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Tag: madelaine-petsch

  • ‘The Strangers – Chapter 3’ Interview: Madelaine Petsch

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    Opening in theaters on February 6th is ‘The Strangers – Chapter 3‘, which is the third and final installment of the new trilogy that was filmed all at once and is based on 2008’s ‘The Strangers’.

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    Once again directed by Renny Harlin (‘Die Hard 2’ and ‘Cliffhanger’), the sequel features returning franchise stars Madelaine Petsch (‘Riverdale’), Gabriel Basso (‘A House of Dynamite’), Ema Horvath (‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’), and Richard Brake (‘Batman Begins’).

    Madelaine Petsch stars in 'The Strangers - Chapter 3'.
    Madelaine Petsch stars in ‘The Strangers – Chapter 3’.

    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Madelaine Petsch about her work on ‘The Strangers – Chapter 3’, shooting all three films at once, what her character is going through in the new movie, if she is happy with the ending, working with legendary director Renny Harlin, and what she’ll remember most about the experience.

    You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interview.

    Related Article: Director Renny Harlin Talks Horror Sequel ‘The Strangers – Chapter 2’

    Madelaine Petsch as “Maya,” in the horror film 'The Strangers - Chapter 3', a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
    Madelaine Petsch as “Maya,” in the horror film ‘The Strangers – Chapter 3’, a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.

    Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about the challenges of shooting three movies at the same time and now that the final installment is being released, how do you feel about fans finally seeing the conclusion of the trilogy?

    Madelaine Petsch: How much time do you have to talk about challenges of shooting three movies at once? It’s quite a thing. I mean, time was a challenge, keeping track of where my character is, not only just emotionally, but physically with my wounds, my limp and how that evolves over time, knowing we want to end without that limp and how do we get there. So, it was so much technicality and then also trying to remove the technicality from the artistry when I’m in front of the camera. It was so much in prep, everything happened in prep. Now that it’s out, I think the other challenge was editing. I mean, we edited ‘Chapter 1’, we edited ‘Chapter 2’, and then by the time we edited the second one, we’re like, “Oh, ‘Chapter 3’ can evolve as this character has evolved naturally through editing in a completely different way.” So, we went and enhanced it with a 15-day reshoot for ‘Chapter 3’. We almost created an entirely new film, which was crazy to see and experience. Also, it was crazy to go back and become Maya again two and a half years later. But there’s endless challenges to that, and endless rewards to it because as an artist, to put yourself through such an insane bootcamp and come out, I believe, victorious is something I’m proud of.

    MF: Can you talk about where we left Maya at the end of the second film and where we find her at the start of ‘Chapter 3’?

    MP: Where we leave Maya is she’s accidentally or not so accidentally, killed Pin-Up Girl (Ema Horvath) after seeing that the people who saved her on the street are dead in their home and knowing that the Strangers are nearby and close. She’s meant to be saved by this ambulance and ultimately is not saved and kills Pin-Up Girl. Then, she’s watching in the woods as Scarecrow mourns Pin-Up Girl. I think that’s when the receptors start clicking for her that these aren’t just people who know each other. They have real intimate relationships and she’s just taken away an important person to this guy, and he’s going to come after her. You pick up in ‘Chapter 3’, literally right where you left off. That last scene in ‘Chapter 2’ is exactly where we start in ‘Chapter 3’. You don’t miss anything. She is no longer fighting to survive. I think she’s angry and more fed up and wants to fight back.

    (L to R) Madelaine Petsch as Maya and Gabriel Basso as Gregory in 'The Strangers - Chapter 3'. Photo Credit: John Armour.
    (L to R) Madelaine Petsch as Maya and Gabriel Basso as Gregory in ‘The Strangers – Chapter 3’. Photo Credit: John Armour.

    MF: As an actress, are you happy with the way the story ends for your character, and do you think fans will be satisfied with the conclusion of the series?

