Written by Kianna Best on Apr 24, 2023. Posted in Production News

Beau is Afraid’s bizzare comedy reaffirms A24’s peculiar production slate

With the biggest budget of any A24 production thus far, the American independent entertainment company expresses all creative freedom with Beau is Afraid, released on 21 April. Starring Joker star Joaquin Phoenix, the Ari Aster helmed production explores fear in the darkest comedic and obscure way. Whilst jumping throughout settings during its 3 hour time frame, production made use of Montreal’s landscapes and filming facilities.

Beau is Afraid marks the third film from Aster, who’s preceding Midsommar and Hereditary set the tone for the expected unexpectedness of his latest venture. Phoenix takes on the role paranoid Beau Wasserman, who’s journey to visit his mother, played by Patti LuPone, is obstructed by his post-apocalyptic neighbourhood and nightmarish experiences throughout. With principal photography beginning in June 2021, filming took place in downtown Montreal and Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, an off-island suburb of Montreal in Quebec. Juxtaposing the tangible locations such as the identifiable Dorchester Square Bridge that Beau is seen walking over in the trailer, the environment is also made up by the childlike use of painted backdrops and cardboard cut-outs that resemble an imitation of Blue’s Clues.

Aster spoke on his use of location with W magazine stating: "She's really wonderful. The worlds were all kind of set in the script, so we knew that we would be building a stage in the woods. And we knew pretty early on that we would be building Beau's apartment, the corridors in Beau's apartment building, the elevator, and the lobby downstairs from scratch."

Whilst A24 may have been “stupid enough” to fund Beau is Afraid, as commented by Aster at the premiere of the film, the budget for the film is out of the ordinary for the studio indeed. With a reported estimated budget of USD 35 million, this marks the highest for any production that has come from the studio, including Oscar winning Everything Everywhere All At Once which had a production cost of  USD 20 million, and Hereditary and Midsommar both having USD 10 million. A24’s churning out of critically acclaimed projects has established the independent studio’s prioritisation of uninhibited creativity that has been the talking subject of festival circuits. From the highly anticipated Earth Mama from Savannah Leaf to the heart wrenching story of The Whale which won star Brendan Fraser the Oscar for Best Actor.

Images courtesy of A24