What is Area X? The first official image from Annihilation hints at the mysterious wilderness of Jeff VanderMeer’s critically acclaimed novel.
“The tower, which was not supposed to be there, plunges into the earth…” From its opening line, Annihilation steeps readers in an unsettling atmosphere. It takes place in a secluded region that somehow seems both utterly wild and utterly unnatural, the remnants of civilization overrun with strange plants. Author Jeff VanderMeer describes Area X with scientific pragmatism, which only enhances the creepiness.
How will Annihilation work on screen? In addition to its surreal imagery, the novel is intensely introspective, told from the point of view of a biologist who felt alienated from other people even before she left society for Area X. Action takes a backseat to psychology. Still, we admire Alex Garland for trying. If nothing else, the two-time director has assembled a first-rate cast, including Natalie Portman, Tessa Thompson, Gina Rodriguez, and Jennifer Jason Leigh.
And, as of this morning, we have a slightly better idea of how the film will look. Paramount has finally released a still, and it’s appropriately odd. Check it out below, courtesy of Entertainment Weekly:
You can see Portman, as the biologist, inspecting an alligator’s mouth and looking concerned while Thompson, the surveyor, observes in the background. Rodriguez, the anthropologist, holds the creatures jaws open. Out of sight is Leigh, who plays the psychologist and team leader.
At first, the scene seems relatively mundane — just scientists doing their jobs, right? Look closer, though, and you notice that the alligator is… off. It’s completely white, including its eyes, which have no pupils. Suddenly, it’s not just dangerous; it’s monstrous. Yet, albino alligators are hardly the weirdest thing Area X has in store for our intrepid scientists.
What we know about Annihilation
Previously, we glimpsed Area X in behind-the-scenes photos that Thompson, Rodriguez, and cinematographer Rob Hardy unveiled on Instagram way back in July 2016. Though not quite the Florida-inspired setting of the book (filming occurred in England), the fog-drenched landscapes depicted in the photos have an eerie beauty. You could lose yourself in them.
It is already clear that the film will deviate from its source material. To start with, VanderMeer’s book is the first installment of a trilogy, Southern Reach; the sequels, Authority and Acceptance, venture beyond Area X. Garland, meanwhile, approached Annihilation as a self-contained story. In fact, he wrote the script before the sequels were published. (Hence, perhaps, Portman’s casting. Annihilation refrains from describing the characters’ appearances, but Authority implies that the biologist is Asian.)
Plus, Thompson and Rodriguez’s participation suggests that the movie will expand the surveyor and anthropologist’s roles. We are particularly excited about the anthropologist for, um, reasons.
Oscar Isaac also stars as the biologist’s husband, who vanished during a previous expedition to Area X. He reunites with his Ex Machina director, Garland, and costar Sonoya Mizuno, who will presumably get actual lines of dialogue this time.
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Annihilation is scheduled for release on Feb. 23, 2018.