I’ve had a few people ask if they can read the screenplay for Unwelcome. Well, I had a word with the producers and you can download it for free by clicking here or on the image below…
This is essentially the shooting script for the film, though I have tidied it up a little, meaning I’ve updated the title (it was called The Little People originally) and I’ve got rid of things like revision stars which can make a script look like a mess. You might notice a few differences from the script and the finished film and that’s to be expected, but if you have any questions just drop me a line here.
In case you missed it, here’s last night’s UNWELCOME spoiler special where I reveal just what I was thinking with that ending, and we also hear from actor and second unit director Rick Warden, cinematographer Hamish Doyne-Ditmas, and VFX supervisor Paddy Eason who shared some terrific behind the scenes footage. Enjoy, but be warned… there is repeated spurting of blood… repeated! Spurting!
I was tagged last night in a post from The Prosthetics Studio, the geniuses who created the masks and other prosthetics for UNWELCOME and I discovered a treasure trove of behind the scenes images, many of which I’d not seen before. The studio is run by Shaune Harrison and Paula Anne Booker-Harrison, and the dedication to their craft is unquestionable. I’ve popped a few images below as a little tease, and you can find more on their Instagram and Facebook pages. And if make up and prosthetics is your thing, they even do courses here.
Save the date! 27th April, 2023, 8pm BST we’ll have special livestream episode of the Bestseller Experiment on youtube where Mr D will be grilling me on the making of the film UNWELCOME! I’ll answer listener questions about the making of the film, and especially *that* ending! Warning: there will be spoilers, so if you haven’t seen Unwelcome already, then rent/buy it now and join us for a fun hour of mayhem and redcaps. It’s all on Youtube, so click on the link below for more info…
UNWELCOME is available to rent on digital in the UK today! A mere £4.99 for a slice of Redcap mayhem. Just pop along to Apple, Amazon, Sky or wherever you rent your digital movie! No blood sacrifice necessary… unless you *really* want to…
It should be popping up to rent across the world in other territories this week. Tomorrow is the USA and I think from Thursday we’re on Paramount+ in Australia!
UNWELCOME is now available to buy on digital in the UK on the usual platforms, including Apple and Amazon.
Here’s the quick synopsis…
Londoners Maya and Jamie (played by Hannah John-Kamen and Douglas Booth) escape their urban nightmare by moving to the tranquility of rural Ireland – only to discover malevolent, murderous goblins lurking in the gnarled, ancient wood at the foot of their new garden. Additional cast includes Golden Globe nominee Colm Meaney, Jamie-Lee O’Donnell (DERRY GIRLS), Chris Walley (YOUNG OFFENDERS), and Kristian Nairn (GAME OF THRONES).
I’ll be signing in the Authors’ Corner all day with the wonderful Kit Cox, FMA Dixon and Tom Gaskin. If it’s like the old Herne Bay Sci-Fi by the Sea (same organisers!) it promises to be a wonderful day out for all the family! I’m particularly excited as one of the guests is Paul Warren, who played Mr Sniff, one of the Redcaps in Unwelcome! It’ll be great to finally meet him. Grab your tickets here.
I had a great fun answering the questions in an interview with the good folk over at Gingernuts of Horror, where — among other things — I reveal who would win in a fight between the Redcaps of Unwelcome and the Witches of Woodville. Click here for the full interview…
Finally that film what I wrote is unleashed upon an unsuspecting public! UNWELCOME is in UK cinemas today (it’s coming to the USA March 10, and the rest of the world soon after). Does this mean I’ll stop spaffing on about it? Nope. Once again for those at the back, here’s the trailer…
The question I get asked the most is, “Are you going to see it?” To which the only reply is, “No bloody way.” I had my dream screening at the Sitges Film Festival, and with all due respect to the good folk munching popcorn, slurping on vats of coke, and checking social media during the screenings at my local megaplex, it just won’t be the same. Plus, I’m a big chicken. And I really want to see The Fabelmans.
I also get asked, “Is it on near where I live?”, like I go around with a list of screenings in my head (I can barely remember what day of the week it is). It’s on 300 screens in the UK/Eire this week, and my podcast colleague Mr Desvaux reassures me that clicking on this link will give you the local screening times/places… Though when my dad tried it, he got listings in Singapore, so I’m now worried that he’s probably been hacked.
If you want to know more about the making of the film, there’s a Bestseller Experiment Deep Dive with me and director Jon Wright. We recorded this back in the summer of 2021, when we were doing what they call EPK (Electronic Press Kit) interviews and had all the cameras and mics handy…
And Jon is also on a special episode of the Film Stories podcast talking about the film and his career…
UNWELCOME had special previews at Cineworld and Odeon cinemas last night and already people are buzzing about it. I understand that Twitter is not the real world and Mr Musk is doing his best to turn it into a digital hellscape, but it was great to see so much love for UNWELCOME last night. Here’s a sample of my favourite comments…
Also, I was delighted to be on the Dominic King show on BBC Radio Kent last night. I’m on the show twice talking about UNWELCOME: at 42:18 and there’s an extended version at 2:38:04… Here’s a listen back link.
This is Straw Dogs by way of Fraggle Rock, essentially; but the script by Wright and Mark Stay weaves in enough anxieties, both contemporary and primal, to sustain suspense even amid the silliness. It adds up to an enjoyably unpretentious Irish-ish folk horror. And not a shamrock in sight.
Mark Stay Writes 