Emerald Fennell thinks Saltburn and Promising Young Woman are actually very similar
Oct. 11, 2023Exclusive: Saltburn director Emerald Fennell opens up about how her second film compares to her Oscar-winning debut
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
On paper, Emerald Fennell’sPromising Young WomanandSaltburnseem worlds apart. The first starred Carey Mulligan in a feminist revenge thriller, while the latter sees Barry Keoghan play an Oxford University student thrown into a life of privilege. But for Fennell, her two feature films actually share a lot of commonality.
“Gosh, it’s so interesting,” Fennell tells GamesRadar+ about the similarities between the two on the BFI London Film Festival red carpet. “I think actually they’re in many ways quite good bedfellows in the sense that they’re both taking a sub-genre – Promising Young Woman, it was the female revenge thriller, and with this, it’s the British gothic country house movie – and they’re squeezing really hard. So it feels like in many ways they are similar. To me at least, they feel personal in different ways.”
Fennell will certainly be hoping that Saltburn reaches the same critical success as her debut film, which won Best Original Screenplay at the 93rd Academy Awards, as well as attracting several other nominations.
Early reviews for Saltburn have been pretty positive too, with a lot of praise for Keoghan’s performance. He plays Oliver Quick in the upcoming film, which opened the BFI London Film Festival, who becomes infatuated with his charming and aristocratic classmate Felix Catton (played by Jacob Elordi). Oliver is invited to come and spend the summer at Felix’s family estate, where he’ll encounter hedonism and eccentric relatives in a summer he’ll never forget.
Saltburn is released in the UK and US on November 17. For more on the film, as well as a tease for the Ocean’s 11 prequel, check outour interview with producer Josey McNamara.
Sign up for the Total Film Newsletter
Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox
I’m the Deputy Entertainment Editor here at GamesRadar+, covering TV and film for the Total Film and SFX sections online. I previously worked as a Senior Showbiz Reporter and SEO TV reporter at Express Online for three years. I’ve also written for The Resident magazines and Amateur Photographer, before specializing in entertainment.
A surreal new drama with a perfect Rotten Tomatoes score from the director of one of my favorite films is now out – and it should definitely be on your weekend watchlist
Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
As if The Outlast Trials couldn’t get any more deranged, the horror co-op game’s big new update adds more tooth guns and lady who lives in the walls
