M. Night Shyamalan was the second unit director on the thriller The Watchers, directed by his daughter Ishana Night Shyamalan
M. Night Shyamalan’s daughter Ishana Night Shyamalan has made her feature directorial debut with a thriller called The Watchers, which is set to receive a June 7th theatrical release, courtesy of Warner Bros. / New Line Cinema. During an interview with Games Radar, M. Night Shyamalan confirmed that he was his daughter’s second unit director on The Watchers, and that the experience changed him as a filmmaker.
The elder Shyamalan said directing second unit for his daughter was “the same job I’ve done my whole life but with a different intention. I have to deliver for [Ishana]. It’s not something I came up with; it’s something she came up with. That created a different engine for me, when I was directing those scenes for her. I almost became a student again from the beginning. Which is the dream – that you start to see it as new [again]. It changed me as director for myself, for my new film.“
The younger Shyamalan wrote the screenplay for The Watchers, based on a novel by A.M. Shine (pick up a copy HERE). The film stars Dakota Fanning (The Equalizer 3) as Mina, a 28-year-old artist who gets stranded in an expansive, untouched forest in western Ireland. When Mina finds shelter, she unknowingly becomes trapped alongside three strangers that are watched and stalked by mysterious creatures each night. Also in the cast are Barbarian star Georgina Campbell, Olwen Fouéré (Texas Chainsaw Massacre), and Oliver Finnegan (Creeped Out).
When the film was heading into production, New Line Cinema’s Richard Brener provided the following statement: “We couldn’t be more excited to make Ishana’s first film with The Watchers. Equal parts visual, immersive, and terrifying, the script grips you from the first page and never lets go.“
M. Night Shyamalan and Ashwin Rajan are producing The Watchers for Blinding Edge Pictures. Nimitt Mankad of Inimitable Pictures is also producing. Jo Homewood serves as executive producer.
Ishana Night Shyamalan was an important part of the creative team behind her father’s Apple TV+ series Servant, writing and/or directing multiple episodes. In addition to her work on Servant, Ishana Night Shyamalan has also worked as second unit director on her father’s movies Old and Knock at the Cabin, and she has directed four music videos for her sister Saleka.
Saleka has a prominent role in M. Night’s new film, the thriller Trap, which is set to reach theatres on August 9th.
Are you looking forward to The Watchers and / or Trap? Share your thoughts on these upcoming thrillers from the Shyamalans by leaving a comment below.
