Back in March, Arcadian had its world premiere at Austin’s annual SXSW. There were several screenings at Alamo Drafthouse, all of which had the internet buzzing with reviews. Maxwell Jenkins and Jaeden Martell were in attendance to walk the carpet and introduce their film which also stars the iconic Nicolas Cage as their father.
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During an exclusive interview with The Illuminerdi, the actors spoke at length about their reactions to the design of the creature, working with Nicholas Cage, plus a whole lot more.
Arcadian: The First Reveal of the Creature
Jenkins and Martell recently spoke with The Illuminerdi’s Chalice Williams regarding their latest project. We kicked off the interview by asking what their initial reactions were when the creature’s design was revealed to them.
“I was gonna say when you asked how South By was, that was definitely a highlight of it, getting to see that monster… it went through so many changes…from when we first got to set and saw it to the end… it was totally like we were seeing it for the first time with the audience. We were equally surprised by what was in front of our eyes…”
– Maxwell Jenkins
Jenkins and Martell also went on to speak about the differences between working with a larger cast as opposed to a smaller one like Arcadian.
“It all depends, I mean we got lucky that we liked each other, otherwise it would have been tough. It was nice to have such a small cast and small crew. It felt very intimate. We were all staying at the same hotel, kind of isolated in Ireland.”
– Jaeden Martell
Martell and Jenkins are both fairly early in their promising careers and they’ve said that working with Cage is an honor. When asked whom else they’d like to work with later for their careers, both actors agreed that Ethan Hawke was their mutual choice, with Martell having a few others to name.
“If I’m looking forward to anything, it would be working with specific directors Paul Thomas Anderson or even a lot of the Korean directors right now if they ever pop on over to America…”
– Jaeden Martell
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Arcadian is now playing in theaters. The film will stream later this year on SHUDDER and AMC+.
About Arcadian
Release Date: April 12, 2024
Director: Benjamin Brewer
Writer: Mike Nilon
Executive Producers: Slava Vladimirov, Macdara Kelleher, Richard Lechartier, Andrew C. Robinson, Jamal Sannan, and Jared Underwood
Producers: Nicolas Cage, Arianne Fraser, Mike Nilon, Delphine Perrier, Braxton Pope, and David M. Wulf
Production: Redline Entertainment (II), Saturn Films, Highland Film Group (HFG), Aperture Media Partners
Distribution: RLJE Films
Cast: Nicolas Cage, Jaeden Martell, Maxwell Jenkins, Sadie Soverall, Samantha Coughland, Joe Dixon, Daire McMahon and Joel Gillman
Synopsis: In the near future, life on Earth will be decimated. Paul (Nicolas Cage) and his twin teenage sons, Thomas (Jaeden Martell) and Joseph (Maxwell Jenkins), have been living a half-life — tranquility by day and torment by night. When the sun sets, ferocious creatures of the night awaken and consume all living souls in their path. One day, when Thomas doesn’t return home before sundown, Paul chooses to leave the safety of their fortified farm to find him before the creatures arrive.
Just as he finds his boy, a nightmarish battle ensues and Paul is gravely wounded. Now the twins must devise a desperate plan for surviving the coming night and use everything their father has taught them to keep him alive.
Have you seen Arcadian yet? Did you catch it at SXSW? What would you do if you were in the boys’ situation? Let us know on socials!
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