Due out September 16, When The Bough Breaks is a thriller about a surrogate mom who loses her sh-t when her advances toward the soon-to-be father are rebuffed. It’s also the second film of Morris Chestnut’s three-picture deal with Screen Gems. The first was The Perfect Guy starring Sanaa Lathan, Michael Ealy, and Chestnut.
In this psychological thriller, Regina Hall and Chestnut play Laura and John Taylor, a successful couple who are struggling to have a baby. When they hire a young woman named Anna (played by newcomer Jaz Sinclair), she seems perfect. But as her pregnancy advances, Anna becomes obsessed with John, and all hell breaks loose…see what I did there with the title?
The first trailer for the film came out this week, and it was the public’s first look at the picture. But I was able to visit the set of the Jon Cassar-directed film last spring in the bayous of New Orleans while cast and crew finished shooting one of the last scenes of the picture. Before much had materialized of the movie or promotion for it, the stars were giving reporters (like moi) the inside tea on it (including that the film was originally written for a White cast) and what to expect. Here’s a little without giving too much away.
“I love Laura, she’s amazing,” said Hall of her character, a major stretch from her usual comedic turns. “She goes through a lot. You see a woman who just really wants her child. It makes you think of the lengths that a mother really goes through for her children. I think Laura, although she’s not carrying the baby, the moment that baby has life, she’s like, ‘That’s my baby.’ So she has a different kind of fight, a different kind of strength.”
And as for John, Chestnut said his character is not what you think.
“He’s a loving husband who gets caught in a situation where he has to make some decisions. He’s an alpha male, so he feels what he does is best. But it turns out probably not to be the best decision.”
And Sinclair’s character of Anna definitely changes drastically from start to finish. Pregnancy hormones and unrequited love are just not a good mix.
“You never quite know who this girl is,” newcomer Sinclair said, “because she changes as the story changes.”
But we know that things are going to get very interesting–and violent. (We saw a scene that involved a lot of blood, a shotgun and a lot of bayou mosquitos…) And despite early questions of whether or not When The Bough Breaks is similar to other girl-falls-in-love-with-other-woman’s-life-and-tries-to-take-it films like The Hand That Rocks The Cradle, Obsessed, Single White Female and more, Hall assured me that it’s different. But it never hurts to be compared to such great thrillers.
“There are always going to be comparisons, but I think on its own, the movie is great,” Hall said. “I mean, I think our director is so smart, and he’s done such beautiful work. I think it stands alone. Every culture is different, and it’s a different movie. But I loved The Hand That Rocks The Cradle. So if we’re compared to that, that’s where I would want it to be.”
Check out the trailer for yourself below and let us know if you will give this one a chance come September.
