Pearl TRIVIA!

Last weekend I took a look at Pearl, the latest horror-thriller from indie studio A24 and is sequel to this year's surprise low budget horror hit 'X.' And here are a few interesting little tidbits about the second installment of A24's 'X' trilogy!

• Secretly filmed simultaneously with X (2022). 'Pearl' serves as that film's prequel, showing the title character's early life in 1918 decades before the events of 'X'.

• Ti West and Mia Goth collaborated on the script via FaceTime during a mandatory 2-week quarantine (due to the COVID-19 pandemic) in New Zealand prior to filming X (2022). They had only hoped A24 would agree to make the film. Fortunately, the project was green-lit before filming began on X.

• To prepare for the tone of this movie, director/co-writer Ti West suggested that Mia Goth (Pearl) watch What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) and The Wizard of Oz (1939).

• A trailer was shown at the end of theatrical screenings of X (2022), in certain territories.

• The filmmaker stated that he intends each film to have its own distinct style and genre of horror. Describing his approach to each movie, he stated that X was heavily influenced by The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise and by the works of Mario Bava, which explore how the rise of independent filmmaking affected society, while Pearl will be a melodrama meets the Technicolor style of Mary Poppins and The Wizard of Oz, made as a "demented Disney movie" and based on the works of Douglas Sirk, and will explore how Hollywood filmmaking has influenced people. West stated that he intends to continue this trend of exploring diverse styles and genres in future installments.

• Filmmaker Martin Scorsese was reportedly very impressed by the film, calling it “mesmerizing,” and stating that it was "powered by a pure, undiluted love for cinema".

• At the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival, the film was the first place runner up for the People's Choice Award for Midnight Madness.

• West announced in March 2022 that he was working on the script for a third movie in the film series, to be set chronologically after the events of X. That project will explore another sub-genre of horror and will continue depicting how cinema in general, and the development of home video releases in particular, have influenced society.

• In September 2022, at the first Midnight Madness showing of Pearl for the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival, a third film was officially announced with a short teaser played after the credits. The clip was later released online for those not present at the event. West once again serves as writer/director and one of the producers, while Mia Goth will reprise her role from the first movie. Serving as a sequel to X, the film takes place in 1985 and is titled MaXXXine. The plot was confirmed to center around Maxine, the only survivor of the "Massacre of X" as she continues to pursue her future in Hollywood. Though principal photography has not yet begun, the teaser trailer was shot with the film fast-tracked to being green-lit by A24, following the successes of the previous two installments. Jacob Jaffke, Kevin Turen, and Harrison Kreiss will be producers, while Goth will additionally serve as an executive producer