{"id":2087162,"date":"2026-08-10T17:04:49","date_gmt":"2026-08-10T14:04:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2087162"},"modified":"2026-08-10T17:04:49","modified_gmt":"2026-08-10T14:04:49","slug":"the-cursed-story-of-the-wicker-man-has-a-new-tragic-chapter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2087162","title":{"rendered":"The cursed story of \u2018The Wicker Man\u2019 has a new tragic chapter"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Wicker-Man-Wrath-Of-The-Gods_Wickerwitch_1_1.1063.1.jpg&#8221;]<\/p>\n<article id=\"template-id-2947849\" class=\"post-2947849 tdb_templates type-tdb_templates status-publish post\">\n<div id=\"tdi_65\" class=\"tdc-zone\">\n<div class=\"tdc_zone tdi_66  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div id=\"tdi_67\" class=\"tdc-row stretch_row\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_68  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_70  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_breadcrumbs tdi_71 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 tdb-breadcrumbs \" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_71\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span>Features<\/span><span>Film Interviews<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_title tdi_72 tdb-single-title td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_72\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">The cursed story of \u2018The Wicker Man\u2019 has a new tragic chapter<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_subtitle tdi_73 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_73\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<p>The son of original creator Robin Hardy tells us about upcoming sequel \u2018Wrath Of The Gods\u2019 and the sudden death of its director\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_author tdi_75 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 tdb-post-meta\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_75\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-author-name-wrap\"><span class=\"tdb-author-by\">By<\/span> James Mottram<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_date tdi_76 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 tdb-post-meta\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_76\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><time class=\"entry-date updated td-module-date\" datetime=\"2026-08-10T18:04:49+01:00\">10th August 2026<\/time><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_77\" class=\"tdc-row stretch_row_1400 td-stretch-content\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_78  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_80  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_featured_image tdi_81 tdb-content-horiz-left td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_81\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"696\" height=\"442\" class=\"entry-thumb\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Wicker-Man-Wrath-Of-The-Gods_Wickerwitch_1_1.1063.1-696x442.jpg\" alt=\"Wrath Of The Gods&apos;.\" title=\"Wicker Man Wrath Of The Gods_Wickerwitch_1_1.1063.1\"><figcaption class=\"tdb-caption-text\">&#8216;The Wicker Man&#8217; sequel &#8216;Wrath Of The Gods&#8217;. CREDIT:  Robin Keane<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_82\" class=\"tdc-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_83  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_85  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_content tdi_86 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 td-post-content tagdiv-type\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_86\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<p><strong class=\"dropcap big-read-dropcap\">I<\/strong>n 1972, when Dominic Hardy was 12, he left his hometown of Montreal to spend Christmas in Britain. His father Robin Hardy had just wrapped his new film <i>The Wicker Man <\/i>and he brought Dominic along to a private screening in London\u2019s Soho. Written by <i>Sleuth<\/i>\u2019s Anthony Shaffer and starring Christopher Lee as the aristocratic Lord Summerisle, alongside Edward Woodward and Britt Ekland, its unique flavour left a lasting impression. \u201cI have a memory of the sexuality and the horrific violence that closes the film,\u201d Dominic says, matter-of-factly, over video chat.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>\u00a0READ MORE: The best films of 2026\u2026 so far!<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>He would hardly be the only one unable to forget what he saw. <i>The Wicker Man<\/i>\u2019s bloodied and bruised history has been well-documented, from producers British Lion shredding the film in the edit to a belated release in America and, finally, cult fandom. After a lost stash of notes, letters and illustrations belonging to their father was discovered in an attic, Hardy and his half-brother Justin further explored the phenomenon in the 2025 book and companion documentary <i>Children Of The Wicker Man<\/i>, almost a decade after the death of their father.