Filmmaker Maggie Gyllenhaal gives a glimpse of her upcoming film, The Bride, by sharing the first look of Christian Bale as Frankenstein’s monster, along with his eponymous paramour, played by Jessie Buckley. The Bride is an upcoming Frankenstein retelling set in 1930s Chicago. Recently, the director uploaded images from a camera test on Instagram featuring Bale’s latest onscreen transformation into Frankenstein, along with his paramour, the eponymous bride (Buckley).
Gyllenhaal released a series of three images. The first of which is just a film slate from the camera test of the film. The next image shows a near-unrecognizable Buckley, who sports a blonde wig and has what appears to be a splatter of black paint across her cheek. The final image is a gloomy, black-and-white image of Bale as an updated version of Frankenstein’s monster. His head and chest include large stitches, adorned with a tattoo that reads “Hope.” The photos were captured by film photographer Niko Tavernise.
What is Christian Bale’s upcoming film The Bride all about?
Directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal, the upcoming film The Bride is based on an 1818 novel by Mark Shelly, titled Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus. Frankenstein tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific experiment. The novel has had a considerable influence on literature and popular culture, spawning a complete genre of horror stories, films, and plays. Films that have been adapted from the novel include Frankenstein (1935), The Bride (1985), The Bride of Frank (2011), and The Bride (2017). Among them, the 1935 film featuring Boris Karloff is considered the most prominent portrayal of Frankenstein.
Now, filmmaker Gyllenhaal is trying her hands at delivering the story of Frankenstein through Bale, and it would be interesting to see if he can do justice to the role. Since the novel has been adapted so many times, it indeed seems a director’s favorite novel. Interestingly, Gyllenhaal’s The Bride isn’t the only Frankenstein movie on the way, as Guillermo del Toro is also currently filming his own Frankenstein film, starring Jacob Elordi as the iconic monster.
The competition indeed seems tough, but the entertainment is certainly guaranteed for the audience.
In The Bride, Gyllenhaal puts a fresh spin on Mary Shelley’s story, setting it in 1930s Chicago. According to its logline, a lonesome Frankenstein enlists the help of Dr. Euphronios to create a companion for himself. They revive a murdered woman, creating the titular bride. The upcoming film features an ensemble cast alongside Bale and Buckley, which includes Annette Bening, Penélope Cruz, Julianne Hough, and Peter Sarsgaard.
The film will mark Gyllenhaal’s second directorial feature, following 2021’s The Lost Daughter, which also starred Buckley.
The Bride will arrive in theaters and IMAX in October 2025.