    MP: I’m very satisfied with it. I love the moral gray area that we play with in the final moments of this movie. I like watching her not know what she’s going to do in that final scene. I really do believe she walked in and had no idea which direction she was going to go in. I think even after she’s made her decision, there are moments of what is she going to do next? I don’t think we all know what her direction is in life. Although I think there is a large section of horror fans who want totality and want answers, there’s also an equally large portion that likes it open-ended and likes questions, although there is a wrapped-up scenario at the end. There is a lot of open-endedness and “what do you think she does next? Who do you think she’s become? What is she left with?” I like conversation around horror films. That’s the personal kind of film that I like. But there’s a large section of people who wants a finished product. So, I think it will be divisive, but that’s my favorite kind of filmmaking.

    MF: What was it like working with director Renny Harlin on this series and what did you learn from watching the way he executed his vision for this trilogy?

    MP: It’s so funny because every director has such a specific style in the way that they operate. It is my job to become a chameleon to that. I have this amazing video of Renny crawling on the floor the way he had imagined me crawling. I had this moment where I was like, “Renny Harlin is in front of me crawling through leaves right now. What is my life?” He’s a behemoth director. He’s wonderful and he’s so specific about the way he wants to shoot things and the way that he wants things to come together. But he’s also very collaborative, which I think is a rare combination to have as a director who’s so accomplished. He’ll come and say to me, “Okay, I really want to open this with a big crane shot where it reveals you this way. I wanted you standing here. What is your intuition? Where do you want to be?” I think that kind of humility in somebody as big as him is cool and I got lucky. I have so many wonderful things to say about Renny.

    (L to R) Renny Harlin, Madelaine Petsch and Courtney Solomon at San Diego Comic-Con 2025.
    (L to R) Renny Harlin, Madelaine Petsch and Courtney Solomon at San Diego Comic-Con 2025.

    MF: Finally, what will you remember most about the shooting this trilogy?

    MP: That I’m literally a crazy person for signing onto three movies to shoot all at one time. Who is that girl, honestly? The things that I do are just insane, but I’m proud of it. I got to learn a lot about being a producer and how to edit and how that process works. I got a great relationship with Lionsgate, who I consider family now and (Producer) Courtney (Solomon) and Renny. So, I have nothing but good things to say about this process. I feel very lucky.

    A scene from 'The Strangers - Chapter 3'. Photo Credit: Jordy Clarke/Lionsgate.
    A scene from ‘The Strangers – Chapter 3’. Photo Credit: Jordy Clarke/Lionsgate.

    What is the plot of ‘The Strangers – Chapter 3’?

    Tethered by a frightening conclusion, Maya (Madelaine Petsch) and the Strangers are locked on an unavoidable, unforgiving collision course — a showdown that proves they’re far from strangers now.

    Who is in the cast of ‘The Strangers – Chapter 3’?

    • Madelaine Petsch as Maya
    • Gabriel Basso as Gregory
    • Ema Horvath as Shelly
    • Richard Brake as Sheriff Rotter
    'The Strangers – Chapter 3' opens in theaters on February 6th.
    ‘The Strangers – Chapter 3’ opens in theaters on February 6th.

    List of Movies in ‘The Strangers’ Franchise:

    Buy Tickets: ‘The Strangers: Chapter 3’ Movie Showtimes

    Buy Renny Harlin Movies on Amazon

     

  • ‘The Strangers: Chapter 2’ Interview: Director Renny Harlin

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    Opening in theaters on September 26th is the sequel to last year’s remake of ‘The Strangers’ entitled ‘The Strangers: Chapter 2’, which was directed by Renny Harlin (‘Die Hard 2’ and ‘Cliffhanger’), and stars Madelaine Petsch (‘Riverdale’), Gabriel Basso (‘The Night Agent’), and Ema Horvath (‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’).

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    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with director Renny Harlin about his work on ‘The Strangers: Chapter 2′, where the new movie starts off, revealing the Strangers’ backstory, and the challenges of shooting Chapters 1-3 at the same time.

