Nicolas Winding Refn

There’s a moment early on in The Neon Demon, in which a fantastically icy Abbey Lee tells Elle Fanning’s doe-eyed aspiring model the first thing women notice about other women. Basically it’s: “Who is she f—ing? Could I f— them? How high can she climb? And is it higher than me?" It’s the closest thing to a thesis statement you’ll find in Nicolas Winding Refn’s latest film, a stylishly surreal effort that’s equal parts deranged fairy tale and devious satire, where all that glitters is ultimately cold.

The first trailer for Nicolas Winding Refn’s The Neon Demon debuted a few days ago, but if you've been itching to see more footage from the Drive director's avant garde horror flick, there's good news for you. This UK red band trailer is a little shorter, but it does offer brief glimpses of additional scenes, as well as a quick cameo from Keanu Reeves — who very clearly does not like whatever it is that he sees.

Say what you will about director Nicolas Winding Refn (Drive, Only God Forgives, those Matthew McConaughey car commercials), but the man surely knows how to craft a beautiful looking shot. His latest film, The Neon Demon, appears to be no exception...

One of our most anticipated films of the year is The Neon Demon, Nicolas Winding Refn’s long-awaited follow-up to Only God Forgives. From the handful of images we’ve seen, the avant garde horror flick definitely appears to be in keeping with Refn’s more recent aesthetic. While we anxiously await word of an official release date, two fantastic posters and a new image of Elle Fanning have debuted online, appropriately maintaining that high-fashion, neon-drenched, foreboding atmosphere.

Even for a big-name auteur, there’s no shame in directing a commercial every now and then. Martin Scorsese shilled for casinos in Macau, David Lynch repped Calvin Klein, and Wes Anderson’s probably enjoying a lifetime supply of Stella Artois right about now. It’s a nice fat paycheck, and an easy way to keep busy between jobs. Nicolas Winding Refn has never been shy about corporate partnerships, agreeing to a spot for Gucci featuring Blake Lively, not to mention those stylish but inscrutable Lincoln advertisements with koan-dispensing Matthew McConaughey. Refn has now gotten back in the commercial game while his latest feature The Neon Demon (which, how has that not been the title of any of his films until now?) awaits release with a new spot for Hennessy.

Nicolas Winding Refn is currently in post-production on his next stylish thriller, The Neon Demon, which hits theaters this year and boasts an incredible cast, including Drive star Christina Hendricks. But the ever-busy director is already lining up his next project, which will team him with two of the writers behind the James Bond franchise and take him back to Asia, the setting of his divisive thriller Only God Forgives.

Nicolas Winding Refn’s highly-anticipated follow-up to the divisive Only God Forgives began filming this year in Los Angeles, and while there’s been a considerable amount of interest in The Neon Demon, it’s taken a while for a studio to snatch up the distribution rights. Amazon has stepped forward, adding Refn’s latest to their growing slate of exclusive releases and giving the film a 2016 release date. In addition, we have a new photo from the upcoming film, featured above.

One of our most anticipated upcoming projects is Nicolas Winding Refn’s The Neon Demon, the director’s follow-up to Drive and Only God Forgives. In keeping with the aesthetic of those films, the first images from his new horror project feature a lovely Elle Fanning doused in neon lighting and dripping with blood. It’s almost too painful to know we probably won’t see this movie until 2016.

Nicolas Winding Refn’s next film already had us stoked—a female-driven horror film set in Hollywood from the director of ‘Drive’ and ‘Only God Forgives’ already sounds pretty amazing, but apparently it gets even better: the film has just added ‘Mad Men’'s Christina Hendricks and everyone’s current favorite badass, Keanu Reeves.

Elle Fanning began her career in the shadow of her older sister Dakota, already a star from films like ‘I Am Sam’ and ‘Man on Fire.’ In recent years though, she’s given the elder Fanning a run for her money, turning in strong performances in blockbusters like ‘Maleficent’ (she really looked like she was sleeping!) and working with directors like Francis Ford Coppola (‘Twixt’), Cameron Crowe (‘We Bought a Zoo’), and Sally Potter (‘Ginger & Rosa’). To that impressive list of filmmakers you can now add another big name: Nicolas Winding Refn, as TheWrap reports that Elle Fanning is currently “in negotiations” to star in Refn’s next project, a horror movie called ‘The Neon Demon.’