EXCLUSIVE: Maddie Hasson Talks Working on James Wan’s Malignant

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EXCLUSIVE: Maddie Hasson discusses working with James Wan for Malignant

While the world waits with bated breath for more information on Malignant, James Wan’s return to the horror genre, ComingSoon.net got the opportunity to chat with star Maddie Hasson about getting to work with the modern horror guru.

While she described the quicker nature of the shoot on indie horror flick We Summon the Darkness -in which Hasson co-stars alongside Alexandra Daddario (Why Women Kill), Amy Forsyth (The Path) and Logan Miller (Escape Room)- as a rewarding experience that bonded her with her castmates, she found working with Wan to be “exciting” and the transition between projects to be a unique experience.

“It was so fun getting to work on that, so different from shooting We Summon the Darkness, which is super low budget and indie and we were flying by the seat of our pants constantly trying to stay afloat, which kind of made it fun and bonded us all really quickly,” Hasson laughs. “Then straight from that I went on to James Wan, who’s like the king of horror, it’s a very well-oiled machine.”

While Hasson didn’t reveal any plot details from the currently very secretive project, she did note some intriguing effects the Conjuring mastermind is toying with for the film, which was recently pulled from release calendars amidst the global health scare.

“There are all of these crazy extravagant lightning setups and weather cues, he created rain and lightning indoors, and it was very different but so cool,” Hasson said. “James has a very clear vision for what he wants to do and he knows exactly how to get it done and he won’t stop until he gets exactly what he wants and it was really inspiring to get to witness.”

Malignant will star Annabelle Wallis (Annabelle), Jake Abel (Supernatural), George Young (Containment), Hasson, Michole Briana White (Encino Man) and Jacqueline McKenzie (Pine Gap).

The film, whose plot is being kept under wraps, is based on a story co-written by Wan and his fiance Ingrid Bisu, who starred in The Nun and recently got engaged to the 42-year-old Australian director. Wan will also produce the film through his Atomic Monster banner alongside Michael Clear. The film is being financed through Starlight Media and Midas Innovation, who will distribute in China as New Line handles the remaining distribution. Malignant seemingly has no relation to the James Wan penned graphic novel Malignant Man, previously set up as a feature film at Fox, though given the titles it’s not a stretch to imagine a connection.

DC Comics fans don’t have to fret, however, as Wan’s current plan is to move into pre-production on the sequel to last year’s critical and commercial smash Aquaman after production wraps on the horror project.

We Summon the Darkness, which has received very positive reviews from critics since its Fantastic Fest debut in September, is set to premiere on digital platforms and VOD on April 10!