Born Again, Uncontrolled: Inside the Radical World of Maggie Gyllenhaal’s THE BRIDE!

By Kyra Greene

Warner Bros. has unveiled a striking new look at THE BRIDE!, the highly anticipated follow-up to The Lost Daughter from director Maggie Gyllenhaal. Far from a traditional remake, the film reimagines the Frankenstein myth as a volatile, punk-rock fever dream set against the grit and grandeur of 1930s Chicago, where love, violence, and identity collide.

At the center of the story is a reclusive and emotionally fractured Frankenstein, portrayed by Christian Bale, who enlists the help of an unorthodox scientist, Dr. Euphronious (played by Annette Bening), to create a companion capable of alleviating his isolation. Their experiment resurrects a murdered young woman, brought to life by Jessie Buckley, but what emerges is not a passive creation. Instead, she is a being of fierce autonomy—one who refuses to be defined by the intentions of the men who shaped her.

What follows is a descent into controlled chaos. The duo’s uneasy bond ignites a sequence of murders, supernatural possession, and outlaw romance that pushes against societal boundaries and ultimately sparks a radical cultural movement. Gyllenhaal, directing from her own screenplay, uses the language of gothic cinema to interrogate agency, desire, and the consequences of creation in a world desperate to control bodies—especially those that refuse to behave.

The film’s ambition is matched by its ensemble. Alongside Bale, Buckley, and Bening, Penélope Cruz joins a stacked cast that includes Peter Sarsgaard and Jake Gyllenhaal, grounding the story’s operatic madness in raw emotional gravity. Behind the camera, Oscar-winning costume designer Sandy Powell and composer Hildur Guðnadóttir elevate the film into a fully immersive experience, blending period elegance with unrestrained modern energy.

Produced under Gyllenhaal’s First Love Films banner, THE BRIDE! positions itself as a theatrical event—visceral, stylish, and confrontational—designed to be seen on the biggest screen possible. The film premieres globally in IMAX and theaters beginning March 4, 2026, followed by its North American release on March 6, cementing its place as one of the year’s most daring cinematic statements.