M. Night Shyamalan's Trap inspired by Taylor Swift
M. Night Shyamalan's new movie 'Trap' is set at a pop concert, where police have set up an elaborate trap to catch a serial killer and Shyamalan revealed he pitched the movie as "What if 'The Silence of the Lambs' happened at a Taylor Swift concert?"
Taylor Swift inspired M. Night Shyamalan's new movie 'Trap'.
The thriller-mystery movie is set at a pop concert, where police have set up an elaborate trap to catch a serial killer and Shyamalan revealed he pitched the movie as "What if 'The Silence of the Lambs' happened at a Taylor Swift concert?"
Speaking to Empire magazine, he explained: "I directed an entire concert! And it wasn’t just a thing in the background. It’s equally important. There is no pretend concert going on. I love the idea of cinema as windows within windows. One of the reasons to come see the movie at the movie theatre is because there’s literally a real concert that you can see nowhere except in that movie.
"I really do believe in the original movie. I want the industry to move towards more original storytelling. I think audiences would really like it. Look, I know there’s safety in IP. But it’s really important that we come to the movies and see something we’ve never seen before. I’ll keep fighting for that.”
The popstar in the concert is Lady Raven, played by Shyamalan’s daughter, Saleka Shyamalan and the director admitted her own rising music career also influenced the story.
Speaking previously about the movie, star Josh Hartnett called it "very dark".
He told IndieWire: "It’s a pivot. But I try to make all of my roles pivots. If you’re playing the same thing again and again, it gets boring to the audience.
"Working with M. Night was one of the best experiences of my career. I think he’s a true artist in the capitol-A sense of the word.
"And I think people are gonna be really surprised and excited about the movie we make. It’s very bizarre, very dark, and it’s wild.”
The movie is set to be released by Warner Bros Pictures on August 2, as part of an multi-year first look deal with the studio.
In a previous statement, the studio's heads Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy said: "Night is one of the most iconic and influential directors of his generation and an auteur in every sense of the word.
“From ‘The Sixth Sense’ through ‘Split’ to his latest chiller ‘Knock at the Cabin,’ he’s one of the few directors in contemporary cinema whose name alone promises a bold, singular vision, compelling original storytelling and a provocative, surprising and entirely unique experience.
"We couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome him to the Warner Bros. family, and look forward to an exciting collaboration with Night and the entire Blinding Edge team.”
