Producer Jeff (FREDDY’S NIGHTMARES) Freilich and first-time director Joe Lynch, along with Fox Home Entertainment, recently invited Fango to the set of the direct-to-DVD sequel WRONG TURN 2 in Vancouver, B.C. The follow-up continues the story of a family of cannibalistic mountain folk who survive by killing and pillaging anything and, more importantly, anyone who ventures into their path. This time out, their targets are the cast of a reality series being shot in the same isolated mountains from the first film. The show, a postapocalyptic-themed elimination concept (think SURVIVOR meets WORST CASE SCENARIO), comes to the desolate landscape with no one in the production being aware of what lies in wait for them up in “them thar hills.”
“I came onto this project as a fan of the genre,” Lynch tells Fango. “I told Fox, ‘Look, this is the type of movie that a fan wants to rally behind.’ Back in the ’80s, people were like, ‘Dude, did you see CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST? Didja see I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE?’ Sure, these movies are exploitation, but if we can make a film that has good characters and a decent storyline—one which puts our characters in precarious positions and makes the audience think, ‘Oh, shit! What would I do in that situation?’—then we’re doing our job.” The film’s cast is a strong one made up of young but seasoned genre actors, including Erica (TEXAS CHAINSAW remake) Leehrsen, Texas Battle and Crystal Lowe from FINAL DESTINATION 3, Matthew Currie Holmes, Ken (FREDDY VS. JASON) Kirzinger and the distinguished Mr. Henry Rollins.
While the film is connected in both theme and tone to the original, the filmmakers is striving to make WRONG TURN 2 a movie unto itself. “We’re going to bring a different twist to it,” says Battle, who plays the character Jake. “The start of this movie is really going to grab you. It gets straight to the excitement, right from the get-go. From the first time you see the teaser, you aren’t going anywhere. This movie is going to be crazy.”
To even the most casual of observers, the filmmakers clearly seem driven to make something special: a film that addresses topics which are a bit more cerebral than your standard popcorn movie fare. “This movie is about survival,” Leerhsen (who plays Nina) says as she wipes fake blood from her small, pale hands, “for both the cannibals and for us. Who’s the strongest? I actually think that there’s a good message in that. It’s a need for all of us to remember our mortality… so that we value it.”
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