The final film in the Wicker Man trilogy has been released, a decade after the original director's death. Robin Hardy's sons, Dominic and Justin Hardy, completed the series after uncovering a script and notes for a third installment. The film, titled Wrath of Gods, is due for general release on Friday, with its premiere at the FrightFest horror festival in London.
Discovery of the script
The project came to fruition after a buyer of Justin's old family home discovered six sacks of letters, scripts, and other material relating to Robin Hardy and The Wicker Man in the attic. Dominic told the BBC: "The person who bought Justin's old family home said they'd discovered six sacks of letters, scripts and other material pertaining to Robin Hardy and The Wicker Man in the attic."
Justin's first instinct was to burn them, but they could not ignore the original source material, leaving it unopened for six months or more. Dominic explained that his father had sketched out early ideas after a health scare on a plane: "He had been in an airplane and had a turn because his heart medication wasn't working. He had to land in Reykjavik and spend a week recuperating, and he came back with this idea of a theme park around an extinct volcano in Iceland where the Norse gods get upset and mayhem ensues. And then he decided it ought to be set in Shetland because of the other parts of the trilogy."
Tragic loss of Justin Hardy
Dominic and Justin honed the storyline, with filming taking place in Shetland last year. Tragically, Justin died at the beginning of the month, just weeks before the FrightFest premiere, after suffering a heart attack. He was 61. A family statement announced: "Our family is devastated to share that Justin Hardy passed away last night. He was so full of life right to the end, and incredibly energised to be working towards premiering his latest film this month. We are all so proud of him and heartbroken he won’t be with us at his premiere. He was a man of family, of boundless creativity, and of devotion for everyone he held dear."
John Haswell, a local performer in Shetland who features in Wrath of Gods, told the BBC: "We all were – still are – looking forward to seeing the finished film. But now it's not just a celebration of the film, it's a celebration of Justin and his life. It will be wonderful and sad. A complex mixture of emotions."
Legacy of the original film
The original Wicker Man film, released in 1973, was a complicated production. It has been reported that the project bankrupted Robin, and the cast, including late horror icon Sir Christopher Lee, had to go unpaid to finish it. Various edits of the film are believed to exist, while some scenes are rumoured to have never made it to the editing room, after being buried under a motorway in Scotland. Despite the difficulties, the film gained critical acclaim and cult status, with Christopher Lee declaring it one of his personal favourites for his performance.
