The Pale Blue Eye Teaser Christian Bale Joins Edgar Allan Poe

The Academy Award winner stars as Augustus Landor, a former detective forced out of retirement to investigate a series of West Point hangings. Augustus (Bale) joins forces with Edgar Allan Poe (Harry Melling) to solve the serial killer case that may have a supernatural element. Based on the novel by Louis Bayard, “The Pale Blue Eye” is directed by Scott Cooper (“Crazy Heart”) and releases in theaters December 23 and streams on Netflix January 6. Robert Duvall, Gillian Anderson, Timothy Spall, Toby Jones, Lucy Boynton, and Harry Lawtey also star. “The Pale Blue Eye” marks Bale’s third collaboration with director Cooper, who has been developing the novel adaptation for almost a decade. Bale also serves as a producer on the film.

Cooper called Bale his “closest pal” in an interview with Vanity Fair and cited that the film will have a stake in the occult practices as per poet Poe’s real-life fascination with satanic practices. “He left us as the godfather of detective and horror fiction,” Cooper said of the iconic writer. Related ‘Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story’ Sneak Peek: Adjoa Andoh’s Lady Danbury Origin Story Is Revealed Christian Bale Did Not Method Act During ‘Pale Blue Eye,’ Says Co-Star Harry Melling: ‘No Staying in Character’ Related The Best True Crime Streaming Now, from ‘Unsolved Mysteries’ to ‘McMillions’ to ‘The Staircase’ Growing Number of Contenders Makes 2023 Best International Feature Race Less Predictable
“I thought, ‘OK, I have an opportunity to do three things with this film: Fashion a whodunnit, a father and son love story, and then a Poe origin story,” Cooper, who wrote and directed the film, said. “Poe at this young age was quite warm and witty and humorous and very Southernly. The experiences that I’m putting forth in this film led him down the darker paths that we have come to know him for.” In a GQ cover story earlier this year, lead star Bale addressed the “safety net” for the Netflix feature, his third film alongside “Amsterdam” and “Thor: Love and Thunder” out this year. “I love movies getting released theatrically, and I’m genuinely concerned that’s going to stop happening,” Bale said. “‘The Pale Blue Eye’ has got the Netflix safety net. ‘Amsterdam’ doesn’t. I’m going, ‘Oh, fuck.’ People have always told me this kind of stuff helps. I never believed it. But, I was like, ‘Oh, well, all right.’ I care. I care, you know? This is not the sort of life I get to lead playing characters. This is realpolitik world of like, ‘Fucking hell. I want to be able to keep doing this.’ So, that was my original motivation. I went, ‘Yeah, all right. Okay. Maybe this is the moment for that.’” “The Pale Blue Eye” premieres in theaters December 23 and streams January 6 on Netflix. Check out the teaser below.