With SANCTUM, in theaters today, director Alister Grierson will show the world that sometimes the scariest enemy in the world is mother nature. Written by Andrew Wright and John Garvin and executive produced by James Cameron, the upcoming film SANCTUM takes viewers beneath the deadly waters of South America as a dive team and their friends find themselves swimming for their lives. With precious little oxygen left, and whirling rapids, tight cave spaces, and deadly heights to contend with, the team sets out to find the only way out… the ocean.
If this sounds like the stuff of nightmares to you, you’re not wrong. SANCTUM is, at its heart, a horror film, only in this action-adventure the enemy is all around you and ready to strike at a moment’s notice. It’s a daring move in a film landscape where clear enemies and big action set pieces are the norm, but Grierson, Wright, and Cameron are up to the task creating a film that conveys all of the terror and claustrophobia that being trapped miles underground, and underwater, can do to you. To find out more about how these elements came together, I spoke to the three men in charge of Sanctum.