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The Boogeyman might just be the most terrifying Stephen King movie yet.
"The Shining is obviously the scariest Stephen King adaptation," Rob Savage tells SFX magazine in the new issue, featuring Star Trek: Strange New Worlds on the cover. "But I don't think there's been a King adaptation that's as viscerally scary as this movie."
Savage is the director of indie hits Host and Dashcam, the former being a low-budget horror that takes place over the duration of a Zoom call. The clever concept hit home with the right audiences – those of us who were stuck at home during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Host reminds us that the world is scary no matter where we are, even in the comfort of our homes. The Boogeyman marks his first feature-length film with a major studio.
"This movie attacks the source material in a way that's different from any other King adaptation," he continues. "We wanted this to feel true to his writing. Me and [co-screenwriter] Mark [Heyman] were always going back to the warmth of character that you feel in King's novels. Even when the subject matter is dark, there's that glimmer of hope. He's not a cynical writer."
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The Boogeyman is arguably one of King's most twisted tales. It sees Lester Billings attend a therapy session following the murders of his three children. Though two of the deaths were entirely mysterious, there was a common factor between them: the bodies were found in their bedrooms where the wardrobe doors were slightly ajar, despite Lester being sure they were closed. The children also both shouted "Boogeyman!" before their demise…
The movie adaptation follows high schooler Sadie (Yellowjackets' Sophie Thatcher) and her younger sister Sawyer (Vivien Lyra Blair), who begin to notice something is lurking in the shadows of their home. When a desperate patient turns up seeking help from their emotionally avoidant father (Chris Messina), he leaves behind a supernatural creature that preys on the pain of its victims. David Dastmalchian plays Lester.
That's just a snippet of our interview, available in the latest issue of SFX Magazine, which features Strange New Worlds season 2 on the cover and is available on newsstands from Wednesday, May 17. For even more from SFX, sign up to the newsletter, sending all the latest exclusives straight to your inbox.