    'The Strangers – Chapter 2' Panel At San Diego Comic-Con International 2025 at San Diego Convention Center on July 24, 2025 in San Diego, California. Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Lionsgate.
    ‘The Strangers – Chapter 2’ Panel At San Diego Comic-Con International 2025 at San Diego Convention Center on July 24, 2025 in San Diego, California. Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Lionsgate.

    You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Harlin, and Madelaine Petsch.

    Related Article: Renny Harlin Talks ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’ and the Franchise’s Future

    'The Strangers – Chapter 2' director Renny Harlin.
    ‘The Strangers – Chapter 2’ director Renny Harlin.

    Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about where ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’ left off and where we find Maya when ‘Chapter 2’ begins?

    Renny Harlin: Our whole concept for the three chapters was that we would take the original movie, use it as a premise in our first chapter, set the stage, and play with the idea of what if the female lead didn’t die as she apparently did in the original movie? What if she didn’t die? What would happen the next day? Basically, these three movies that we made take place in four days, and it’s like one, four-and-a-half-hour movie that is chopped up into three pieces. So, we left her in the first movie with her fiancé having been brutally murdered by these home intruders, but she doesn’t die. We find her in a local little hospital in the same town where the murder has happened. She wakes up in the hospital and she realizes her fiancé is gone, and she’s survived, but things are about to get much worse.

    'The Strangers – Chapter 2' opens in theaters on September 26th.
    ‘The Strangers – Chapter 2’ opens in theaters on September 26th.

    MF: Can you talk about your choice to explore the backstory of the Strangers in this chapter?

    RH: Well, we felt that there were two parts to this mystery. One was exploring our final girl, our survivor, Maya, and her psychological landscape. Where do you go after this brutal event, and when it continues, are you going to just fall apart and give up, or are you going to fight or flight? Then the other side of the coin is the Strangers, is the movie is called ‘The Strangers’. You can ask the people who go into this town, are they the Strangers, or are the killers, the Strangers? Anybody can have their own opinion, but we wanted to explore them more, and I think the great thing about the original movie and our whole series is that there’s no rhyme or reason for these crimes. We’re not going to explain why this person does this. It’s not because this event happened to them and its revenge or something like that. Serial killers don’t have any motive except that they are serial killers, and they usually pick their victims randomly. So, we wanted to look under the hood a little bit and give the audience some clues to what makes these people tick. In the second movie, you’ll find out maybe something about the identities and then in the third movie, you will find out a lot more. But why they do it and so on, will probably always be a mystery, because it is the randomness of these attacks that is so terrifying, and that’s how most of these kinds of horrible killings happen all over America, unfortunately, in real life.

    Madelaine Petsch as Maya in 'The Strangers — Chapter 2'. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Lionsgate.
    Madelaine Petsch as Maya in ‘The Strangers — Chapter 2’. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Lionsgate.

    MF: Finally, can you talk about the challenges and the advantages of shooting three movies at once?

    RH: Absolutely. It was a challenge. It was a privilege and a challenge, because as a filmmaker, when do you get to explore your characters for four and a half hours in one go? Never. On the other hand, the fact that we were shooting three movies together, we couldn’t shoot chronologically. We couldn’t say, let’s shoot movie one now and then movie two and then movie three. To make it economically, and practically viable, we must use whatever locations we had in common between the movies, and there were some key locations that play a part in each movie. For example, the house, you know, it’s a home invasion. So, the first movie takes place almost entirely in the house. Then that house will still play a certain kind of a role in the subsequent movies, but, much smaller. Then there are some other locations, a hospital or the diner in the town that will appear in all the chapters. When we were in the house, we were going to shoot everything in the house. That means that sometimes we could be shooting Monday morning, we could be in the second chapter and Monday afternoon in the first chapter and then Tuesday morning in the third chapter. It was challenging for everybody in the crew, from the makeup and the art department to wardrobe, and to the actors, of course, and especially to Madelaine, having to emotionally be able to go from one place to another like this quickly. For me to keep track of like, okay, where are we in the story, what’s happening now? What’s the tempo, what’s the style? Where are the characters emotionally? So, I made this chart where I went through all the three scripts, or the one very long script, then charted exactly where I think the character is emotionally in each scene. Because if you have a dramatic scene, she’s screaming and she’s crying. But then when you string those scenes together, you will end up with just like one big crying and screaming thing for one and a half hours. So, you must dole it out in the right amount and doses and the key was really to always remember, where are we emotionally now? Are we at the low or the high or the middle or whatever?

