Scream directors' new vampire horror Abigail is so bloody, they spent the majority of the shoot apologizing to the actors

Melissa Barrera as 'Joey' in Abigail
(Image credit: Future/Total Film magazine)

Scream directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett's new horror movie Abigail is so bloody, they felt genuinely bad for constantly dousing their actors in the sticky red stuff on set.

"All of our movies are bloody," the filmmakers tell Total Film in our new issue out this Friday, which features Road House on the cover. "[But] I would say that this is definitely the most bloody. We spent a lot of time apologizing to our actors on this movie! 

"I mean, blood is in the DNA of a vampire movie, and the amount of blood work in this one is… It's pretty extreme!" Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett, whose previous works include Southbound and Ready or Not, continued. "But it's still fun."

Starring Melissa Barrera, Dan Stevens, and Matilda breakout Alisha Weir in the titular role, the film follows a ragtag team of kidnappers who realize too late that the 12-year-old girl they've been asked to keep captive isn't just the daughter of a powerful criminal; she's a vampire, and a ballet-dancing one at that.

Kathryn Newton, Giancarlo Esposito, Kevin Durand, and the late Angus Cloud round out the cast. In Total Film's exclusive image above, you can see the cluster of crooks as they arrive at the place where they're supposed to hide Abigail. In other words, it's a shot from the start of the movie before everything goes seriously, seriously sideways...

Alisha Weir in Abigail

(Image credit: Universal Pictures)

Abigail is released on April 19. And you can read more about it and a whole lot else besides in the new issue of Total Film when it hits shelves and digital newsstands on Friday, March 1. This is one day later than usual, due to how the Leap Year falls. 

Check out the covers below:

Total Film's Road House covers

(Image credit: Prime Video/Amazon MGM Studios/Total Film)

Pre-order the issue here to bag your copy, or click here to subscribe to Total Film and never miss another exclusive. You’ll get every issue before it's in stores, and you’ll get subscriber-exclusive covers. 

Total Film's subscriber offer

(Image credit: Universal/Warner Bros./Prime Video/Amazon MGM Studios/Focus Features)
Editor-at-Large, Total Film

Jamie Graham is the Editor-at-Large of Total Film magazine. You'll likely find them around these parts reviewing the biggest films on the planet and speaking to some of the biggest stars in the business – that's just what Jamie does. Jamie has also written for outlets like SFX and the Sunday Times Culture, and appeared on podcasts exploring the wondrous worlds of occult and horror. 

With contributions from
Read more
Bill Skarsgard as Count Orlok in Nosferatu
Nosferatu director explains why he wanted to keep Bill Skarsgård's Orlok look secret – and hopes audiences respect it
Heart Eyes
Heart Eyes director describes the new slasher as a rom-com that’s just as "fun and violent" as Friday the 13th: "For me, it was about asking, 'What haven't I seen in a while?'"
Nosferatu trailer
Nosferatu star Lily-Rose Depp shares the deep-cut detail in Bill Skarsgård's Count Orlok look that makes him so "freaky"
Lily-Rose Depp in Nosferatu
Nosferatu should "feel like a love triangle" according to star Lily-Rose Depp, albeit a twisted one
Nosferatu
Nosferatu's Bill Skarsgård was so happy to shed the Orlok character when filming wrapped: "It was an immense sense of relief"
Michael B. Jordan as Elijah and Elias in Sinners
Black Panther director's Stephen King inspired horror movie Sinners gets wild trailer that sees Marvel star Michael B. Jordan fight off bloodthirsty vampires
Latest in
Jordan A. Mun looks at herself in a mirror in just a vest in Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet screenshot
5 years after starting development, Neil Druckmann says Naughty Dog's new game Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet is "still evolving and changing as we're making it"
Silent Hill f
After 2 years of silence, the next mainline Silent Hill game is getting a dedicated stream this week with "the latest news"
FC 25
FC 25 FUT Birthday guide and full cards list
Original Xbox console
Former Microsoft exec says the first Xbox was killed early in favor of 360 because it was "losing money left right and center," but luckily "we could afford to hemorrhage cash"
A Monster Hunter Wilds character holding binoculars.
Despite Monster Hunter Wilds suffering monstrous performance problems on PC, it still outsold the PS5 and Xbox Series X versions in the US
Jordan A. Mun looks at herself in a mirror in just a vest in Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet screenshot
The Last of Us creator Neil Druckmann says Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet will also be about "being lonely," as if his zombie apocalypse wasn’t isolating enough: "I really want you to be lost"
Latest in News
Jordan A. Mun looks at herself in a mirror in just a vest in Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet screenshot
5 years after starting development, Neil Druckmann says Naughty Dog's new game Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet is "still evolving and changing as we're making it"
Silent Hill f
After 2 years of silence, the next mainline Silent Hill game is getting a dedicated stream this week with "the latest news"
Original Xbox console
Former Microsoft exec says the first Xbox was killed early in favor of 360 because it was "losing money left right and center," but luckily "we could afford to hemorrhage cash"
A Monster Hunter Wilds character holding binoculars.
Despite Monster Hunter Wilds suffering monstrous performance problems on PC, it still outsold the PS5 and Xbox Series X versions in the US
Jordan A. Mun looks at herself in a mirror in just a vest in Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet screenshot
The Last of Us creator Neil Druckmann says Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet will also be about "being lonely," as if his zombie apocalypse wasn’t isolating enough: "I really want you to be lost"
A screenshot of Jordan drinking a soda during the reveal trailer for Intergalactic: The Hertic Prophet.
Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet is "a game about faith and religion," which Neil Druckmann jokes will surely get less hate than The Last of Us 2