Paloma Baeza to direct The Toymaker’s Secret, written by Alex Garland

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Any project that has Alex Garland involved is worth keeping an eye on. Starting off as a screenwriter on films like 28 DAYS LATER and DREDD, he moved on to writing and directing with EX MACHINA (pictured) and ANNIHILATION (and according to star Karl Urban, he secretly directed DREDD as well).

A new Garland project has now been set up at TriStar Pictures, with the studio acquiring his spec script THE TOYMAKER'S SECRET, a family-focused genre story about 

an American family who moves into an old Victorian house in London and begins to believe it might be haunted.

Garland's wife Paloma Baeza, an actress and animator, will be making her feature directorial debut on the film, which will be produced by Garland, Andrew Macdonald, Allon Reich, and Cara Speller.

TriStar's president Hannah Minghella had this to say about the project: 

‘The Toymaker’s Secret’ is an original movie with such heart and humor and magic that it is sure to become an instant classic for the whole family."

Baeza added: 

This project will join my love of animation with a live-action world, and it’s fantastic to be bringing this story to life."

With a family friendly tone, THE TOYMAKER'S SECRET sounds like it will be quite different from Garland's other films… and quite different from the movie the title reminds me of, SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT 5: THE TOYMAKER.