Posted in: 20th Century Studios, Hulu, Movies | Tagged: 20th century studios, Brian Duffield, no one will save you

No One Will Save You: Studio Notes Came From People Who Love Movies

No One Will Save You writer and director Brian Duffield said that while 20th Century gave him a lot of notes, even the ones he disagreed with, he found challenging.

It's not easy out there within the studio system. Movies are expensive, and after several years where no one was making much money and many studios falling deep into the red, one would think it would be impossible to get anything greenlit. Even if you did get something greenlit, you'd have someone hovering over your shoulder the entire time. We've had horror stories about studios stepping in, taking a movie from a creative team, and trying to fix it while only making it worse. While a studio stepping in with notes can be good, a studio micromanaging is not. Under the heavy gaze of Disney, you would expect even more micromanaging these days, but it turns out that isn't the case over at 20th Century Studios. They recently put out No One Can Save You on Hulu to a great response from everyone who took the time to watch it. Director and writer Brian Duffield got to speak to /Film about the filmmaking process and what it was like working with 20th Century. While they gave a lot of notes, Duffield explained that it came from people who love and understand movies, and even the notes he didn't agree with were challenging in a good way.

"Not with my studio," Duffield replied to a question about whether or not 20th Century ever tried to make him overly explain what was going on in the film. "I'll tell you the truth, when we were out selling the movie, a bunch of places were like, "How will people know what's going on when they're doing laundry?" … I was just like, "Well, it's not for them." The thing that was so cool about working with 20th is I think they make movies for people that love movies. Which, hopefully, is not to dismiss other places. But it was so cool working with those guys because they really love movies. When they would give notes — and they gave a lot of notes, too — but when they gave notes, it was like they were trying to help me get to the same place that they thought I wanted to get to. It was the best creative experience I've had by far. Even if I disagreed with one of their notes, it would really challenge me because I was like, "They're really smart, and they really love the movie. So if I'm disagreeing, it's coming from a really interesting place." Sometimes I was like, "Oh s***, I'm wrong." It was really cool.

Duffield went on to say that it's weird to say that he could tell that 20th loves movies, but sometimes, in the Hollywood machine, it does seem like studios don't always love movies. He likened his experience working with 20th Century on No One Will Save You to working with a trainer; you might hate your life while it's happening, but you come out better in the end.

"This whole experience working with people that love the movie and love movies, which I know sounds so weird to say the studio loves movies, but sometimes it doesn't seem that way," he continued. "With 20th, not to make it seem like I'm begging them for my next job, it was really nice to be at a place that loved this movie and loved forcing me to make the movie I wanted to make. It sounds antithetical, but it's like having a trainer at the gym. You are like, "Ugh," but at the same time, you're like, "They're making me look really good at the end of it." I felt like that was the studio's job on this one. They were really pushing me in a way that I probably whined about in the moment, but I was like, "Well, I got this six-pack now," so I can't complain."

We're still waiting for the streaming numbers to come in for No One Will Save You this weekend, but getting Guillermo del Toro's seal of approval to the point that he goes off about how much he loves the film on a thread on Twitter/X? That's not something to sneeze at, and we can hope these movies continuing to do well will put more pressure on Disney to give 20th Century some more spots in theaters. We have seen multiple films come out directly on Hulu that could have played exceptionally well in a theater, so another Prey situation would be good for everyone involved.

No One Will Save You: Summary, Cast List, Release Date

From 20th Century Studios, No One Will Save You is a captivating sci-fi psychological thriller introducing Brynn (Kaitlyn Dever), a creative and talented young woman who's been alienated from her community. Lonely but ever hopeful, Brynn finds solace within the walls of the home where she grew up—until she's awakened one night by strange noises from decidedly unearthly intruders. What follows is an action-packed face-off between Brynn and a host of extraterrestrial beings who threaten her future while forcing her to deal with her past. Written and directed by Brian Duffield, the film features music by composer Joseph Trapanese. Tim White, Trevor White, Allan Mandelbaum, and Duffield produce, and Dever and Joshua Throne executive produce. No One Will Save You begins streaming on September 22, 2023, exclusively on Hulu in the U.S., Star+ in Latin America, and Disney+ in all other territories.

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