Texas Chainsaw Massacre - Sequel to '74, Netflix

Feb 2022.

Directed by David Blue Garcia. Written by Fede Álvarez (Evil Dead 2013, Don’t Breathe) and Rodolfo Sayagues. Stars Sarah Yarkin, Elsie Fisher, Nell Hudson, and Jacob Latimore with Mark Burnham as Leatherface.

“When I say ‘direct sequel’ I wouldn’t say it skips everything,” he explains. “When movies do that, sometimes it feels a bit disrespectful to all the other films. Some people love Texas Chainsaw 2 . I love a lot of things about that movie — it’s so wacky and of its time. But the rest is such a mess canon-wise. I think it’s up to you to decide when and how the events of the other movies happen.”

Production began in the summer of 2020 with Northern Irish directors and first-time filmmakers Andy and Ryan Tohill initially at the helm of the shoot in Bulgaria. Then, on August 2020, Deadline reported that they had exited the project because of “creative differences.”

“They were great,” says Álvarez of the directors. “It was just going in a different direction. Me and the studio were not seeing it that way, and unfortunately we had to change.”

Shot in Bulgaria. Changed directors midway. Going to Netflix.

I expect this to suck.

As for director David Blue Garcia, the only thing I’ve seen with a credit of his is Blood Fest which he was the cinematographer on. That movie was bad.

Whoa, Mark Burnham as Leatherface? Honestly, that’s all I need to hear. I really liked Fede Alvarez’ writing in Calls, a superlative horror series on Apple TV, so his participation is also cause for hope. But casting Burnham gets my attention.

Mark Burnham is a big, loud, burly, rude, overbearing force of nature of an actor. He carries the movie Wrong Cops, which is quite a feat, considering it’s a wildly varied and over-the-top absurd Quintin Dupieux comedy with a huge cast of memorable actors. Yet Burnham rules that movie with an iron fist.

Mark Burnham is also really striking in an obscure but heartily recommended crime thriller (?) called Lowlife, which is the only movie I’ve seen where the luchadore wasn’t just a sight gag. But Burnham is the villain in this movie, and he steals every scene he’s in.

So assuming they’re not just hiding Mark Burnham under a mask the whole time – I can’t imagine an actor like him would sign up for that, but who knows – I’m now totally stoked to see whatever this is going to be. Especially if they have a chance to ignore all the “cannibal family” nonsense that was built up around Texas Chainsaw Massacre over the years. None of that is in the original movie, so here’s a chance to erect a bulwark between it and the godawful sequels!

-Tom

Right? Odd choice for Leatherface unless he gets to do more than moan, wear a mask, and swing a chainsaw around.

But again, Bulgaria, Netflix, and a Chainsaw Massacre sequel. I don’t have a lot of hope for this one.

Also spoilery this bit from Alvarez:

“This time, they’re more like millennial hipsters from Austin who are very entrepreneurial and have a dream of getting away from the city and back to the countryside. They’re trying to gentrify small-town America—and let’s just say they encounter some pushback.”

Bah, he’s trying to do Devil’s Rejects, isn’t he? :( The villains as protagonists. Although what else are you going to do with a sequel, I suppose.

-Tom

Hahaha. When I think of the Texas Chainsaw franchise, I think of Sally screaming, traumatized, and bloody in the back of a truck while Leatherface spins wildly with his weapon as the sun rises. Then my mind instantly turns to Dennis Hopper and Leatherface chainsaw/sword fighting. Then it goes to Matthew McConaughey whooping as he jumps off a roof with his homemade hydraulic leg brace propelling him. Finally, it settles on Alexandra Daddario screaming “Do yore thang cuz!” and tossing a chainsaw across the room in 3D.

Such a goofy series of movies.

That’s your first mistake.

-Tom, going through life telling himself there is only one Texas Chainsaw Massacre

You really should watch The Next Generation. It’s bad in the most wonderful of ways.

Having seen all the Texas Chainsaw Massacres, I can’t agree with either of those statements. :)

-Tom

Haha. You watched Leatherface!

Here’s the only Leatherface I need. Ladies and gentlemen, Mark Burnham:

By the way, my new Theory About Texas Chainsaw Massacre That No One Else Will Accept is that his name isn’t even “leatherface”. He’s referred to that way only once in the movie, and it’s just a cruel taunt from his brother. He’s no more named Leatherface in Texas Chainsaw Massacre than Henry Thomas’ character in E.T. is named Penis Breath.

-Tom

I’m still not convinced that Quentin Dupieux isn’t a pseudonym pun of “dupe you.”

Whenever I try to watch an old movie I’m always disappointed by the lack of millennials and current day culture war bullshit. So glad someone is finally doing something about that.

The stills don’t fill me with hope. It looks like some cheap digitally shot thing with flat lighting, so it’s not going to have any of the texture of the original.

Ok, it’s canon, now.

From @marquac’s cannily topical contributions to the animated gif thread, here’s your new Leatherface actor:

-Tom

https://youtu.be/GR9VsafJtdU

Official Netflix trailer:

I could say how much I was annoyed by that trailer, but it’s coming with my Netflix sub so I know I’m gonna see it anyway.

But that really doesn’t look very good.

Oof. Well, this wasn’t as bad as the prequel one with kid Leatherface, but it certainly wasn’t good.

First, I didn’t think the dialogue in a Chainsaw movie could get stupider than “Do yer thang cuz!” but I was wrong. “Try anything and you’re canceled bro,” showed me.

The writers created the worst group of young adults this time around. I guess this was done so the audience can “enjoy” the gruesome kills without feeling too bad about nice kids getting murdered, but they overshot the mark. Their misguided (and rude) effort to gentrify the town results in setting off Leatherface who apparently has been living peacefully in an orphanage for the past few decades. These people suck.

At least the kills were super gory and violent. And you finally do get an actual massacre with a chainsaw.

Regarding a returning character:

Let me get this straight. After surviving her encounter with the killer family in the original movie, Sally Hardesty moved to Harlow, became a Texas Ranger, and decided to live in the house where she almost died? She spends the next 50 years looking for Leatherface, but fails to find him in the same town where she lives with like 6 other people?? When she finally confronts Leatherface, she just lets him walk away??? Terrible.

The school shooting survival backstory for one of the characters is just weird.

Alice Krige was wasted in this.

Finally, I have no idea why they hired Mark Burnham to do this. It could’ve been any generic big guy stuntman playing Leatherface.

There are so, so many logical gaps in this movie. I went assuming it was for sure going to be trash, but hoping against hope. Why does it seem to be impossible to make a good TCM sequel?

Aside from all the idiotic plot stuff, it commits the cardinal sin: it’s not scary. Not even mildly tense.