James McAvoy has explained why Speak No Evil is "slightly different" than its predecessor, particularly the ending.
A remake of the 2022 Danish film of the same name, the story centres on a family who are invited to spend the weekend at an Italian rural house by a couple they just met on holiday.
Hoping to relax and forget about their marriage problems, Louise (Mackenzie Davis) and Ben (Scoot McNairy) accept the invite, but their dreamy weekend away becomes a nightmare when they realise what their host Paddy (McAvoy) has in store for them.
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The story is mostly the same in both movies, but they differ in the ending, with the climax of Christian Tafdrup's original movie being much bleaker than James Watkins' version.
"I think it's the only ending our film could have, and it's the only one that would work for our film," McAvoy told exclusively to Digital Spy.
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"That's not to say that the other ending or the other film doesn't work as it does. It's a great film, but they're doing slightly different things, and they're trying to do different things to the audience," he added.
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McAvoy explained this change saying the original movie is more of a "horror", while the remake should be considered a "thriller."
"I think [2024's Speak No Evil] is less of a horror, and it's more of a suspenseful psychological thriller, whereas the behaviour in the other movie is so alien, I think, at times, or such an extreme version of human behaviour, that it feels more like a horror.
"And James [Watkins] made something slightly different, which is all good, and there’s space for both, and they're both really good, but I think this is the right end for us."
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Speak No Evil's director James Watkins recently talked about the ending too, explaining the changes made to the original one.
"There'll be people that see the original movie and go, 'Why hasn't he remade that movie? Why hasn't he made this incredibly punchy, unrelenting ending?'," he told SFX Magazine.
"But I would argue, with my characters and their journey, I'm following through their journey in terms of agency and how they would react. What I've taken from Christian's film is the satire, the exploration of the social rules, and how we react.
"You can give people an incredibly tense roller coaster ride that has thematic nourishment and things to take away and talk about in the pub, but it can be fun."
Speak No Evil arrives in cinemas on September 12 in the UK, and on September 13 in the US.
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Mireia (she/her) has been working as a movie and TV journalist for over eight years. Based in the UK, she is a former deputy movies editor at Digital Spy, and previously worked for the Spanish magazine Fotogramas. Mireia's work has been published in other outlets such as Esquire and Elle in Spain, and WeLoveCinema and GamesRadar+ in the UK. She is also a published author, having written the essay Biblioteca Studio Ghibli: Nicky, la aprendiz de bruja about Hayao Miyazaki's Kiki's Delivery Service.
During her years as a freelance journalist and film critic, Mireia has covered festivals around the world and has interviewed high-profile talents such as Kristen Stewart, Ryan Gosling, Jake Gyllenhaal and many more. She's also taken part in juries such as the FIPRESCI jury at Venice Film Festival and the short film jury at Kingston International Film Festival in London. LinkedIn
