV+’s psychological horror series ‘Servant,’ executive produced by her father M. Night Shyamalan. Ishana served as a co-producer and producer of the series as well. She is also the second unit director of ‘Old’ and ‘Knock at the Cabin.’
Fanning is joining the production of the film after concluding the shooting of Antoine Fuqua’s Denzel Washington-starrer ‘The Equalizer 3.’ Her recent credits include Marge Sherwood in ‘Ripley,’ Susan Elizabeth Ford in ‘The First Lady,’ Sara Howard in ‘The Alienist,’ Squeaky Fromme in ‘Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood,’ Penelope Stern in ‘Ocean’s Eight,’ etc. Georgina Campbell, who plays Claire in ‘Bird Box: Barcelona,’ Tess in ‘Barbarian,’ and Natalie Thompson in ‘Suspicion,’ also plays a significant but undisclosed role. Olwen Fouéré, who plays Áshildur Hofgythja in ‘The Northman’ and Mother Marlene in ‘Mandy,’ plays Madeline in the film as well.
Night Shyamalan and Ashwin Rajan are producing ‘The Watchers’ through their company Blinding Edge Pictures. Nimitt Mankad of Inimitable Pictures also serves as a producer, along with Jo Homewood, who serves as an executive producer. The film is set up at New Line Cinema following a multi-studio bidding war. “We couldn’t be more excited to make Ishana’s first film with The Watchers. Equal parts visual, immersive, and terrifying, the script grips you from the first page and never lets go,” New Line Cinema’s President and Chief Creative Officer Richard Brener said in a statement, through Deadline.
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