Macabre…ish Cults, Classics & Horror Podcast Guest: Elliott Lester

I watched The Thicket and I liked it so much that I watched it 3 times in a week. I consumed that movie like a drug, it’s awesome. Then I got in contact with the director, Elliott Lester, because I wanted to know more. I looked him up on IMDB and I recognized some of his other work. I watched Containment, an outbreak series that only lasted a season, because I had another guest, who was on that series. And Mr. Lester directed at least one episode.

Then Blitz, a flick about a serial killer that hunted cops, with Jason Statham. There are others but I’ll come back to this.

Whoever this man, Elliott Lester, was I’ve been watching and really enjoying his work for a long time and didn’t know it.

That’s not all though. He got his start directing music videos for a lot of big musicians and rappers, from Method Man to Alicia Keys to Jessica Simpson. That’s quite a beginning and it lasted 7 years. After that, he was ready to move on and challenge himself.

His first feature, Love is the Drug, with Darryl Hannah and Lizzy Caplan, had some very interesting financial backing. But the next one, that was the big break, Blitz starred Jason Statham and Paddy Considine, it had a dream cast and was a dream come true.

The opportunities kept coming, some, more successful than others. Even one that turned out to be a long shot in part because of his insistence on casting David Oyelowo, in the lead of Nightingale. Elliott couldn’t find a backer anywhere and after it was finally made, no festival would accept it. It wasn’t until it got the attention of Brad Pitt and Plan B, that it got the attention and accolades it deserved. It was picked up by HBO and earned David a win at the Critic’s Choice Awards for Best Actor. But that’s not all, the film received Emmy and Golden Globe nominations!

After that, Darren Aronofsky, called him for a film about a devastating plane crash, caused by air traffic control error. The lead is Arnold Schwarzenegger and the movie is Aftermath.

Elliott is then approached with a script for a western, after a long wait, the loss of his Dad, a rewrite and putting together an incredible cast, he was ready to shoot. The weather was so cold they worried a cast member might lose a foot but they got it done. The film was sold to Tubi, that movie is The Thicket, starring Julliette Lewis and Peter Dinklage but don’t sleep on the cast in the background, there are icons there too, such as James Hetfield.

If you haven’t seen The Thicket, you should. And please do leave a review, if you watch it. As of today January 25, 2025, it is in the top of all streamers. If you want to hear more of this story, (which is amazing and hilarious!) you can on my podcast, Macabre…ish Cults, Classics & Horrors.

 Find it where you get your podcasts or click here.