'Wendy' First Look: 'Beasts Of The Southern Wild' Director Benh Zeitlin Reimagines 'Peter Pan'
It's been eight years since Benh Zeitlin broke out with his debut feature, Beasts of the Southern Wild, which earned him numerous accolades and three Oscar nominations including one for Best Picture. Now the director makes an auspicious return with Wendy, a "wildly reimagined" retelling of Peter Pan from the point of view of the titular girl who traveled to Never Land. Fox Searchlight has debuted two Wendy first look images of the second feature film from Zeitlin, as well as plot details of the fantasy-drama.
Wendy First Look
Directed by Zeitlin, who co-wrote the script with sister Eliza Zeitlin, Wendy looks to be a modern take on the classic tale written by J. M. Barrie. The first image shows star Devin France, who plays Wendy, reading a book by flashlight in a T-shirt. And the second image looks to take place in the "mysterious island where aging and time have come unglued," showing several children hollering joyfully atop a cliff.
The images are full of that lush greenery and breathtaking imagery that helped Zeitlin become a breakout sensation in 2012 with Beasts of the Southern Wild. The film won the U.S. Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival and went on to win the Camera d'Or at Cannes, eventually earning three Oscar nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actress for 9-year-old Quvenzhané Wallis, the category's youngest nominee in history. Beasts was a major hit for Fox Searchlight as well, raking in $23 million on a $1.8 million budget.
Wendy, Zeitlin's sophomore effort, has been long in the works. First announced in August 2015, the film begain production in 2017 in Montserrat. Now the film finally comes to theaters next year, and Zeitlin can prove that he wasn't a one-hit wonder.
Here is the synopsis for Wendy:
The classic story of Peter Pan is wildly reimagined in this ragtag epic from Benh Zeitlin, director of BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD. Lost on a mysterious island where aging and time have come unglued, Wendy must fight to save her family, her freedom, and the joyous spirit of youth from the deadly peril of growing up.
Wendy hits theaters on February 28, 2020.