Edgar Wright’s ‘Last Night In Soho’ Is “About The Exploitation Of Women” Says Co-Writer Krysty Wilson-Cairns

Director Edgar Wright teamed with the Oscar-nominated co-writer of “1917,” Krysty Wilson-Cairns, for a new, more serious genre venture, “Last Night In Soho.” A psychological horror film that seemingly has time-jumping elements with rising stars Anya Taylor-Joy (“The Witch,” “The Queen’s Gambit“) and Thomasin McKenzie (“Jojo Rabbit“) playing the two main leads.

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“Last Night In Soho” is a psychological thriller that tells the story of Eloise (McKenzie), an aspiring fashion designer that has an obsession with the ‘60s. Eloise finds herself transported back to the ’60s thanks to a mysterious connection with a singer named Sandie (Taylor-Joy).

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However, as the trailer suggests, there is a dark undertone to the entire experience, which is being highlighted by the film’s co-writer. In a new interview, screenwriter Krysty Wilson-Cairns tells Empire that the film is “about the exploitation of women” and continues to explain the reasoning behind that creative choice.

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“And the exploitation of any marginalized group, really. I don’t think people talk about it enough. I don’t think we see it on screen enough, and I don’t think we understand the full implications of it enough. And I think we need to talk about it in fiction because that’s how people begin to grapple with stuff that’s not directly connected to them. So it couldn’t not be a theme, because we’re talking about the ‘60s, and it was rife,” Wilson-Cairns said of the importance of allowing fiction/genre to explore real-life topics like exploitation as they do in their film.

She admires co-writing Edgar Wright for challenging himself on the project, “You never go in and say, ‘We want to write great female roles to pass the Bechdel Test. To tell this story, it was important to have two strong female characters. It was more important to tell the story correctly and develop interesting characters rather than write women for the sake of it. I wouldn’t have been involved in that. But I admire Edgar for saying, ‘You know what? I’m going to take on this challenge.’”

We’ve in the past, with George A. Romeo’s “Dawn of The Dead” being a direct commentary on American consumerism, so having a bit of sociology mixed and thoughtful narratives combined into your horror film isn’t that uncommon for the genre. Nia DaCosta‘s hit “Candyman” also explores gentrification in black neighborhoods.

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The Edgar Wright film will make its world premiere at the Venice International Film Festival on September 4; it will also play at the Toronto International Film Festival and hit theaters domestically on October 29, just in time for Halloween.