    Madelaine Petsch as Maya in 'The Strangers — Chapter 2'. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Lionsgate.
    Madelaine Petsch as Maya in ‘The Strangers — Chapter 2’. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Lionsgate.

    What is the plot of ‘The Strangers: Chapter 2’?

    The Strangers are back – more brutal and relentless than ever. When they learn that one of their victims, Maya (Madelaine Petsch), is still alive, they return to finish what they’ve started. With nowhere to run and no one to trust, Maya must survive another horrific chapter of terror as The Strangers – driven by a senseless, unceasing purpose – pursue her, more than willing to kill anyone who stands in their way.

    Who is in the cast of ‘The Strangers: Chapter 2’?

    • Madelaine Petsch as Maya Lucas
    • Gabriel Basso as Gregory
    • Ema Horvath as Shelly
    'The Strangers – Chapter 2' opens in theaters on September 26th.
    ‘The Strangers – Chapter 2’ opens in theaters on September 26th.

    List of Movies in ‘The Strangers’ Franchise:

    'The Strangers: Chapter 1' director Renny Harlin.
    ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’ director Renny Harlin.

    List of Renny Harlin Movies:

    Buy Tickets: ‘The Strangers: Chapter 2’ Movie Showtimes

    Buy Renny Harlin Movies on Amazon

     

  • San Diego Comic-Con 2025: ‘The Strangers – Chapter 2’ Interviews

    (L to R) Renny Harlin, Courtney Solomon, Madelaine Petsch pictured with the strangers at San Diego Comic-Con 2025.
    (L to R) Renny Harlin, Courtney Solomon, Madelaine Petsch pictured with the strangers at San Diego Comic-Con 2025.

    Preview: 

    • ‘The Strangers – Chapter 2’ attended San Diego Comic-Con 2025 ahead of its September release.
    • Director Renny Harlin, Producer Courtney Solomon, and star Madelaine Petsch were in attendance.
    • The filmmakers and star reveal behind-the-scenes details about the upcoming film.

    The upcoming horror film, ‘The Strangers – Chapter 2‘, came to San Diego Comic-Con 2025 ahead of the September 26, 2025 release. The film follows three masked maniacs who return to finish the job after they discover one of their victims is still alive. With nowhere to run and no one to trust, Maya (Madelaine Petsch) soon finds herself in a brutal fight for survival against psychopaths who are more than willing to kill anyone who stands in their way.

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    Director Renny Harlin (‘Die Hard 2‘, ‘Exorcist: The Beginning‘), Producer Courtney Solomon (‘Arthur the King‘), and star Madelaine Petsch (‘Riverdale‘) spoke with Moviefone about their new film, revealing the challenges of filming Chapter 1, Chapter 2, and Chapter 3 at the same time. They also tease Maya’s arc and evolution through the next two movies.

    Related Article: Renny Harlin Talks ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’ and the Franchise’s Future

    ‘The Strangers – Chapter 2’ Will Explore The Evolution Of Maya From Victim To Final Girl

    'The Strangers – Chapter 2' Panel At San Diego Comic-Con International 2025 at San Diego Convention Center on July 24, 2025 in San Diego, California. Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Lionsgate.
    ‘The Strangers – Chapter 2’ Panel At San Diego Comic-Con International 2025 at San Diego Convention Center on July 24, 2025 in San Diego, California. Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Lionsgate.