<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad0 id_ad_content-horiz-center\"><span class=\"td-adspot-title\">Advertisement<\/span><\/div>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Wrath Of The Gods, directed by Justin Hardy - Teaser\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/yXlO68qPeD8?feature=oembed&amp;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<p>All set on mysterious Scottish island Summerisle, this granddaddy of British folk horror has endured in a way few films ever do. \u201cIt is a film of major, major ideas that were important in the late \u201960s and early \u201970s,\u201d says Hardy. \u201cI would liken it to so many other products of that time, like The Beatles\u2026 they just tapped into what was going on in people\u2019s minds in the larger culture, and continue to do so. The film\u2019s pitch between paganism and Christianity is not treated in any kind of superficial glib way, but is really handled as a serious question.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It hasn\u2019t stopped there. This month sees the world premiere of <i>Wrath Of The Gods at London\u2019s FrightFest.<\/i> The sequel was spawned from an original idea found in that cache of hidden attic correspondence. Arriving after their father\u2019s belated 2011 follow-up <i>The Wicker Tree<\/i>, it completes a trilogy of films that are more spiritual cousins than story-driven successors. It also comes tinged with sadness. Just two weeks ago, on July 31, Justin \u2013 who directed the film from a story conjured by he and Dominic \u2013 died of a heart attack. He was just 61.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3961794\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3961794\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3961794\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Dr-Justin-and-Dominic-Hardy-at-The-Wicker-Man-50th-anniversary-screenings-1.jpg\" alt=\"Justin and Dominic Hardy at &apos;The Wicker Man&apos; 50th anniversary screening.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1270\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3961794\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Justin and Dominic Hardy at \u2018The Wicker Man\u2019 50th anniversary screening. CREDIT: Robin Keane<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cHe was the one person to have inherited our father\u2019s heart,\u201d explains Hardy. \u201cOur father famously had a massive heart attack at 41 and then had heart trouble through the years, ending in bypass operations. But he made it to 86.\u201d A decade ago, Justin had been diagnosed with heart-related issues, what his half-sibling calls \u201cthe beginning of signs of a hardening of the arteries\u201d. Despite receiving stents and looking after himself, it wasn\u2019t enough. \u201cI think that there must have just been a vulnerability in the heart that looked like a little time-bomb.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad1 id_ad_content-horiz-center\">\n<h5 class=\"taboola-mid-article-title\">Recommended<\/h5>\n<\/div>\n<p>Of Robin Hardy\u2019s eight children (spread across six relationships, including five marriages), Justin was the one that followed his father into directing, his credits including the Emmy-nominated <i>The Last Dragon<\/i> and BAFTA-nominated <i>The Relief Of Belsen<\/i>. \u201cI saw him two weeks before he died,\u201d says Hardy, \u201cand he was talking about the new scripts he was writing. He was heading in what he called a Scandi-noir direction, and also true crime horror. I mean, the irony is just terrible. It\u2019s on the cusp of that, that he was taken from us.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3961793\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3961793\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3961793\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Dominic-and-Justin-Hardy-with-their-late-fathers-newly-discovered-personal-archive.-Photo-credit-Robin-Keane.jpg\" alt=\"Dominic and Justin Hardy.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1270\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3961793\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dominic and Justin Hardy. CREDIT: Robin Keane<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>It\u2019s another tragic chapter in the cursed history of <i>The Wicker Man<\/i>, which flopped on release and left its director, and his family, close to bankruptcy. As <i>Children Of The Wicker Man <\/i>revealed, Robin Hardy owed his former wife Caroline \u2013 Justin\u2019s mother and an uncredited executive producer on <i>The Wicker Man<\/i> \u2013 the equivalent of \u00a31million in today\u2019s money. After he left her, Justin and his sister Bella to \u201cjumpstart his career in Hollywood\u201d, as Dominic puts it, she was forced to sell the family home. She died in 1984, aged 51, suffering from alcoholism.<\/p>\n<p>While <i>Wrath Of The Gods<\/i> is touchingly dedicated to Caroline, Dominic Hardy\u2019s own relationship with his father remains complicated. Raised in Montreal, where his parents met, he didn\u2019t properly meet his father until he was six. \u201cI saw very little of him over my whole childhood and adolescence. But as so often happens with cases like that, he loomed very large in my imagination and my appreciation,\u201d says Hardy. \u201cI might have had any number of reasons to not have a relationship [with him] as an adult, but the opposite was true. I sought him out. And he was very appreciative of that.