Lars von Trier working on horror script set in Detroit

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Lars von Trier knows horror. He may not have directed a full-blown genre feature yet, but some of the man’s most memorable work – ANTICHRIST, MELANCHOLIA spring to mind – boast some fairly surreal, suspenseful elements. (Let’s also not forget he worked on the supernatural TV mini-series “The Kingdom,” which Stephen King later turned into “Kingdom Hospital” for ABC.) Now it looks like he might be going all the way to the dark side and crafting a project that is 100% horror – if a close colleague of his is to believed.

Danish filmmaker Kristian Levring, who has an enticing western called THE SALVATION headed to Cannes and who has worked with von Trier in the past, recently claimed the provocative NYMPHOMANIAC director has turned his attention to a horror flick set in the U.S. Here are his words, courtesy of IndieWire:

I’ve always thought that Lars would be able to do a fantastic horror movie… And I’ve told him so many times throughout the years, and in the end he said: ‘I want you to stop talking about it, so I’ll write it for you instead.'”

“It takes place in Detroit, and then there is the wordplay between Detroit and ‘destroyed,'” Levring added, noting that von Trier has started writing the script. “It’s about a man fighting his inner demons. That doesn’t tell that much, but that’s because we haven’t gotten any further so far.” He added “….it’s real horror. Of course, there is a psychological aspect, but it’s a real horror movie. That’s what we’re aiming for, at least.”

It’s unclear if von Trier will end up directing this flick, or if it’s perhaps something Levring will tackle (which is what it sounds like at this point). If von Trier does end up helming, you can be sure the movie won’t actually be shot in Detroit: the filmmaker is famously afraid of flying. (Although never afraid to set his films in the U.S.)

More on this as news comes in.

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