Scream Queen Maika Monroe continues her reign with her upcoming role in the horror period piece “Victorian Psycho.” Zachary Wigon (“The Heart Machine,” “Sanctuary”) directs from a script written by Virginia Feito, on whose book of the same name the film is based.
The story revolves around governess Winifred Notty (Monroe), as she arrives at the Ensor House to instruct and care for two young children. The cast also includes Thomasin McKenzie (“Last Night in Soho,” “Old”), Jason Isaacs (“Event Horizon,” “A Cure for Wellness”), Amy De Bhrún (“Borderline”), Ruth Wilson (“The Affair,” “I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House”), Evie Templeton (“Return to Silent Hill”) and Jacobi Jupe (“Hamnet”).
Distribution company Bleecker Street released the official trailer on Thursday (July 30), and it is to die for.
Maika Monroe is Perfectly Psycho
The trailer opens with an off-kilter shot of Monroe’s character Winifred Notty gazing at the camera. “I’m the sanest person I’ve ever met,” she says, as the camera falls upright. It then guides the viewer into her new life as a governess at Ensor House. Winifred, who says there’s a demon named “Fred” living inside her, is peculiar from the get-go. But she charms the family.
As revealed in the trailer, the story progressively grows bloodied as Winifred loses the rest of her marbles. It’s ripped straight out of the Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) playbook in “American Psycho.” There’s also a bit of that Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) magic from “Psycho,” as well as a pinch of Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates) from “Misery” for good measure.
Maika Monroe’s role in “Victorian Psycho” is a very different character from what the actor typically plays. “It was very nerve-wracking,” she told Rue Morgue. “I think most roles – I’d say almost every role – there’s a small piece of me in the character, something that I can hold on to.” But here, that’s simply not the case. “I also think a lot of my characters are much more inward, and this is a loud, loud, loud, and big character,” she added.
Her Impressive Horror Legacy
“Victorian Psycho” joins a long list of fascinating projects of which Maika Monroe has been a central part. She broke out in a big way in 2014 with “The Guest,” co-starring Dan Stevens, and “It Follows.” These table-setting roles led to many even more provocative titles, such as “Villains,” “Watcher,” “Significant Other,” “The Hand That Rocks the Cradle” and “Longlegs,” paired opposite Nicolas Cage. She returns to the “It Follows” universe in David Robert Mitchell’s long-overdue sequel, “They Follow,” release date TBA.
Monroe’s thirst for the next heart-pounding horror story isn’t surprising. She grew up on classics like “The Shining” and “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” after all. And she keeps coming back. “You always have such a visceral reaction to the genre that was very intriguing to me,” she told Collider. When she landed the role of Jay in “It Follows,” horror began shifting, trading out torture horror (e.g., “Saw”) for good old-fashioned scares again.
“Not to gloat about it, but I think that film was the beginning of a change of the horror genre and going back to its original roots of ‘The Shining’ and [John] Carpenter,” she continued. “Since that time, there’s just been so many incredible genre films coming out and so many people involved with the genre.”