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad2 id_ad_content-horiz-center\"><span class=\"td-adspot-title\">Advertisement<\/span><\/div>\n<p>No doubt, he\u2019d also be appreciative of <i>Wrath Of The Gods<\/i>, which pushes on from the concept that Robin Hardy first conceived. \u201cDad had wanted this film to be a [about a] Disney-like corporation that tries to put a theme park in an extinct volcano in Iceland, only to have the real gods revolt,\u201d explains Hardy, who developed a treatment with Justin that took the idea in a different direction, albeit remaining in tune with the Norse mythology of their father\u2019s idea.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3961792\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3961792\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3961792\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/9.-Christiane-Schaldemose-as-Anna-in-WRATH-OF-THE-GODS-photo-Robin-Keane.jpg\" alt=\"Christiane Schaldemose as Anna in &apos;Wrath Of The Gods&apos;\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1270\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3961792\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Christiane Schaldemose as Anna in \u2018Wrath Of The Gods\u2019 CREDIT: Robin Keane<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Situated \u201con the other side of Scotland\u201d to <i>The Wicker Man<\/i>\u2019s setting, the story follows Anna (Norwegian actress Christiane Schaldemose), a grieving widow who returns to the remote isle of Hel to bury her late husband after his suicide. Echoing the journey in the original of Edward Woodward\u2019s puritan copper Sergeant Howie, who arrives on Summerisle to uncover the mystery behind a missing girl, Anna is seen as the outsider by locals, a symbol of bad luck, at a time when children begin to disappear on the island.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis one has more focus and is a very, very serious film. It\u2019s perhaps much more consciously designed to have suspense be built around an ethical problem \u2013 the abduction of children on a small island,\u201d says Hardy. \u201cSo it\u2019s not treated as a game the way Shaffer and Hardy did [the original]. It\u2019s much more visceral, I would say. I think it\u2019s important that it is at once completing the ambition or the hopes of our father, but it is very much Justin\u2019s film.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Shot in Shetland, with locals cast in all but the main roles, the film also includes a potent part for Francis MaGee, who recently appeared as the gruff ship\u2019s captain in <i>Rose Of Nevada<\/i> (although <i>Peep Show<\/i> fans will remember him as \u2018techno pioneer\u2019 The Orgazoid). Calling his character Tulloch \u201cwholly original\u201d, and \u201csomeone who makes the action move\u201d, Hardy seems delighted that they scooped up MaGee, a man with \u201cthe kind of physique and attitude that we imagined\u201d.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3961797\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3961797\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3961797\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Wrath-Of-The-Gods_Tulloch_3_1.672.1.jpg\" alt=\"Tulloch in &apos;Wrath Of The Gods&apos;.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1270\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3961797\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Francis MaGee as Tulloch in \u2018Wrath Of The Gods\u2019. CREDIT: Robin Keane<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Hardy, who lectures in art history, isn\u2019t done yet. \u201cThere is a vast community of people who love <i>The Wicker Man<\/i> who are just hungry for new stuff,\u201d he says. Already, a Brazilian publisher is planning a deluxe illustrated Portuguese translation of <i>The Wicker Man<\/i>\u2019s novelisation. \u201cThis will present the novel to a new generation and a new linguistic community,\u201d says Hardy, who hopes that it could spur further translations (as yet, there are no French or Spanish versions) and even graphic novels.<\/p>\n<p>Beyond that, Hardy hopes there could yet be more of his father\u2019s hidden treasures unearthed. \u201cWe would love to find one day \u2013 we are hoping it exists \u2013 the storyboards that he drew for <i>The Wicker Man<\/i> because he was a very good illustrator.\u201d What is clear is that 53 years after the release of the original, the film remains a towering achievement, as embedded in popular culture as the sacrificial effigy that adorns the poster. \u201cIt\u2019s become a public icon,\u201d says Hardy. \u201cIt\u2019s left behind its origins and it thrives. It lives on its own.