As diversity and inclusion becomes an ever-increasing topic in Hollywood, production has begun on what’s being dubbed “the world’s first deaf thriller.” Filming on Retreat is now underway, which has set Tim Evans to direct. It’s his first feature film, but Evans (who himself is hearing impaired) is no stranger to the industry, as he previously co-wrote and directed two films for the Paralympics Opening Ceremony in 2012, helmed a couple of award-winning shorts, and recently directed his first music video.
Per Variety, Retreat’s principal cast is composed of all-deaf actors, including Anne Zander (Sleeping Dog), James Boyle (Reunion) and Sophie Stone (The Chelsea Detective). Produced by The Fold and 104 Films, its story centers on an isolated deaf community and a mysterious interloper who threatens to crack open the secrets held within. Check out the full synopsis below.
“Retreat is set in an isolated deaf community, where cracks begin to appear in Matt’s (Boyle) seemingly idyllic world when the arrival of enigmatic outsider Eva (Zander) forces him to question the realities of his identity. Is Matt prepared to discover what lies beneath the surface of his supposedly utopian community and the costs demanded to maintain it?”
There Have Been Other Movies Before Retreat That Have an All-Deaf Cast
Though Retreat is touting itself as the first deaf “thriller” in history, it’s certainly not the first movie to feature an all-deaf cast. 1975’s Deafula was the first horror movie shot entirely using American Sign Language, though a dub track was added for those who didn’t understand it. The 2014 Ukrainian crime drama The Tribe also comes to mind, which centered around a pimp falling in love with one of the girls he’s tasked with trafficking at a boarding school for deaf teenage students.
Other recent films that have featured deaf actors also include Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, A Quiet Place and its sequels, as well as Eternals, which included the first deaf superhero in the MCU, Makkari, portrayed by Lauren Ridloff. That being said, there have also been a number of movies featuring actors that can hear playing deaf protagonists, with Bill Skarsgård in Boy Kills World being perhaps the best and most recent example.
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That being said, when it comes to the topic of representation, the Skarsgård flick did come under fire for casting an actor who can hear in the lead rather than someone who is deaf, something that Todd Brown, head of international acquisitions for XYZ Films is keenly aware of. He says that when it comes to the new thriller, fans can expect a blend of two other films you might have heard of, one of which is CODA, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2022.
“We immediately fell in love with this unique and compelling world from the first page of the script. Imagine Karyn Kusama’s The Invitation blended with CODA and you have the world of Evans’ Retreat. It is tense and striking and there’s never been anything quite like it.”
Perhaps he forgot about all the previously mentioned films, as there clearly has been something like it before. That’s not to say that Retreat won’t be unique in its own way, and it’s at least nice to see that Evans and company are making an effort to further deaf representation in the industry, something that’s been a struggle for years.