The first official trailer for the upcoming Hammer Films' Doctor Jekyll has finally arrived just in time for spooky season!
Robert Louis Stevenson’s novella Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde has been adapted countless times over the years, but in this new version the titular doctor is a trans woman played by famed transgender comedian Suzy Eddie Izzard.
In the film, Izzard takes on the dual role of the wealthy and reclusive Dr. Nina Jekyll and her terrifying other half Rachel Hyde. Scott Chambers plays Rob, an ex-con and young father who has been hired as an assistant for Dr. Jekyll, but once inside the sprawling mansion a cat-and-mouse game between the two begins. Robyn Cara, Morgan Watkins, Jonathan Hyde, Simon Callow, and Lindsay Duncan also star.
“There’ve been over 100 cinematic adaptations of Stevenson’s novella, but there has never been a trans Dr. Jekyll,” director Joe Stephenson told Fangoria in a interview earlier this year. “There seem to be some assumptions that because Nina is a trans character, we are somehow going to make it about gender. That is not the case; the themes of our film are true to the original work.”
We can't wait to see a fresh take on classic this spooky tale!
Doctor Jekyll will premiere in theaters in the UK on October 27. There is no word yet on when it will arrive in the US.
Suzy Eddie Izzard is chewing up the scenery in the trailer for Doctor Jekyll! She is alternately charming and creepy, which is exactly what we want from someone playing this dual role. But on top of the great performance we're also getting a trans take on a classic story.
We are loving the red lip and blond locks Izzard is sporting in the trailer!
No gothic horror movie is completed without a sprawling mansion out in the countryside. Between the wrought iron gates and winding hallways we spotted in the trailer we can't wait to be creeped out by the setting.
At this point we are all being surveilled everywhere we go, but there is something especially sinister about being watched while inside a home. This is especially true in horror movies where this modern trope is often employed to terrifying effect.
In the trailer you see Chamber's character Rob peeking through a key hole, Izzard smoking in a darkened doorway and a creepy chess game. Combine that with the unsettling score and our spines are tingling!
Watch the trailer for Doctor Jekyll below.
