The creator of Hannibal, Bryan Fuller, wanted his first film to be terrifying to everyone

When Bryan Fuller set out to make his first feature film, his goal was to deliver the kind of family horror he had loved as a child. He thinks Gremlins or Ghostbusters. Creator l Hannibal and Pushing daisies Drafting finished A story called Dust bunnyThe film revolves around a young girl named Aurora who hires a hitman to kill the monster under her bed. It has all the hallmarks of those films that inspired it – humor, fun action, and a creature that’s both lovable and terrifying – but the final product also had a slight snag.

“I was planning to make a movie that people could take their kids to, and then — and maybe that’s why you shouldn’t make me watch your kids — we ended up with an R rating,” Fuller says. Edge. “But it’s meant to be a family movie. It’s for kids and adults alike.”

Dust bunny Life began as part of Amazing storiesthe Apple TV revival of Steven Spielberg’s anthology series. But the episode was eventually cut and Fuller soon realized that with its standalone story, it could be the perfect project for him to make the leap from television to film. “It was very clear what to do with it,” he says.

Going back further, Fuller explains Dust bunnyIts origins began in his childhood. The film follows a child desperate to find someone to help her deal with the creature terrorizing her home; In this case, it appears that the monster under her bed has eaten her parents, leaving her alone. “The monster wasn’t necessarily under my bed, but it was under the ceiling,” Fuller says of his upbringing. “I had a difficult childhood and an abusive father. He was a monster greater than anything I could have imagined. This affected certain aspects of the storytelling, in terms of Aurora’s survival and coping mechanisms.”

while Dust bunny It doesn’t contain any nudity or strong language, but it gets an R rating for violence. It’s not heavy on blood and gore, but there are a number of shootouts – including Sigourney Weaver using a pair of heels that double as guns and a particularly unsettling dismemberment sequence. Fuller views these moments as “cartoon violence”, although the MPA disagrees.

One of the most important parts of the film was getting the actors right Dust bunny It hinges on the dynamic between the killer and Aurora. Fuller knew he wanted to Hannibal Collaborator Mads Mikkelsen as the adult hero, describing him as a “muse, partner, brother, and hero.” Mikkelsen was then entered into the casting process. “I wanted to make sure he saw something, because backstage as an actor he’s trying to get things out of her that are tricks he picked up from working with child actors,” Fuller adds. They ended up casting relative newcomer Sophie Sloane, and her youthful determination provides a fun counterpoint to Mikkelsen’s deadpan seriousness.

It is also important to know the design of the creature itself. Designed by artist John Wayshakwho previously worked with Fuller on an as-yet-unreleased film Pushing daisies Comically, the monster is a large fluffy thing that mostly stays out of sight early on, just like a shark Jaws. Its design also had to manage a difficult balance. “It has to be scary and cute and have appeal, so you understand that it could come from a child’s imagination,” Fuller says. For much of the film, it’s also not clear if the creature is real at all, or if it’s all in Aurora’s head. (I won’t spoil it, but you’ll get an answer to this eventually.)

The buddy comedy setup and the lovable and creepy creature are part of an attempt to capture the classic 80s tone. Completer notes Gremlins And perhaps a greater source of inspiration Dust bunnySaying that even when they had horror elements, many of the films he loved from that era “also had a sense of humor and accessibility that wasn’t oppressive in tone.”

So, even with the pesky R rating, the writer and director are still holding out hope for this Dust bunny It can reach its target audience. “I would love for young girls to experience this,” he says. “…Obviously at their parents’ discretion.”

_{Dust bunny It will be in theaters on December 12.}