It’s a good time to be a fan of Frankenstein’s Monster. Or is it? Readers may judge for themselves after they peruse the first-look pics from Maggie Gyllenhaal‘s “The Bride!” below. Gyllenhaal took to Instagram today to promote her upcoming film, featuring two stills of its leading stars, Christian Bale and Jessie Buckley. And from the looks of things, Gyllenhaal’s partner Peter Sarsgaard, who also stars in the project, wasn’t lying when he told The Independent that “The Bride!” is a “punk monster movie.” Just look at Bale in that pic: is that cool or “Jared Leto in “Suicide Squad” cool?
Gyllenhaal captioned her post “Meet The Bride & Frank” with a black heart emoji, which probably means Bale’s reanimated monster goes by that moniker in the movie. Again, cringe or not cringe? It’s too early to tell as “The Bride!” just started production, but the look of Bale and Buckley’s Bride may surprise some, especially those who read the film’s released synopsis back in January. Here it is again below if you missed it:
A lonely Frankenstein travels to 1930s Chicago to seek the aide of a Dr. Euphronius in creating a companion for himself. The two reinvigorate a murdered young woman and the Bride is born. She is beyond what either of them intended, igniting a combustible romance, the attention of the police and a wild and radical social movement.
Punk monsters in 1930s Chicago? Misfit love is a versatile trope, but these first-look pics admittedly flag this writer’s enthusiasm for Gyllenhaal’s sophomore effort. But let’s not judge too harshly or too quickly. “The Bride!” also stars Annette Benning, Penelope Cruz, Julianne Hough, and Sarsgaard. Back in February, Sarsgaard called his wife’s upcoming feature a “big, romantic, deeply romantic, wild, punk monster movie,” adding, “I think it’s going to be energizing! It’s rambunctious! People are going to be very surprised that this is Maggie’s second movie. It is nothing, at all, like “The Lost Daughter.””
No, evidently, it is not. Still, it’ll be fun to see Buckley reunite with Gyllenhaal on this project, and in a much different role than their first movie together. Also of note: Lawrence Sher, cinematographer of “Joker” and Todd Phillips‘ upcoming sequel “Joker: Folie á Deux,” is director of photography of “The Bride!.” So don’t be surprised if there visual similarities between those films and Gyllenhaal’s latest. And as for what else we know about “The Bride!,” Gyllenhaal produces the film with Emma Tillinger Koskoff, Talia Kleinhendler, and Osnat Handelsman-Keren.
If “The Bride!” isn’t what your preferred Frankenstein adaptation, don’t worry, there’s plenty of takes on Mary Shelley‘s original novel in the zeitgeist right now. “Lisa Frankenstein” hit theaters in February, while 2023 favorite “Poor Things” and Alasdair Gray‘s 1992 source novel riffs on Shelley’s original plot. And Guillermo del Toro‘s “Frankenstein” is on the way, too, which stars Oscar Isaac, Mia Goth, and Jacob Elordi as the Monster. Add in Robert Eggers‘ “Nosferatu,” and it’s not just a good time for Frankenstein fans, but fans of the Universal Monsters in general.
“The Bride!” hits theaters on October 3, 2025, courtesy of Warner Bros.