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>\u2018Wrath Of The Gods\u2019 screens at FrightFest in London on August 28<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_tags tdi_87 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_87\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<ul class=\"tdb-tags\">\n<li><span>Related Topics<\/span><\/li>\n<li>Horror<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_88\" class=\"tdc-row stretch_row_content td-stretch-content\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_89  wpb_row td-pb-row tdc-element-style\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_91  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"td-block td-a-rec td-a-rec-id-custom-spot tdi_92 td_block_template_2\"><span class=\"td-adspot-title\">Advertisement<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_93\" class=\"tdc-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_94  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_96  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"vc_row_inner tdi_98  vc_row vc_inner wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column_inner tdi_100  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-inner-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"vc_column-inner\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper td_block_wrap vc_raw_html tdi_102 \">\n<div class=\"td-fix-index\">\n<h3>More Stories<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap td_flex_block_1 tdi_103 td-pb-border-top td_module_flex_1--card td_module_flex_1--card--highlight td_block_template_2 tdc-no-posts td_flex_block\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_103\">\n<div id=\"tdi_103\" class=\"td_block_inner td-mc1-wrap\">\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Film News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">Mike Myers\u2019 \u201ccreepy as fuck\u201d \u2018The Cat In The Hat\u2019 costume goes up for auction<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Film Reviews<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">\u2018The Last House\u2019 review: lockdown horror as thrilling as making sourdough<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Film News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">\u2018The Mummy\u2019 posters banned from London Underground<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Film News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">\u2018V\/H\/S\u2019 found footage horror anthology to feature Ghost\u2019s Tobias Forge, RZA and more<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Film News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">Christopher Nolan would consider making a horror film next<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Film News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">\u2018A Nightmare On Elm Street\u2019 reboot is coming<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_104\" class=\"tdc-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_105  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_107  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper td_block_wrap vc_raw_html tdi_109 \">\n<div class=\"td-fix-index\">\n<h3>You May Also Like<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><\/span><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><\/span><\/span><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><\/span><\/article>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_content tdi_86 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 td-post-content tagdiv-type\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_86\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<p><strong class=\"dropcap big-read-dropcap\">I<\/strong>n 1972, when Dominic Hardy was 12, he left his hometown of Montreal to spend Christmas in Britain. His father Robin Hardy had just wrapped his new film <i>The Wicker Man <\/i>and he brought Dominic along to a private screening in London\u2019s Soho. Written by <i>Sleuth<\/i>\u2019s Anthony Shaffer and starring Christopher Lee as the aristocratic Lord Summerisle, alongside Edward Woodward and Britt Ekland, its unique flavour left a lasting impression. \u201cI have a memory of the sexuality and the horrific violence that closes the film,\u201d Dominic says, matter-of-factly, over video chat.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>\u00a0READ MORE: The best films of 2026\u2026 so far!<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>He would hardly be the only one unable to forget what he saw. <i>The Wicker Man<\/i>\u2019s bloodied and bruised history has been well-documented, from producers British Lion shredding the film in the edit to a belated release in America and, finally, cult fandom. After a lost stash of notes, letters and illustrations belonging to their father was discovered in an attic, Hardy and his half-brother Justin further explored the phenomenon in the 2025 book and companion documentary <i>Children Of The Wicker Man<\/i>, almost a decade after the death of their father.<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad0 id_ad_content-horiz-center\"><span class=\"td-adspot-title\">Advertisement<\/span><\/div>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Wrath Of The Gods, directed by Justin Hardy - Teaser\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/yXlO68qPeD8?feature=oembed&amp;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<p>All set on mysterious Scottish island Summerisle, this granddaddy of British folk horror has endured in a way few films ever do. \u201cIt is a film of major, major ideas that were important in the late \u201960s and early \u201970s,\u201d says Hardy. \u201cI would liken it to so many other products of that time, like The Beatles\u2026 they just tapped into what was going on in people\u2019s minds in the larger culture, and continue to do so. The film\u2019s pitch between paganism and Christianity is not treated in any kind of superficial glib way, but is really handled as a serious question.