Xavier Dolan (I Killed My Mother) is writing a period horror film set in 1880s France.

“It’s something I wrote before the pandemic, and I’m looking at again… It’s a genre film, a horror film, set in 1880s in France,” Dolan told the Canadian cinema podcast Sans Filtre.

“It feels removed from my life and what I know but on re-reading it, I understood that it is a film about the fear of failure, the fear of being rejected, of being misunderstood, the difficulty of creating.

“Unconsciously, I’ve returned to the same themes, in a period that I don’t know, but which appeals to me and in a style which appeals to me, but with a completely different proposition. I feel that I can surpass myself, learn and grow with themes that are dear to me but in the horror genre.”

Dolan is currently re-writing the screenplay for the upcoming feature and hopes to shoot the film in 2025.