Neon did a great job putting together intriguingly strange marketing material for director Osgood Perkins’ horror film Longlegs last year, and it paid off, as the film earned more than $125 million at the global box office. Over $74 million of that was the domestic haul, making that film Neon’s highest-grossing release domestically. The marketing for Perkins’ Stephen King adaptation The Monkey was less intriguing, but the movie still did fine when it was released this past February, pulling in almost $64 million worldwide. Coming up next from the Neon / Perkins collaboration is the dark trip horror movie Keeper, which is expected to reach theatres on November 14th, and Neon is once again coming up with an interesting marketing campaign. It began with the promotional video “It has no end,” then a poster for the film was unveiled, sporting the tagline “I don’t like you anymore.” But that’s not all there was to it. When Neon shared the poster on social media, it came with a quote: “I don’t want to play in your yard, I don’t like you anymore. You’ll be sorry when you see me sliding down our cellar door.” Some may recognize that from the song “I Don’t Want to Play in Your Yard,” which was written in 1894. More recently, a new teaser trailer dropped online and can be seen in the embed above. Not only does this give a better idea of what’s going on in the movie, but it’s also like two teasers in one, with each being told from the perspective of a different character. Now, Perkins has given a bit more insight into the movie during an interview with Empire.
Perkins directs Keeper from a script by Nick Lepard (Dangerous Animals), with Tatiana Maslany (She-Hulk: Attorney at Law) and Rossif Sutherland (Possessor) in starring roles. The story follows a couple as they escape for a romantic anniversary weekend at a secluded cabin. When Malcolm (Sutherland) suddenly returns to the city, Liz (Maslany) finds herself isolated and in the presence of an unspeakable evil that unveils the cabin’s horrifying secrets.
A few months ago, Perkins and his producing partner Chris Ferguson launched their production banner Phobos with backing from Neon, signing a first-look deal with the company. Deadline reported that, “under the first-look deal, Neon will house films that Perkins writes and directs, as well as those he produces for other filmmakers. Neon will release the features theatrically in the U.S. and represent the international rights. Perkins will continue to work with producer Brian Kavanaugh-Jones of Range.”
Speaking with Empire, Perkins said, “There are certain hinges in any relationship. It’s our first time meeting the parents, it’s our first time [out] in the country. (Keeper) just focuses on one of those, and it gets pretty ragged. Something lives at the cabin. Of course it does. It’s been there a minute, and it’s had its way with lots of people before it [has] its way with Liz and Malcolm. I’m taking the opportunity to examine, ‘What’s the worst version of a man in a relationship, and how does [Liz] bring her own stuff to it?’ I think that Keeper created an opportunity to find the monster in a relationship.“
What do you think of what Osgood Perkins had to say about his new movie? Are you looking forward to Keeper? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
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