Director Jeff Wadlow‘s destiny was set into motion before he was ten years old, when a fateful viewing of 1982’s horror classic “Poltergeist” opened his eyes to darkness in the world.
“I was a very normal, happy-go-lucky kid, and watching it lined up perfectly with growing up and starting to have more adult thoughts,” he said. “I was six or seven years old, and it messed me up. I started having terrible nightmares and couldn’t sleep. I think that feeling of innocence was cast off into a dark space.”
Wadlow tapped into that feeling to drive the story in “Imaginary,” the eighth feature he’s directed, and the third for horror powerhouse Blumhouse Productions, with a theatrical release from Lionsgate on Friday. The film’s premise is both universal and family-friendly, as a woman (DeWanda Wise) moves back to her childhood home and believes her stepdaughter (Pyper Braun) might be targeted by a malicious entity posing as her imaginary friend.
Much like “Poltergeist” spooked a generation of families in the suburbs, horrified that their dolls might come to life in the middle of the night, Wadlow believes “Imaginary” will frighten audiences of all ages.
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“I think of ‘Imaginary’ as of ‘four-quadrant horror,'” he said. “Some people use the expression ‘gateway horror,’ which I think denotes a softer kind of film. I think of it as a scary story that you want a big group of people sitting around the campfire to listen to. I’m not trying to ruin anyone’s psychic peace with some horrible vision that they can’t ever unsee. I want them to enjoy it the same way we enjoy roller coasters.”
The film, which includes plenty of funhouse scares, fits snugly into the Blumhouse roster, and Wadlow credits founder and CEO Jason Blum with revitalizing the genre for modern audiences.
“You’d be hard-pressed to find a producer who has changed the business as much as he has who’s working right now,” he said. “The history of Hollywood has a long list of incredible, business-changing, game-changing producers, and I would put Jason on that list. He not only changed the business, he’s left this invaluable creative mark. He understands that a producer’s job is to bring people together and empower them to do their jobs and be creative.”
A cornerstone of Blumhouse’s strategy is greenlighting creative concepts without inflated budgets, and with that comes a unique freedom for directors. Wadlow recounted an early meeting with Blum which detailed the mogul’s vision of creatives having control.
“He said, ‘Listen, the first time I’m going to watch the movie is when I watch your cut with an audience,'” Wadlow said. “‘The one thing I cannot abide is if there’s a scene that doesn’t work, and I say that didn’t work, I cannot stand the idea of you turning to me, Jeff, and saying, ‘Yeah, I knew it wasn’t going to work.’ If you know something’s not working, if you know there’s a problem, you have to change it.'”
Wadlow’s drive to get things done without any Hollywood hot air also appealed to “Imaginary” star and executive producer DeWanda Wise.
“It’s a real delight to be able to contribute to something in every facet, in every department, without having to tiptoe about it, without having to be cute about it,” she said. “Jeff is also an east coaster — he’s from Virginia, I’m from Maryland — so we had this lovely shorthand. No one’s afraid of hurting anyone’s feelings. No one’s afraid of someone being passive-aggressive or doing weird Hollywood things.”
Wadlow is focused on making movies work and attracting wide audiences, but he’s self-aware enough to know that not all things connect. For example, when asked about a potential sequel to his 2020 film reboot of “Fantasy Island,” he smiled dryly and said, “I think you might be in the minority on that one…But I loved making it, and I appreciate that you like it.” But by making blockbusters that can appeal to all ages, he’s following in the footsteps of Hollywood heavyweights.
“I’m just a film fan,” Wadlow said. “I love movies and I’m not trying to make a career in any one genre. I’m trying to pattern my career after a filmmaker like [“Superman” and “The Goonies” director] Dick Donner, who made classic films in all these different genres. My hope is just to make movies in different spaces that people love.”
