Naomi Watts inGoodnight Mommy(2022).Photo: Amazon Prime
Naomi Wattsis one mysterious mother inGoodnight Mommy.
PEOPLE has an exclusive first look at Prime Video’s upcoming reimagining of the 2014Austrian horror film of the same name, which sees Watts star alongsidePeter HermannandBig Little Liesalums Cameron and Nicholas Crovetti.
She acts completely different than the mother they once knew: She implements odd house rules, smokes in her bathroom and secretly rips up a drawing they made for her. As her behavior grows more and more bizarre, the boys begin to wonder whether the woman beneath the gauze is their mom at all.
Watts, 53, tells PEOPLE, “Every role requires me to explore some part of myself; maybe something deep within me that’s been left untapped might come through.”
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Cameron and Nicholas Crovetti inGoodnight Mommy(2022).DAVID GIESBRECHT/Amazon
“There’s been a common thread perforated throughout my career, but Ialways try to find rolesthat teach me something new. This was no different,” she continues. “It was quite confronting to face that level of darkness. It was definitely one of the most challenging characters I’ve played. It was almost impossible to identify with some of her choices.”
“I was constantly checking in with them and their mom after a tough scene,” she says. “It was also important to me to keep some levity, so I would try and crack jokes with them and keep the atmosphere as light as possible.”
Naomi Watts with Cameron and Nicholas Crovetti inGoodnight Mommy(2022).DAVID GIESBRECHT/Amazon
Director Matt Sobel adds that he believes the original film is one that “combine(s) tantalizing mystery and thrills with rich and resonant emotion.”
And in making the new film, which leans more towardthe psychological thriller genreas opposed to horror, “I saw an opportunity to preserve this unique mixture while injecting a completely new set of themes we wanted to explore,” Sobel notes.
“If I had to point to a key difference between the films, I’d say the original is more interested in tone and aesthetic, while our reimagining favors character and psychology,” he adds.
As for what he hopes viewers take away fromGoodnight Mommy? “A good conversation,” says Sobel. “My favorite films are those that live in the audience’s mind long after the credits roll.”
Goodnight Mommyis streaming Sept. 16 on Prime Video.
source: people.com
