Scott Cooperis an interesting filmmaker. He’s traversed a variety of genres, from musical (Crazy Heart) to gangster film (Black Mass) to dark drama (Out of the Furnace), but through it all there’s an inherent honesty that makes these films distinctly Cooper’s. He’s flirted with other kinds of genres before as he was attached to direct an adaptation ofStephen King’sThe Standat one point, and now he’s poised to make his debut in the horror genre withAntlers. Based on a short story, the film follows an elementary school teacher who takes in a troubled student that harbors a mysterious family secret with deadly consequences.
The project was announced a few months ago withGuillermo del Toroproducing, and it gained new notoriety last week when Fox Searchlight announceda new overall deal that will see del Toro producinga slate of films for theShape of Waterstudio. The first of those films could beAntlers, and when Collider’s own Steve Weintraub recently spoke with Cooper for the Blu-ray release of his WesternHostileson April 24th, the filmmaker teased his take onAntlersand what fans can expect.
To begin, Cooper said there are actually two projects vying for first position as his next film:Antlersand his Martin Luther King Jr. assassination dramaHellhound on His Trail:
“AntlersI’m developing with Guillermo, I’ve been working on that as well as a screenplay calledHellhound on His Trailabout the assassination of Dr. King and the manhunt for James Earl Ray.”
As for which is his next movie, Cooper saidAntlersmay have the edge and teased a tone in line with some exciting horror classics:
“Well I’m currently developingAntlers, [it andHellhound on His Trail] are both kind of moving in sync, but it feels likeAntlersmight take the pole position. I’m working with the writers now before I start writing on it. But I’m in the process of really developing that with Guillermo and it’s been a lot of fun, and very different for me. I was so influenced early on by the work of John Carpenter, likeHalloween, or certainlyThe Exorcistwhich is a favorite of mine, or even Tarkovsky’sStalker. So I’m able to bring all of that into one film which is exciting.”
Cooper says it’s his unfamiliarity with the horror genre that partially spurred del Toro to tap him forAntlers:
“[Guillermo] said I’ve obviously never seen you direct a horror film, but there’s a lot of horrific moments in your movies, so I’m more interested in someone who doesn’t work in that genre to step into it. Which is I guess a bit like Friedkin in a sense, having not directing in that genre before he took onThe Exorcist. So I find that exciting, I’ve made my musical of sorts and my personal film withOut of the Furnaceand my anti-gangster gangster movie, and then the Western… [Guillermo is] fantastic and so supportive and wildly imaginative, so it’s really been a great collaboration. I’m very fortunate that he asked me to do this.”
Having directed a horror film before isn’t a prerequisite for making a great horror film, as evidenced byJohn Krasinski’sA Quiet Place, and one imagines Cooper’s sensibilities will result in a very visceral kind of movie.
Finally, if you missed what Cooper told us about HBO passing on aShadow Countryadaptation from withJeff BridgesandDavid Milch,click here to check it out.