    Producer Courtney Solomon discusses how Maya will evolve through the next two chapters, explaining that we have seen her as a victim, and she is going to become so much more than that.

    Courtney Solomon: We did ‘Chapter One’ for the reason we did ‘Chapter One’. It is what it is and she is a victim. But what if, unlike a normal final girl, where in act one of the movie, suddenly they’re killing everybody. Is that really real? I’m not saying it’s not fun. I love those movies. Don’t get me wrong. But what we were trying to do is say, how long would that really take? So let’s just make her a victim in the first movie. Even then, a normal person goes to kill another person, even to defend themselves. How easy is that transition in real life? If you lined up 100 people, how many would really do it? How many would really have the guts to pick up a knife and stab you in the chest and kill you? So actually, we’re deep in character in chapter two and chapter three. You’re seeing somebody that by the end of this thing, and also just for how disturbing the original Strangers was, Chapter two is intense as hell, but it’s a bridge. Chapter three is really disturbing and twisted in a really good way.

    Madelaine Petsch Filled A Binder with Notes To Stay On Track While Filming

    'The Strangers – Chapter 2' Panel At San Diego Comic-Con International 2025 at San Diego Convention Center on July 24, 2025 in San Diego, California. Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Lionsgate.
    ‘The Strangers – Chapter 2’ Panel At San Diego Comic-Con International 2025 at San Diego Convention Center on July 24, 2025 in San Diego, California. Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Lionsgate.

    Madelaine Petsch admits that the most challenging part of filming one large movie, that is being released in three parts, at the same time, was trying to keep everything straight. They did not film back-to-back, but rather one on top of each other.

    Madelaine Petsch: Honestly, making sure I understand where I am in the story. But the minute I walked into it being one long film, one insatiably long film, I was able to really understand how to break down the character. But it was really about making sure that I was constantly in the right development and right stage of her at all times. So I had like probably 150 pages of notes. And that’s me being conservative. I brought a thick binder to set every day. That was like, OK, today we’re shooting scene two from movie three. Let me go back and look at what happened. I had all these notes of everything that was going on so I could always make sure I knew I was informed by the decisions she’d made previously, but also did not know what was coming next.

    Director Renny Harlin Was Thrilled To Expand The Lore Of The Strangers

    'The Strangers – Chapter 2' Panel At San Diego Comic-Con International 2025 at San Diego Convention Center on July 24, 2025 in San Diego, California. Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Lionsgate.
    ‘The Strangers – Chapter 2’ Panel At San Diego Comic-Con International 2025 at San Diego Convention Center on July 24, 2025 in San Diego, California. Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Lionsgate.

    Getting to expand on the lore of the Strangers is something that Director Renny Harlin was most excited to explore.

    Renny Harlin: We wanted to make a four and a half hour movie that is broken into three chapters that really in an extraordinary way gets to explore, first of all, the victim and what happens to a person who gets brutally attacked like this and how far can they go until they snap. And then also to explore the strangers in this case and not to tell the audience everything about them and give reasons like, oh, why are they doing this? Because serial killers, they are random killers. They don’t do it for revenge or any normal reason like that. But to be able to expand all these things was just a fantastic opportunity.

    (L to R) Renny Harlin, Madelaine Petsch and Courtney Solomon at San Diego Comic-Con 2025.
    (L to R) Renny Harlin, Madelaine Petsch and Courtney Solomon at San Diego Comic-Con 2025.

    List of Renny Harlin Movies:

    Buy Renny Harlin Movies on Amazon

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  • Movie Review: ‘The Strangers – Chapter 1’

    'The Strangers: Chapter 1'.
    ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’. Photo Credit: John Armour.

    Opening in theaters May 17 is ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1,’ directed by Renny Harlin and starring Madelaine Petsch, Froy Gutierrez, Ema Horvath, and Rachel Shenton.