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It hasn\u2019t stopped there. This month sees the world premiere of <i>Wrath Of The Gods at London\u2019s FrightFest.<\/i> The sequel was spawned from an original idea found in that cache of hidden attic correspondence. Arriving after their father\u2019s belated 2011 follow-up <i>The Wicker Tree<\/i>, it completes a trilogy of films that are more spiritual cousins than story-driven successors. It also comes tinged with sadness. Just two weeks ago, on July 31, Justin \u2013 who directed the film from a story conjured by he and Dominic \u2013 died of a heart attack. He was just 61.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3961794\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3961794\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3961794\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Dr-Justin-and-Dominic-Hardy-at-The-Wicker-Man-50th-anniversary-screenings-1.jpg\" alt=\"Justin and Dominic Hardy at &apos;The Wicker Man&apos; 50th anniversary screening.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1270\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3961794\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Justin and Dominic Hardy at \u2018The Wicker Man\u2019 50th anniversary screening. CREDIT: Robin Keane<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cHe was the one person to have inherited our father\u2019s heart,\u201d explains Hardy. \u201cOur father famously had a massive heart attack at 41 and then had heart trouble through the years, ending in bypass operations. But he made it to 86.\u201d A decade ago, Justin had been diagnosed with heart-related issues, what his half-sibling calls \u201cthe beginning of signs of a hardening of the arteries\u201d. Despite receiving stents and looking after himself, it wasn\u2019t enough. \u201cI think that there must have just been a vulnerability in the heart that looked like a little time-bomb.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad1 id_ad_content-horiz-center\">\n<h5 class=\"taboola-mid-article-title\">Recommended<\/h5>\n<\/div>\n<p>Of Robin Hardy\u2019s eight children (spread across six relationships, including five marriages), Justin was the one that followed his father into directing, his credits including the Emmy-nominated <i>The Last Dragon<\/i> and BAFTA-nominated <i>The Relief Of Belsen<\/i>. \u201cI saw him two weeks before he died,\u201d says Hardy, \u201cand he was talking about the new scripts he was writing. He was heading in what he called a Scandi-noir direction, and also true crime horror. I mean, the irony is just terrible. It\u2019s on the cusp of that, that he was taken from us.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3961793\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3961793\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3961793\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Dominic-and-Justin-Hardy-with-their-late-fathers-newly-discovered-personal-archive.-Photo-credit-Robin-Keane.jpg\" alt=\"Dominic and Justin Hardy.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1270\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3961793\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dominic and Justin Hardy. CREDIT: Robin Keane<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>It\u2019s another tragic chapter in the cursed history of <i>The Wicker Man<\/i>, which flopped on release and left its director, and his family, close to bankruptcy. As <i>Children Of The Wicker Man <\/i>revealed, Robin Hardy owed his former wife Caroline \u2013 Justin\u2019s mother and an uncredited executive producer on <i>The Wicker Man<\/i> \u2013 the equivalent of \u00a31million in today\u2019s money. After he left her, Justin and his sister Bella to \u201cjumpstart his career in Hollywood\u201d, as Dominic puts it, she was forced to sell the family home. She died in 1984, aged 51, suffering from alcoholism.<\/p>\n<p>While <i>Wrath Of The Gods<\/i> is touchingly dedicated to Caroline, Dominic Hardy\u2019s own relationship with his father remains complicated. Raised in Montreal, where his parents met, he didn\u2019t properly meet his father until he was six. \u201cI saw very little of him over my whole childhood and adolescence. But as so often happens with cases like that, he loomed very large in my imagination and my appreciation,\u201d says Hardy. \u201cI might have had any number of reasons to not have a relationship [with him] as an adult, but the opposite was true. I sought him out. And he was very appreciative of that.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad2 id_ad_content-horiz-center\"><span class=\"td-adspot-title\">Advertisement<\/span><\/div>\n<p>No doubt, he\u2019d also be appreciative of <i>Wrath Of The Gods<\/i>, which pushes on from the concept that Robin Hardy first conceived. \u201cDad had wanted this film to be a [about a] Disney-like corporation that tries to put a theme park in an extinct volcano in Iceland, only to have the real gods revolt,\u201d explains Hardy, who developed a treatment with Justin that took the idea in a different direction, albeit remaining in tune with the Norse mythology of their father\u2019s idea.