It’s always exciting to see an actor appear in something you’d never expect. A particular shock registers when seeing British romance icon Hugh Grant in Heretic, a new horror from written and directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods. Even wilder, Grant plays the film’s bad guy, Mr. Reed, who seemingly wants to know more about the Mormon religion—fantastic news for Sister Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) and Sister Paxton (Chloe East), who are keen to convert him to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And while Grant is undoubtedly very much a villain, the most shocking part of Heretic aren’t the various twists (great as they are). It’s that Hugh Grant is incredibly sexy in this devilish turn.
(Warning: Some spoilers ahead.)
Now, to clarify: I don’t think being a murderer is sexy. Many of the things Grant’s character does throughout Heretic are decidedly and definitively not hot. I’m not here to endorse Reed’s behaviors in the film. However, what Grant does with this character is undeniable. What’s remarkable about Grant’s remarkably sexy work in his first horror film is that his performance style has not shifted from the romancer we’ve seen in countless romantic comedies like Notting Hill, Four Weddings and A Funeral, Bridget Jones’s Diary, Two Weeks Notice, and more. He’s still the strikingly hot (but not too hot), charming, effortlessly comfortable man we’ve come to know and love—he just happens to be pretty damn sinister.
That level of familiarity with Grant is established in his costuming and the film’s clever, detailed set design. Mr. Reed, wears a cozy cardigan, replete with warm, dated oranges and blues, with a gray button-up shirt underneath. Everything about Reed’s image projects a level of comfort: a warm, aged, harmless man who’d like nothing more than to have a cup of tea and a welcoming conversation. What’s not to love? His sexy, thick gray hair (a bit longer than usual) plays off his shirt perfectly, and his wide silver-rimmed glasses add another layer of comfort.
His home feels like his cardigan transformed into furniture, drenched in hues of beige and tan. There’s also a “Bless This Mess” crocheted sign on the wall. And, perhaps most importantly, there’s the tantalizing promise of freshly baked blueberry pie. Hell, Reed drinks from a mug that reads “Hubby.” There’s an air of nostalgia and irresistable warmth to Reed and his living room that you think nothing of it when he tells both Sisters Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) and Paxton (Chloe East) that there’s metal in his walls. Or of the fact that the wife he’s mentioned that will be joining them any moment with pie sure is taking a long time to appear.
Directors Scott Beck and Bryan Woods do a great job playing with expectations. We know this is a horror film, and therefore things are about to get crazy. But just how off the rails things get is anyone’s guess (turns out: pretty off the rails!). The same applies to Grant’s performance. He presents a confidence and gentleness with an earnest sense of inquisitiveness that immediately charms the Sisters and gets them to come into his home (they are only allowed to enter the house if there’s a woman present, and though they don’t see Reed’s wife, his assurance that she’s home works for them).
Much of the fun in Heretic is waiting to see Grant transform into an absolute menace, revealing an unthinkable evil beneath his sexy charm. And while it’s eventually clear that Reed is abhorrent and unquestionably nasty, that theoretical transformation never comes. That’s exactly what makes his work here so special, and disturbingly hot. The charm never fades away, even while he’s committing absolute evil. He never stops acting gentle, even while everything he does is anything but. Ostensibly, this character is nearly identical to what we’ve seen in his famed romantic comedies as he’s romanced some of the biggest stars in Hollywood. And Grant’s performance is absolutely tantalizing.
There’s a resoluteness to Reed that’s both chilling and erotic, an air of mystery that never truly gives way. Even at his most demonic, he’s still remarkably suave, controlled, and even has his lovely British accent. None of this is to say Grant isn’t frightening in the film—at times he’s downright terrifying—but not parting too far from his familiar romantic persona is a brilliant choice that keeps Heretic arresting and Grant inappropriately attractive. It can be all too easy to fall for the dark side, but Grant’s delectable, familiar yet twisted performance makes it exhilarating.
