Millenium Films’ forthcoming Texas Chainsaw Massacre prequel is setting up a new origin story for the franchise’s power-tool wielding baddie – and a new cast of characters to tell it.
Currently titled Leatherface, the movie hit headlines earlier this week with the news that Eastenders‘ star Sam Strike had signed on to play a young version of the psychotic killer. In light of more casting announcements, it seems Strike won’t be the only one with murderous intent.
Per The Wrap, which revealed that newcomer James Bloor had also signed on, Leatherface is described as “a mystery of sorts about three teenage psychopaths, one of whom grows up to be Leatherface.” Bloor will play Ike a “budding young maniac” who, much like Strike’s character Jackson, may develop and at some later point become Leatherface.
As the outlet states, there’s no clear indication as to the nature of this rebooted origin tale. It could trace three separate stories of youngsters dabbling with their dark side, leaving us to guess which one turns into the villainous Leatherface. Similarly, it might simply be that three separate actors will play the character during different points of his life.
With two of the main male leads secured, Bloody Disgusting landed a scoop revealing that horror veteran Angela Bettis had also climbed aboard for the film’s first female role. The site reports that Bettis will play Verna, the mother of the Sawyer family. The name ‘Sawyer’ ought to be familiar to franchise fans as it’s the surname of Leatherface’s family in the 1974 original and 2013 3D remake – but not in any of the various sequels, reboots and spinoffs.
Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo, who crafted the hellish French movie Inside, will direct Leatherface based on a script by Seth M. Sherwood. No release date has been announced for the forthcoming prequel, but we’ll keep you posted if we hear of one.