    Related Article: Renny Harlin Talks ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’ and the Franchise’s Future

    Initial Thoughts

    (L to R) Froy Gutierrez as “Ryan” and Madelaine Petsch as “Maya” in 'The Strangers' Trilogy, a Lionsgate release.
    (L to R) Froy Gutierrez as “Ryan” and Madelaine Petsch as “Maya” in ‘The Strangers’ Trilogy, a Lionsgate release. Photo Credit: John Armour for Lionsgate.

    Since ‘The Strangers’ came out in 2008, its reputation as a stone-cold horror classic has grown. And with good reason: the movie – about a troubled couple besieged in their home by three masked strangers for no discernible reason – is legitimately terrifying. Writer-director Bryan Bertino’s frightening little gem took viewers by surprise with the relentless and utterly unexplainable nature of the assault, while putting two characters who are already at odds when we meet them into a situation where they will either live or die in the last place they want to be at that moment.

    A sequel, ‘The Strangers: Prey at Night,’ tried to capture that same feeling with mixed results. And now we have a prequel, ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1,’ that is essentially a step-by-step remake of the original, with some details changed and others missing, that fails on almost every level. There is no surprise, no underlying tension, not even much of a dynamic between our two leads, who are pretty, bland, and utterly uninteresting. By its second half, ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’ just becomes an exercise in sadism because we already know how it ends.

    Story and Direction

    Froy Gutierrez, Madelaine Petsch and director Renny Carlin on the set of 'The Strangers: Chapter 1'.
    (L to R) Froy Gutierrez, Madelaine Petsch and director Renny Carlin on the set of ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’. Photo Credit: John Armour.

    Maya (Madelaine Petsch) and Ryan (Froy Gutierrez) are driving through the Pacific Northwest to get to a job interview that Maya has with an architectural firm (a convenient plot point that seems only thrown in to advance another plot point later on). They’re young, cute, and perfectly happy. Well, almost: Maya has decided that she wants to get married after years of not being interested in formalizing the relationship. In a flip from the original – where Liv Tyler’s Kristen adamantly didn’t want to marry Scott Speedman’s James – Ryan is the one who’s hesitant. But not so much that it disrupts our perky pair’s idyllic trip – a source of tension that elevated ‘The Strangers.’

    Of course, their car breaks down in a small Oregon town, where – in one of the hoariest cliches in the horror playbook – just about everyone either acts suspiciously or actively seems like they’re in cahoots with the family from ‘The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.’ This is a development that basically goes nowhere, however, and seems merely set up to kill some time until the couple end up at an Airbnb nestled so deep in the forest that one might expect a few Ents to show up.

    Madelaine Petsch as Maya in 'The Strangers: Chapter 1'.
    Madelaine Petsch as Maya in ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’. Photo Credit: John Armour.

    Sure enough, Maya and Ryan have barely settled into the decently-appointed cabin in the woods when they get a knock at the door and a shadowy female figure asks if Tamara is there – the cue that Maya and Ryan’s night is about to turn very bad. It’s a while before the three masked intruders finally launch their attack, but in the meantime they make noises around the house while Ryan goes out to find some vegan food and Madelaine takes a shower, giving director Renny Harlin a chance to wring what meager suspense he can out of the situation.

    And that’s basically it: the rest of the movie follows the same path as the original ‘Strangers,’ even down to Ryan finding a gun and accidentally shooting an innocent person who shows up at the wrong time. He and Maya are especially useless at protecting or defending themselves, with Maya even locking herself in an upstairs closet at one point and just sitting there. There’s no suspense and no surprise because we’ve basically seen all this before, and the last act of the film becomes an exercise in tormenting two young people who are so depth-free that we don’t really care what happens to them.

    Renny Harlin – a long way from the days of ‘Cliffhanger,’ ‘Die Hard 2,’ and even ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street IV’ – directs all this with a lack of energy or innovation that would condemn this movie directly to a VOD platform if Lionsgate Films wasn’t interested in ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’ relaunching this semi-franchise. Speaking of which…

    The ‘Strangers’ Trilogy

    'The Strangers: Chapter 1'.
    ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’. Photo Credit: John Armour.

