I’ve never actually thought about what my chances are of getting swallowed by a whale, but after watching this new trailer for Whalefall, it’s now my #1 fear. No ocean for me.
Whalefall follows a young scuba diver searching for his father’s remains in the ocean, but wouldn’t you know it, he’s swallowed by a sperm whale, leaving him only an hour to escape. Oh, there’s also a pissed-off squid in there as well. The trailer looks suitably intense and has all the makings of a fun survival thriller. Sign me up.
The film is based on the novel by Daniel Kraus, who co-wrote the script with Duffield. The film stars Austin Abrams (Resident Evil), Elisabeth Shue (The Karate Kid), Josh Brolin (No Country for Old Men), John Ortiz (The Madness), Jane Levy (Evil Dead), and Emily Rudd (Fear Street Part Two: 1978).
Whalefall will hit theaters on October 16.
As much of the film takes place inside the whale, the production team built various parts of the giant creature. “Half of the whale’s head, including its bottom jaw and mouth, was a big animatronic in a tank,” Duffield told Empire. “There was a tongue puppet of sorts, though it wasn’t necessarily puppeteered, because as you can see, there’s not a lot of space in there. Every trick in the book, we had at some point. Austin is physically in a whale mouth, there’s no green screen in the water. He’s really down there in a scuba suit, breathing real air, screaming, struggling, with jets of current shooting at him.“
Abrams did nearly all the stunts himself, which Duffield said definitely added to the genuine terror his character is experiencing. “Almost all the stunts in the movie are done by Austin,” he said. “It’s always nerve-wracking when your actor is scuba diving and doing stunts. There was never a moment where he was remotely phoned-in. He could not have given more to this movie.“