PopHorror Let's Get Scared
Set against the unforgiving backdrop of a 19th-century fishing outpost, The Damned tells the story of Eva (Odessa Young), a widow facing a heart-wrenching moral dilemma. When a shipwreck occurs during a brutal winter, her isolated community — already grappling with dwindling provisions — must decide whether to save the stranded crew or prioritize their own survival. The consequences of their choice unleash a wave of guilt, dread, and growing paranoia as they begin to believe their suffering is a form of divine punishment.
Directed by Thordur Palsson and written by Jamie Hannigan, based on Palsson’s story, The Damned boasts an impressive ensemble cast including Joe Cole (Peaky Blinders), Siobhan Finneran (Downton Abbey), Rory McCann (Game of Thrones), and Turlough Convery (Ready Player One). With its haunting narrative and powerful performances, the film explores the chilling depths of human morality and the price of survival.
The Damned is set to his theaters on January 3rd and will surely be available on streaming services sometime after then.
Interview with The Damned Director Thordur Palsson
PopHorror: I’m here from PopHorror and I’ve got some questions about the movie I watched last night. What inspired you to tell this particular story, and how did the concept evolve from its initial idea into the final screenplay?
Thordur Palsson: Well, the initial idea, you know, came when I was living in a seaside village in Iceland. I’m not from a seaside village—I’m a city boy—and I got snowed in for the winter. You start to get ideas of stories when you’re snowed in. I guess a lot of genre pieces start off that way. The main thing was the question the film asks: if you had a group of characters snowed in for the winter, running low on rations, and they saw people drowning in the ocean—foreigners drowning—and they had to ask themselves:
If we go out and save them, bringing them back, we barely have enough food for ourselves. We won’t have enough food for everyone. We will starve and die. Is it better to leave them and let them drown and take care of ourselves?
Once I had that question, I felt this was a movie that was not just a genre piece—it was something worth telling. So yeah, once that came about, I could feel this was worth spending 8 years of my life on.
PopHorror: Oh wow, 8 years.
Thordur Palsson: Yeah.
The Damned Delves into Existential Dilemmas
PopHorror: The film, like you said, explores themes of survival, guilt, and morality. How did you approach balancing the personal struggles of the characters with the broader existential dilemmas they face?
Thordur Palsson: Really cutthroat editing. We had more of these beautiful character moments, but we cut some of it out. For me, this film was always about the question these people are faced with, and the guilt they are burdened with. Some characters are willing to face their guilt. Others want to push it down and say, “We had no choice.”
For me, it’s all about the characters. If you don’t have characters that you want to know more about, follow, or even hate, you need to evoke some kind of emotion from your audience. That was the main thing for me. If you don’t care about the characters or aren’t intrigued by what happens next to them, you don’t have a movie.
It was very important that these characters feel real, like people who actually live in this place and go out fishing every day. That was my main goal—bringing together the right people and finding the reality of it. Because, of course, it’s a genre piece, but if you can root the audience in the reality of the situation, I think the horror feels stronger.
PopHorror: Sure. And Eva is the central character at the heart of the profound moral dilemma. How did you work with Odessa Young to bring out the emotional complexity of her character?
Thordur Palsson: We were very lucky. We met 2 years before we made the film. We started working together with a script, and over those 2 years, Jamie Hannigan, the screenwriter, and I sent her drafts. She could see the evolution of the character and the story as a whole, giving us insights like, “Oh, interesting, you went this way, because I saw it that way,” since she was looking at it from inside her character.
Over those 2 years, we gained a really interesting collaborator, and we brought that into the shooting. When we were shooting, we all knew who this character was and what the story was. It was more about constantly questioning things, even on set. So yeah, it’s all about the collaborators, the kind of marriage you make with these people. I was very blessed with mine.
PopHorror: All right, well, I guess that’s about it. Very quick interview, but I’d like to thank you. Good luck with the movie — I thought it was well done, personally.
Thordur Palsson: Oh, thank you. It’s always nice to hear that someone likes the film.
PopHorror: If I thought it was rotten, I would actually tell you so.
Thordur Palsson: Oh my God, then it would be interesting — like, “How do I defend the film?” Jesus.
PopHorror: But it was all right [EDIT: Actually, it was more than all right]. So yeah, you have a good day, and thanks for the time.
Thordur Palsson: You too, man.
Check out The Damned when you get a chance!
