‘Sons of Anarchy’ Star Charlie Hunnam And Director Guillermo Del Toro Talk ‘Crimson Peak’

Fans can expect to witness plenty of mystery and fright with the upcoming release of Guillermo del Toro’s newest film, Crimson Peak. In fact, as explained by Charlie Hunnam in a recent interview with Inquirer, the movie will see a return to del Toro’s roots and is more like some of his earlier films, including Pan’s Labyrinth, Cronos, and The Devil’s Backbone.

For his part, Hunnam is set to play the role of Dr. Alan McMichael in the film. McMichael is a well-mannered ophthalmologist who is in love with the lead character in the movie, Edith Cushing (Mia Wasikowska).

Although his role in the project is relatively minor, especially given that Edith does not fall in love with his character, Hunnam’s character does play an important part in the film. Along with serving as Edith’s friend, he also tries his best to save her after realizing that her recent marriage has put her in a terrible predicament.

While Hunnam tends to play characters that are more along the lines of an antihero, his role in Crimson Peak is very different. With that in mind, Hunnam stated that he was glad to play a man who tends to be “more thoughtful and quiet,” adding that his character is “a sensitive and smart guy.”

At the same time, Crimson Peak isn’t the first time that Charlie Hunnam and del Toro have worked together on a movie. During Hunnam’s days on the hit biker drama, Sons of Anarchy, the actor worked with del Toro on the robot fantasy film Pacific Rim. In fact, Hunnam’s involvement in Pacific Rim is actually what led to del Toro’s decision to include him in Crimson Peak, which Hunnam was grateful to be a part of.

Meanwhile, in regards to the nature of the upcoming gothic horror film, del Toro recently sat down with Bloody Disgusting, where he talked about how the movie is similar to early silent horror flicks, which he says has influenced his own work.

“Some of my favorite horror is silent because it has strength of composition and it has a very strong visual streak,” del Toro stated. “I always think film reached its maximum purity in things like Eric von Stroheim’s Greed, Nosferatu or Vampyr.”

Del Toro went on to add that, although special affects played a role in the scarier moments in his movie, he also relied heavily on real sets and objects, including the elaborate haunted mansion.

“I think it was important to build the house for real in the same I felt it was very important to create the costuming with an eye for detail,” del Toro revealed in the interview. “I think having the ghosts as actors with make-up and not just digital effects was important.”

Despite the fact that the horror genre has been moving away from its classical roots in recent years in both style and content, del Toro stated that he hopes his work will help inject some new life into the genre.

“What I think is important, and I hope Crimson Peak works in the sense that it will help that we can talk about a scary, creepy, movie.”

That being said, del Toro admitted that Crimson Peak isn’t exactly a true horror film, as there is plenty of romance mixed in between all the frights and scares. “It’s not horror, it is gothic romance,” he stated. “Even then you can talk about genre, because it is a genre movie in terms of bigger budgets.”

Crimson Peak, starring Charlie Hunnam, Tom Hiddleston, Jessica Chastain, and Mia Wasikowska is set to hit theaters everywhere on October 16.

[Lead Image Courtesy: Kevin Winter / Getty Images]