The Untold Truth Of Barbarian

In all the discussion of the horror movie "Barbarian" from writer/director Zach Cregger, there has been a concentrated effort to not spoil all the surprises that this film has to offer. That's understandable since there's lots of fun to be had in watching "Barbarian" start out being about a woman, Tess (Georgina Campbell), discovering somebody else is staying at the Airbnb she's reserved before getting way more twisted from there. Though there's lots of excitement in watching the imaginative narrative swerves unfold, "Barbarian" is still incredibly fun to watch in terms of its pacing, music choices, performances, and so much more. The fact that this feature has so much to offer beyond plot points that would constitute "spoilers" is reflected in the various compelling corners of the film's history.

This untold truth concerns a wide array of details related to "Barbarian," including the various release dates it went through, why Justin Long was so excited to be a part of this cast as an unsavory character, and how Disney ended up releasing a horror movie that was this disturbing, among many other elements. It's no spoiler to say that the untold truth of "Barbarian" will make one even more appreciative of all the craft that went into developing this warped and entertaining slice of horror storytelling.

Under the ownership of Disney, 20th Century Studios (formerly known as 20th Century Fox) has significantly changed how it releases movies. Whereas in the past Fox would release tons of titles into movie theaters in a single year, now, 20th Century Studios delivers the vast majority of its annual movies to Hulu (which is largely owned by Disney). While a handful of titles from 20th Century Studios still go to the big screen, most of its movies, such as "Vacation Friends" or "The Princess," are now exclusively released to Hulu.

In reporting on its opening weekend box office figures, Deadline revealed that "Barbarian" was once set to be another 20th Century Studio title that bowed on Hulu. However, Mouse House brass decided to change their mind when they began showing the film in test screenings and got back incredibly strong numbers from audience members. People were quite positive about the feature and this gave Disney renewed confidence that "Barbarian" could stand out and even thrive in the theatrical marketplace. With that, the plans for "Barbarian" going to Hulu were dashed. Instead, it followed the conventional theatrical release path that used to be the norm for 20th Century Studios titles.

"Barbarian" is such a strange horror movie full of creative twists and turns that the mind can't help but be fascinated by what story could explain its existence. How did writer/director Zach Cregger come to the point where he penned this screenplay? The fact that the various pieces of "Barbarian" work and fit together so well makes it especially enticing to understand the writing process behind it. However, Cregger never set out to write a movie as intricately-plotted as "Barbarian."

Speaking to Below the Line, Cregger noted that the screenplay for "Barbarian" didn't start with a concrete form, it was just an exercise Cregger did in his garage to amuse himself back in 2018. Cregger proceeded to iron and flesh out the rest of the script from there, sidestepping an outline in favor of coming up with new developments on the fly. Cregger was inspired to be casual in how "Barbarian" developed by a quote from Stephen King that compared writers to archeologists and the stories they write to randomly-discovered bones. Going this route could've been risky and resulted in Cregger just hitting a dead end with no finished script to show for his efforts. Thankfully, being open to this style of writing resulted in the highly creative finished script for "Barbarian."

In his career as an actor, Justin Long has often inhabited comedic roles that make him an everyman audiences can immediately identify with. Whether it's "Accepted" or "Live Free or Die Hard," Long is a reliable figure to turn to as a non-threatening presence that can immediately win the audience over. For "Barbarian," though, Long plays a much darker and foreboding character. Here, he is portraying AJ Gilbride, a sitcom actor who is accused of assault by a fellow performer. It's a scummy character, one that serves as a far cry from the kind of person Long played in something like "Going the Distance."

Talking to GQ, Long noted that he was as surprised as anyone when he first got the offer to play AJ in "Barbarian." He was so convinced that something had gone haywire that he even inquired if he had gotten the character that should've been offered to fellow "Barbarian" actor Bill Skarsgard, a veteran of horror movie villains thanks to projects like "It." But there was no mix-up here, writer/director Zach Cregger wanted Long to step outside his wheelhouse and play a villainous character. Long relished the chance to expand beyond what he usually played, especially since he felt so confident and assured working under the direction of Cregger. Long may be known for playing amiable goofballs, but "Barbarian" gave him the chance to prove he could so much more than that.

The final girl is a common staple of so many horror films, especially slasher movies. The concept reflects how many horror movies eventually boil down to a climax where the last survivor is a woman who has to face down whatever evil has been stalking and killing the rest of the story's characters. Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) in "Halloween" is a perfect example of this trope, while Sydney Prescott (Neve Campbell) in "Scream" is another fitting instance of this phenomenon. "Barbarian" protagonist Tess Marshall (Georgina Campbell) eventually becomes another iteration of this horror narrative staple, though Campbell firmly believes that her character is a bit of a subversion of audience expectations for what final girls are like.

Talking to IndieWire, Campbell observed and appreciated how Zach Cregger's screenplay avoided painting Tess as just somebody who needed to be saved as well as the characters defining trait of empathy. Throughout "Barbarian," no matter how harrowing things get, Tess remains vigilantly concerned about other people and is willing to put herself in danger to save others. Because of this quality, Campbell firmly believed that Tess had more of an active personality and role in her own narrative than many classic final girls. Leave it to a movie as unwaveringly peculiar as "Barbarian" to also find a way to inject uniqueness into the final girl archetype.

It's always a good idea to let your guard down and open yourself up to advice from other people. This is true in any context, but it's especially true for artists. A new perspective from a fresh pair of eyes can help you get a clearer view of an artistic endeavor you may have become too cozy with to see objectively. "Barbarian" director Zach Cregger adhered to this advice before he went off to shoot this movie in Bulgaria by taking some solid advice from horror maestro Jordan Peele.

Talking to Variety, Cregger fondly recalled how Peele helped prepare him for all the inevitable obstacles that come up when directing a movie. It was especially great for Cregger to get advice from Peele since both men were artists who got started in sketch comedy before transitioning into making horror fare. Peele's influence on "Barbarian" wasn't even limited to the pre-production phase of the movie's existence. Cregger further noted that Peele watched an early cut of "Barbarian" and delivered notes to the director on how it could be further improved. It's always a wise idea to take sound advice, but that's especially the case when the advice comes from someone as acclaimed as Jordan Peele.

"Barbarian" was that rare thing in the modern theatrical landscape, a total box office wildcard. Without any major prior directorial efforts from its filmmaker or a slew of predecessors to base box office projections on, it was anyone's guess where the film would land financially. Adding a further dash of chaos to the pile was that "Barbarian" was a 20th Century Studios movie distributed by Disney. The House of Mouse may usually score financially with live-action remakes of classic cartoons, but the studio had a much more erratic box office track record when it came to releasing 20th Century Studios titles.

Despite having lots of uncertainty and potential obstacles lingering over its theatrical release, "Barbarian" ended up excelling on opening weekend. Its first three days in North American theaters grossed $10.5 million, a noticeable improvement over the opening weekends of other 2022 horror fare like "The Invitation." Even better, "Barbarian" was already set for long-term profit since it cost a minuscule $4 million to produce. With this bow, "Barbarian" cemented itself as a hit and a prominent example of how original movies can still go the distance at the box office in 2022 (and left room open for a potential sequel, too).