Netflix has released a new trailer and images for Wendell & Wild, the new grim and gloomy stop-motion horror movie from visionary director Henry Selick (The Nightmare Before Christmas, Coraline). Wendell & Wild also counts horror genius Jordan Peele as a writer, making this one of the most anticipated releases of the year.
The new trailer introduces us to Kat Elliot (voiced by Lyric Ross), a teenage Goth girl who is forced to face her demons. And while we all have our share of guilt and regret to carry around, Kat’s demons actually have names, Wendell (voiced by Keegan-Michael Key) and Wild (voiced by Jordan Peele). The trailer doesn’t reveal why Kat is being targeted by the titular demons, but it looks like the movie will deal with repressed trauma and a scarring childhood. That's because, in the trailer, the young protagonist is led by a nun to face her fears, and ends up discovering the demons that haunt her nightmares.
While we cannot know much about Wendell & Wild’s story, the new trailer and images underline how the movie might be the most stunning work developed by Selick yet. Every frame is filled with dread, and the stop-motion animation highlights the horrors hidden in the night. There’s something familiar about Wendell & Wild, as Selick once again revisits the rich tapestry of childhood terrors. However, the movie also has a distinctive art direction, with a creepy green light illuminating the darkest corners of the protagonist's mind. We were already excited to watch Selick’s new movie, and the new trailer will only make it harder to wait until its release.
Based on an unpublished book by Selick and Clay McLeod Chapman, Wendell & Wild was turned into a screenplay by Selick and Peele. Academy Award-nominee Bruno Coulais (Les Choristes) is handling Wendell & Wild’s soundtrack. The movie is produced by Selick, Peele, and Win Rosenfeld for Monkeypaw, and Ellen Goldsmith-Vein for The Gotham Group. Executive producers include Lindsay Williams and Eddie Gamarra for The Gotham Group, Kamil Oshundara, Ian Cooper for Monkeypaw.
Wendell & Wild will have its world premiere at the 47th Toronto International Film Festival on September 11. After that, the animated movie will come to Netflix on October 28, just in time for Halloween. Check out the movie’s new trailer, images, and the official synopsis below.
From the delightfully wicked minds of Henry Selick and producer Jordan Peele comes ‘Wendell & Wild’, an animated tale about scheming demon brothers Wendell (Keegan-Michael Key) and Wild (Peele), who enlist the aid of Kat Elliot — a tough teen with a load of guilt — to summon them to the Land of the Living. But what Kat demands in return leads to a brilliantly bizarre and comedic adventure like no other, an animated fantasy that defies the law of life and death, all told through the handmade artistry of stop motion.