It’s no secret that the Pet Sematary movies all involve some level of animal death and violence, just look at the title. The last film in the franchise to hit our screens traumatized audiences with explicit scenes of cat injuries and fatalities. In a recent interview with SFX, however, Pet Sematary; Bloodlines director Lindsey Beer explains that this time round there will be no gory shots involving animals in the prequel.
“Particularly as an animal lover, I wanted to make sure there weren’t any horrific shots of animal deaths, I don’t think that that resonates with a whole bunch of people, including myself.” Beer tells SFX magazine in the new issue, which features The Exorcist: Believer on the cover.
Later in the interview, Beer reveals that although our furry friends will be free from the horrors that lie in the cemetery, the human characters will suffer grislier fates. The director goes on to describe how a lot of the gory scenes involve people, and she had the most fun making these too.
After writing about blood and guts previously, this was her first time dealing with those elements on a practical level. "I love it," she says. "It’s so fun. Not to spoil anything but there’s a scene with some guts and even just designing what the guts look like and putting the right blood prints on something, I felt like I was a kid doing finger paint. I had my hands all up in there"
Pet Sematary: Bloodlines serves as a prequel to the 2019 version of Pet Sematary which is of course a remake of the 1989 original adapted from Stephen King's 1984 novel of the same name. The original story follows a young family who discovers a pet-only graveyard with powers of resurrection at the back of their property.
The upcoming movie transports audiences back to 1969, when a young Jud Crandall (the old and mysterious neighbor from the original) uncovers his dark family history, discovering sinister secrets that will stay with him forever.
Pet Sematary: Bloodlines releases on October 6.
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The above is just a snippet of our interview, available in the latest issue of SFX Magazine, which features The Exorcist: Believer on the cover and is available on newsstands from Wednesday, October 4. For even more from SFX, sign up for the newsletter, sending all the latest exclusives straight to your inbox.