    Harlin and Lionsgate have apparently shot not just ‘Chapter 1,’ but ‘Chapter 2’ and ‘Chapter 3’ as well. In fact, stick around and you’ll see a scene from the second (or even third?) movie during the credits. We won’t reveal much more than that, but it seems as if the ‘Strangers’ mythology will be expanded in one large, three-part story that will ultimately explain who the Strangers are, who “Tamara” is, and why the bloody trio go about their business.

    That, of course, is the wrong way to proceed. We don’t want to pre-judge the films, but if the next two chapters eventually explain and strip away the mystery of the Strangers, that will likely wreck whatever fright factor the franchise can maintain. Horror is usually at its best when it’s left inexplicable, something the producers here should take to heart.

    Final Thoughts

    Froy Gutierrez as Ryan in 'The Strangers: Chapter 1.'
    Froy Gutierrez as Ryan in ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1.’ Photo Credit: John Armour.

    In the meantime, assuming the already-completed sequels are going to come out whether we like it or not, ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’ doesn’t give us a lot of confidence about the series going forward. It rehashes the original film while losing all its existential dread, and deploys stock horror tropes in the latter’s place. It gives us no one to care about and nothing to latch onto, except the sinking feeling that we should have watched something else instead – like maybe the original film.

    ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’ receives 3 out of 10 stars.

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    What is the plot of ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’?

    While driving cross-country for a job interview, Maya (Madelaine Petsch) and her boyfriend Ryan (Froy Gutierrez) are stranded in a small Oregon town by car trouble. Finding shelter at a local Airbnb, the couple soon find themselves besieged by three masked, murderous strangers.

    Who is in the cast of ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’?

    • Madelaine Petsch as Maya
    • Froy Gutierrez as Ryan
    • Ema Horvath as Shelly
    • Rachel Shenton as Debbie
    • Richard Brake as Sheriff Rotter
    'The Strangers: Chapter 1'.
    ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’. Photo Credit: John Armour.

    Other Movies in ‘The Strangers’ Franchise:

    Other Renny Harlin Movies:

    Buy Tickets: ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’ Movie Showtimes

    Buy Renny Harlin Movies on Amazon

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  • ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’ Interview: Director Renny Harlin

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    Opening in theaters on May 17th is the third film in ‘The Strangers’ franchise entitled ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1‘, which will act as the beginning of a new trilogy with all three films being directed by Renny Harlin (‘Die Hard 2,’ ‘Cliffhanger’).

    The new movie stars Madelaine Petsch (‘Riverdale’), Froy Gutierrez (‘Teen Wolf’), Rachel Shenton (‘The Silent Child‘), Gabriel Basso (‘Super 8’), Ema Horvath (‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’), and Richard Brake (‘The Last Stop in Yuma County‘).

    Director Renny Harlin Talks 'The Strangers: Chapter 1'.
    Director Renny Harlin Talks ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’.

    Related Article: Where to Watch ‘The Exorcist: Believer’ 

    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with veteran director Renny Harlin about his work on ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’, reinventing the franchise, his plans for the upcoming films, building suspense, creating rules for ‘The Strangers’ world, and his casting process.

    You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Harlin, Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez.

    Froy Gutierrez, Madelaine Petsch and director Renny Carlin on the set of 'The Strangers: Chapter 1'.
    (L to R) Froy Gutierrez, Madelaine Petsch and director Renny Carlin on the set of ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’. Photo Credit: John Armour.

    Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about taking on this horror franchise and what you wanted to do to reinvent it and put your own personal stamp on it?

