“Be kind to others because you never know what somebody’s going through”: August Maturo and Mike Manning on Slapface

Slapface is the latest horror to hit specialist streaming platform Shudder. Expanded from a short by writer-director Jeremiah Kipp, it follows young Lucas, played by August Maturo (Girl Meets World, The Nun), who lives with his brother Tom, played by Mike Manning (Son of the South, Teen Wolf), in a rundown home in the woods. Since the death of their mother, Lucas has become increasingly withdrawn, aside from his snatched moments with a gang of female bullies who are the closest thing he has to friends. After spending more and more time alone in the forest by his home, he encounters an inhuman monster, who though terrifies him at first, he forms an unlikely friendship with and so ensues a series of otherworldly adventures.

Both unsettling and tragic, the family drama with a thriller edge deals with how trauma can affect young people who don’t receive the support they need and how toxic masculinity can be passed down through generations. The movie won the Audience Award for Best Horror/Thriller/Sci-Fi Film at the Cinequest Film Festival in 2021.

The Upcoming had a fantastic chat with Slapface’s stars, Maturo and Manning (who also is also the film’s producer), about creating a slow-burn horror with an emotional undercurrent and the importance of realising you’re never alone.

Sarah Bradbury

Slapface is released digitally on demand on 3^rd February 2022.

Watch the trailer for Slapface here: