Remaking ‘the Witches’ for 2020: what has changed since the book?

Roald Dahl’s 1983 novel “The Witches” has always been a particularly terrible children’s story. But while Dahl’s story still terrifies and excites readers today, the fantasy novel can also feel out of date, which prompted director Robert Zemeckis to deliver a new cinematic take.

In Zemecki’s “The Witches,” now airing on HBO Max, the setting shifts from Europe to rural Alabama in 1968, and the cast takes a broader twist.

The Oscar-winning director came on board after Warner Bros first developed the project with Guillermo del Toro, who wrote the first version of the script (still in Europe). Zemeckis did a second run on the script with Kenya Barris, the “black” creator, as co-writer. Diversity wasn’t the main goal, it was an added benefit.

The couple wanted to expand on the original story and “present a different kind of culture,” says Zemeckis, who adds, “These stories take place in all cultures.” The film’s grandma (Octavia Spencer) and the young hero (Jahzir Bruno) are now black, an idea that came up at the beginning of the process.

“It’s a timeless story and can be easily updated,” says Zemeckis. “The south is kind of Gothic and has a tradition of witchcraft and voodoo and weird things. It was pretty natural to put it there. Switch [race of the] Main characters was the main idea I had when Warner Bros asked me if I wanted to do an update on this. I said, “Yeah, but it would be a good idea and a fun idea to make the hero boy African American.” As a filmmaker, it’s kind of fun to talk about how my films look like the world. ”

For the cast, the pairing of Dahl and Zemeckis was the main draw, but both Anne Hathaway, who followed in the footsteps of the Grand High Witch, and Spencer were also intrigued by the updates.

“There are a lot of questions about why we do things, especially when there are really wonderful films out there, and I think that increasing representation in classic stories is a fantastic reason to remake a film,” says Hathaway on the set of the last one Summer in London. “And I think the film will make a calm social statement about how we value or dislike children by different means.”

“I’m from Montgomery, Ala. And [the story] takes place in Demopolis so it appealed to me, ”added Spencer. “I don’t want to pretend I’m not a little surprised by the changes, but it just feels like it’s a natural progression of things right now – trying another spin.”

Produced in 1990 by Jim Henson Productions, the film used elaborate prostheses and practical effects for the witches, as well as dolls and real mice for the transformed children. While some up-to-date prostheses were used for Hathaway’s Grand High Witch during the filming of the new version, Zemeckis and his team wanted to use the currently available VFX technology. Much of the witches’ aesthetic came alive during post-production, particularly their big, toothy grin inspired by what is known as a Chelsea smile.

„[We wanted] bringing the witches to life in a new and unique way, ”notes Kevin Baille, visual effects supervisor. “He didn’t want to be the classic witch who had a deformed face and a long nose with hairy warts. He wanted the witches to be elegant. They hide in sight so they don’t take off a mask. Behind closed doors, those scars on her cheeks turn into an ear-to-ear grin when they come out of hiding. ”

“I’m trying to bewitch them with modern digital makeup instead of rubber dentures,” adds Zemeckis. “I wanted to keep a lot of the elements that are in the book. They are bald, they have no toes, they have claws. But then we thought it would be more interesting if they were walking around in some kind of Hitchcock glamor. If you were a witch and you could kill people and conjure things and steal things, then why wouldn’t you want to wear high fashion? ”

Costume designer Joanna Johnston created looks for a total of 50 witches, some reflecting that kind of vintage glamor, others a little more grotesque. Her clothes and color palettes reflect her global background (you’ll notice the Irish witch right away), and Johnston felt that she didn’t need to stay true to any historical accuracy in a fantasy tale.

“I’ve decided that witches go their own way, whatever they want, so there’s a stop in 1968 and then a stop somewhere,” she notes. “You can go in so many different directions with them, but I wanted to make it as funny and weird as possible. I wanted to do things that felt cultic. It’s a combination of style and pleasure … In my backstory there are witches who live in wooden huts in the forest and then there are witches who live in fashionable metropolises. ”

To complete the look, makeup and hair designer Peter King needed over 130 human hair wigs, one double for each character and several for Hathaway. Some of the actresses shaved their heads while the others wore bald hats for the scene in which the witches were showing their authentic selves.

“They had to be shop wigs because that’s what they would wear,” says King. “You’ve had some of them for a long time and some are very great, like a big fool. It was really fun. It’s nice to do something, but it’s also fun because they take them off and everyone underneath is bald. ”

For Hathaway, who based the Grand High Witch accent on Old Norse, it was important to give her character a backstory that went beyond the script. Her character is ruthless and evil, but she also had to be pleasing to the audience.

“In everything, I always look at what’s on the page and then imagine who you are from the page,” says Hathaway. “I imagine she has this longstanding affair with Satan. The first thing I did was imagine that if she doesn’t scold the witches, she’ll call Satan in her room and literally burn the phone lines.

“It really occurred to me that this group of demons who look like women decided about 400 years ago to steal the name of witch from real witches who were doing really cool things. So they started doing all these nasty things, holding real witches responsible for them, letting all real witches kill and take over. ”

For Hathaway, this version of “The Witches” retains what made the original story so magical in the first place. The setting and characters can be updated for a new generation, with modern technology going a long way in creating the visuals, but in the end it’s all about being yourself and finding magic in your relationships no matter who you are.

“I imagined parents and their children lying in bed together and reading this with the voices,” says the actress. “There’s nothing more magical than when your parents read to you, so you have to be so special in your own way. That’s one of the reasons it feels like we’re on a trampoline [while making this]because children are less stingy about their willingness to flee.

“It was my experience with the modern movie audience where at the beginning of my career people leaned forward and now sit back. But kids are amazing. You are on board for those strange moments. The goal is for us to do something that adults are happy to have seen too. ”