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3961792\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3961792\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3961792\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/9.-Christiane-Schaldemose-as-Anna-in-WRATH-OF-THE-GODS-photo-Robin-Keane.jpg\" alt=\"Christiane Schaldemose as Anna in &apos;Wrath Of The Gods&apos;\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1270\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3961792\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Christiane Schaldemose as Anna in \u2018Wrath Of The Gods\u2019 CREDIT: Robin Keane<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Situated \u201con the other side of Scotland\u201d to <i>The Wicker Man<\/i>\u2019s setting, the story follows Anna (Norwegian actress Christiane Schaldemose), a grieving widow who returns to the remote isle of Hel to bury her late husband after his suicide. Echoing the journey in the original of Edward Woodward\u2019s puritan copper Sergeant Howie, who arrives on Summerisle to uncover the mystery behind a missing girl, Anna is seen as the outsider by locals, a symbol of bad luck, at a time when children begin to disappear on the island.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis one has more focus and is a very, very serious film. It\u2019s perhaps much more consciously designed to have suspense be built around an ethical problem \u2013 the abduction of children on a small island,\u201d says Hardy. \u201cSo it\u2019s not treated as a game the way Shaffer and Hardy did [the original]. It\u2019s much more visceral, I would say. I think it\u2019s important that it is at once completing the ambition or the hopes of our father, but it is very much Justin\u2019s film.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Shot in Shetland, with locals cast in all but the main roles, the film also includes a potent part for Francis MaGee, who recently appeared as the gruff ship\u2019s captain in <i>Rose Of Nevada<\/i> (although <i>Peep Show<\/i> fans will remember him as \u2018techno pioneer\u2019 The Orgazoid). Calling his character Tulloch \u201cwholly original\u201d, and \u201csomeone who makes the action move\u201d, Hardy seems delighted that they scooped up MaGee, a man with \u201cthe kind of physique and attitude that we imagined\u201d.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3961797\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3961797\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3961797\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Wrath-Of-The-Gods_Tulloch_3_1.672.1.jpg\" alt=\"Tulloch in &apos;Wrath Of The Gods&apos;.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1270\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3961797\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Francis MaGee as Tulloch in \u2018Wrath Of The Gods\u2019. CREDIT: Robin Keane<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Hardy, who lectures in art history, isn\u2019t done yet. \u201cThere is a vast community of people who love <i>The Wicker Man<\/i> who are just hungry for new stuff,\u201d he says. Already, a Brazilian publisher is planning a deluxe illustrated Portuguese translation of <i>The Wicker Man<\/i>\u2019s novelisation. \u201cThis will present the novel to a new generation and a new linguistic community,\u201d says Hardy, who hopes that it could spur further translations (as yet, there are no French or Spanish versions) and even graphic novels.<\/p>\n<p>Beyond that, Hardy hopes there could yet be more of his father\u2019s hidden treasures unearthed. \u201cWe would love to find one day \u2013 we are hoping it exists \u2013 the storyboards that he drew for <i>The Wicker Man<\/i> because he was a very good illustrator.\u201d What is clear is that 53 years after the release of the original, the film remains a towering achievement, as embedded in popular culture as the sacrificial effigy that adorns the poster. \u201cIt\u2019s become a public icon,\u201d says Hardy. \u201cIt\u2019s left behind its origins and it thrives. It lives on its own.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>\u2018Wrath Of The Gods\u2019 screens at FrightFest in London on August 28<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/www.nme.com\/features\/film-interviews\/wicker-man-sequel-wrath-gods-interview-dominic-hardy-justin-robin-3961791&#8243;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Wicker-Man-Wrath-Of-The-Gods_Wickerwitch_1_1.1063.1.jpg&#8221;] FeaturesFilm Interviews The cursed story of \u2018The Wicker Man\u2019 has a new tragic chapter The son of original creator Robin Hardy tells us about upcoming sequel \u2018Wrath Of The Gods\u2019 and the sudden death of its director By James Mottram 10th August 2026 &#8216;The Wicker Man&#8217; sequel &#8216;Wrath Of The Gods&#8217;. CREDIT: [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,78],"class_list":["post-2087162","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-nme-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2087162","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2087162"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2087162\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2087162"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2087162"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2087162"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}