    Renny Harlin: I am a big fan of the original ‘Strangers’, and I wouldn’t have done a remake or a sequel to it. But when I was presented with this challenge and opportunity of taking the premise of the original movie, which is a very realistic home invasion story, and then expanding on that for three movies, in essence, a four-and-a-half-hour odyssey of horror, I felt like you don’t get this opportunity ever to really go deep into the psychology of the victims and also the killers themselves. It was challenging, but it was incredibly rewarding to be able to do this.

    'The Strangers: Chapter 1'.
    ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’. Photo Credit: John Armour.

    MF: Did you create rules for yourself for this world? Do you understand who the strangers are and why they’re doing what they’re doing?

    RH: Very interesting point. What was special about the original film was that there were no answers. It was a random act of senseless violence, which unfortunately happens in this world of ours. We wanted to keep that theme alive throughout the three movies, so we answer some things that people have been wondering since they saw the original, such as who Tamara is, for example. But then we leave a bunch of things unanswered. We do dig deep into the psychology of these killers and study what makes a sociopath tick, but we don’t wrap it up and put a bow on top of it. We want to keep it open like the original film was.

    'The Strangers: Chapter 1'.
    ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’. Photo Credit: John Armour.

    MF: Can you talk about the challenges of building suspense with a movie like this?

    RH: The key principle was very clear, and you asked about if I made rules. The number one rule was reality. It’s so easy, especially I think a filmmaker like me who has done action movies, is to think bigger is better. But in this movie, smaller was better, and I always had to check with myself that I was keeping things real. This is nothing supernatural, this is not fantastical. This is about you and me in this extraordinary situation and challenge, and that was the most important thing to always keep in mind. Telling the story, directing the actors, finding the angles for the camera and so on, just the tension, the fear and the sense of dread comes from the fact that it’s so relatable that we all could end up in this horrifying situation.

    (L to R) Froy Gutierrez as “Ryan” and Madelaine Petsch as “Maya” in 'The Strangers' Trilogy, a Lionsgate release.
    (L to R) Froy Gutierrez as “Ryan” and Madelaine Petsch as “Maya” in ‘The Strangers’ Trilogy, a Lionsgate release. Photo Credit: John Armour for Lionsgate.

    MF: Finally, can you talk about your casting process and what were you looking for when casting the characters of Maya and Ryan?

    RH: Liv Tyler starred in the original film, and she did a fantastic job. She was beautiful, she was vulnerable, and she was interesting, so those were big boots to fill. We saw tons and tons of actors and realized this can’t be just any attractive, good actor. When we met Madeleine, which was through a Zoom call first, we were just really impressed by her intelligence, by her passion, by her insightfulness, and her charm. She very soon became our number one choice and ended up really becoming a partner in this endeavor in terms of working on the script with us and really understanding the full scale of the three movies, and having the physicality to be able to go through what she needs to go through in the subsequent films. Then with Froy, we wanted to find somebody who would have the chemistry with her, and again, he’s a great actor and just a sweet guy. There was just this certain innocence that we wanted to have in him so that it would be so painful to see him have to go through this stuff. I think most of the audience doesn’t consider them being these tough people who could deal with knife-wielding and ax-wielding killers, so I think that he’s also very relatable in this role.

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    What is the plot of ‘’The Strangers: Chapter 1’?

    Maya (Madelaine Petsch) drives across the country with her longtime boyfriend, Ryan (Froy Gutierrez ), as the pair begin a new life together in the Pacific Northwest. Along the way, their car breaks down in Venus, Oregon and they are forced to spend the night in an isolated Airbnb home. Through the night they are terrorized by three murderous masked strangers.

    Who is in the cast of ‘’The Strangers: Chapter 1’?

    • Madelaine Petsch as Maya
    • Froy Gutierrez as Ryan
    • Rachel Shenton as Debbie
    • Gabriel Basso as Gregory
    • Ema Horvath as Shelly
    • Ella Bruccoleri as Jasmine
    • Richard Brake as Sheriff Rotter
    'The Strangers: Chapter 1'.
    ‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’. Photo Credit: John Armour.

    Other Movies in ‘The Strangers’ Franchise:

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