Elizabeth Banks REVEALS how 'Cocaine Bear' pays TRIBUTE to Sam Raimi and John Carpenter
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: 'Cocaine Bear' had fans rolling for the epic trailer it launched a few days back but Director, Elizabeth Banks shared some insight into what to expect from the upcoming horror movie saying it is a tribute to some of the famous film directors whose work she has always admired.
All thanks to the film title like that, there are certain expectations at play. For instance, the fans are expecting the movie to have a lot of white powder, a lot of roaring, and a healthy blob of blood and violence. It's unclear how many victims will perish at the paws of said 'Cocaine Bear', but rest assured, the kill count should be remarkably high. Will 'The Hunger Games' actress live up to make it horrid yet hilarious? Who knows. Regardless, the film follows a bear who unleashes horror on a small town in Georgia after accidentally ingesting cocaine and falling into a drug-fueled murderous rage. What makes the premise even more intriguing is that it is actually loosely based on a true story.
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In an interview with CinemaBlend, Banks revealed that 'Cocaine Bear' was inspired by the works of Spielberg, Carpenter, and Raimi. Banks made the revelation to confirm that 'Cocaine Bear' is far from just a typical horror/thriller film. There are deeper themes embedded in the film, and it pays homage to other filmmakers by adding heart, comedy, and a sense of wonder.
She said, "The movie, despite what you just saw, really has a lot of humor and heart in it as well. And, there's some hugging, there are some tears. It really is a story about fathers and sons and parenting and taking care of each other in crazy times, right? That's one of the sorts of thematics of this too, is just when things are going totally sideways, who can you count on? That's a big part of the movie as well. That to me is the heart of the movie, the reason I made it was not necessarily because of the crazy bear. I do love these movies. I love horror and I love gore, and I love comedy and I love Sam Raimi and I love John Carpenter, and I felt like this was an opportunity to, this takes place in 1985. So this is a real opportunity to create a homage to some of those kinds of films, but also to do something really unique too, because it is also a character piece."
The film features an ensemble cast that includes Keri Russell, O'Shea Jackson Jr, Christian Convery, Alden Ehrenreich, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Brooklynn Prince, Isiah Whitlock Jr, Kristofer Hivju, Hannah Hoekstra, Aaron Holliday, Margo Martindale, and Ray Liotta in one of his final performances before his death.
However, 'Cocaine Bear' by Universal Pictures is scheduled to be released next year on February 24, 2023.