While Neon was relentlessly promoting Oz Perkins’ “Longlegs” with countless teasers, posters and images, the filmmaker quietly finished shooting another film.
Perkins recently wrapped production on “The Monkey”, which is based on a short story by Stephen King, and which Perkins himself adapted. It stars Theo James, Tatiana Maslany, Elijah Wood, Christian Convery, Colin O’Brien, Rohan Campell, and Sarah Levy.
“The Monkey” has now been dated by Neon for a February 21, 2025 release date. A first image has also been released (above). In the press release, Perkins mentions how “The Monkey” will be very different in tone from “Longlegs,” which is set for release on July 12, 2024.
“The Monkey” tackles twin brothers, Hal and Bill, who discover their father's old monkey toy in the attic, when a series of gruesome deaths starts occurring all around them. The brothers decide to throw the monkey away and move on with their lives, growing apart over the years. But when the mysterious deaths begin again, the brothers must reunite to find a way to destroy the monkey.
I had never heard of King’s story, which was originally published in Gallery magazine in 1980, before being revised and reprinted in the 1985 collection, Skeleton Crew. Perkins shot this one very quickly — principal photography began in Vancouver on February 5, 2024, and wrapped on March 22, 2024.
As mentioned, Perkins has the much-hyped “Longlegs,” starring Nicolas Cage and Maika Monroe. Neon recently boarded their third consecutive Perkins film, buying the rights for the already-shot “Keeper.” That’s right, the filmmaker has three films that ready for release, all of them with Neon.
Perkins, the eldest son of ‘Psycho’ himself, Anthony Perkins, is best known for his 2015 indie debut, “The Blackcoat’s Daughter,” and 2020’s “Gretel & Hansel.” Let’s hope the hype behind this guy is warranted, otherwise Neon bet a whole lot of cash on him for nothing.
The film is set to shoot in fall 2027. The idea would be to release it in December 2028, timed to Trump's exit from office. Oh, and it's now Warner Bros.' indie label, Clockwork, that's backing the film.