Robin Hardy’s sons complete The Wicker Man trilogy
The sons of director Robin Hardy, Justin and Dominic, have completed the folk horror trilogy launched by the 1973 film The Wicker Man. The final film, Wrath of the Gods, will premiere on Friday at London’s FrightFest horror festival, BBC News World reports.
Hardy conceived The Wicker Man as the first part of a trilogy. The film The Wicker Tree was released in 2011, but the director died in 2016 at the age of 86 without completing the project. Work on the final part resumed after the new owner of Justin Hardy’s former family home found six sacks in the attic containing letters, scripts and other materials connected to the director and The Wicker Man.
A screenplay from the family archive
Among the discovered materials were the screenplay for Wrath of the Gods, storyboards and information about Robin Hardy’s concept. According to Dominic Hardy, the idea for the future film came to his father after a forced stop in Reykjavik: at first, the director conceived a story about a theme park near an extinct Icelandic volcano, where angry Norse gods cause chaos. He later decided to move the events to the Shetland Islands.
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Justin and Dominic Hardy created their own story based on this concept. The main character is a young widow who returns to the island of Hel to bury her husband after his suicide. The community rejects the woman, considering her a symbol of evil and misfortune, and after children disappear, the island’s residents are forced to confront their complex history.
Filming in the Shetland Islands
Filming began in the Shetland Islands in spring 2025. The leading roles were played by actor Francis Magee, known for Game of Thrones and Rose of Nevada, and Norwegian actress Kristiane Saldemose. The remaining cast members were found among local residents.
The premiere will take place after the death of Justin Hardy, who died last month at the age of 61. The film was dedicated to his mother, Caroline, the uncredited executive producer of the original The Wicker Man. She died in 1984 at the age of 51, never knowing that the film she supported would become so beloved and respected.
