Thundercat Productions and Crybaby have tapped Australian actor and radio host Yaz Haddad to headline “Bloody Legend,” a comedy-horror feature that begins principal photography in Western Sydney and the Blue Mountains of New South Wales this month.
Haddad, who co-hosts the breakfast show “Yaz & Feras” on Sydney’s 2DayFM, takes on the role of Benny, a social-media obsessive from Western Sydney whose bid to capture proof of a mythical big cat on camera spirals into something far more dangerous. The film marks his first lead role and second feature overall, after a supporting part in the upcoming “Streetfighter” movie.
The premise draws on an enduring piece of Australian folklore: mysterious sightings of a large black panther-like creature roaming the Blue Mountains bushland have been reported for decades, with dozens of alleged encounters logged each year and an incident involving a local teenager in 2002 among the more sensational entries in the public record. The film leans into the legend’s comedy potential while pushing into genuine horror territory as Benny’s viral ambitions put him and his friends in mortal danger.
Screen newcomers Hamze Taha and Marcus Trgo play Benny’s mates, with both making their feature debuts. Veteran actor Tony Rahme, known to regional audiences from “Shortland Street,” joins them in the core group. The wider cast features Natassia Halabi (“Apple Cider Vinegar”), comedians Fady Kassab (“I’m So Sorry for Your Loss”) and Cameron James (“Bump”), New Zealand actor Ben Fransham (“What We Do in the Shadows,” “Time Bandits”), Dom Littrich (“Inspired Unemployed”), Kathleen O’Dwyer (“The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart”), Will Ward (“Housos,” “Pirates of the Caribbean”), Benjamin Cremen (“The Artful Dodger” Season 2, “Superwog”) and comedian-influencers Sarah Michaels (“Sarah Michaels Show”) and Nariman Dein.
Behind the camera, the film is written by Susan Taylor – a Sydney publicist who has pivoted to fiction writing and screenwriting – who co-directs alongside Catherine Stone. Stone co-founded Crybaby productions with Clare Alstin and brings more than two decades of directing experience across documentary, music video and large-scale broadcast work, including the Sydney New Year’s Eve online broadcast, which attracted a global audience of 38 million viewers. “Bloody Legend” is Crybaby’s first feature film and Stone’s return to long-form narrative.
The film originated from an idea by Pedro Cuccovilla Vitola, a former executive producer on “The Kyle & Jackie O Show.” Taylor and Bianca Austin produce under the Thundercat Productions banner, with Stone aboard as a collaborating producer through Crybaby. The picture is independently financed by the producers and is also raising funds through the Australian Cultural Fund. Sydney-based cinematographer Rob Norman serves as director of photography, with Riley MacKenzie as first assistant director.
The cast convened for a table read at Philter Brewing in the Sydney suburb of Marrickville last week. Haddad, a graduate of the Australian Film, Television and Radio School who has also worked as a music producer with artists including Snoop Dogg, Tyga and Kid Laroi, said the script struck him as something distinctive for Australian cinema.
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“It’s raw, funny, tense and feels like the missing piece to Aussie film,” Haddad said. “I also love that it puts second generation Australians front and centre, which we don’t see enough of in Australian movies and TV.”
Taylor cited the classic Australian comedy tradition as a touchstone. “I wanted to make a film in the spirit of those iconic and incredibly original Aussie comedies we all grew up watching, and luckily, I found a crew of absolute legends who wanted to jump in and help me do it,” she said. “The world certainly needs more laughter right now.”
Stone described the project as operating on two registers simultaneously. “On the surface it’s loud and dangerous, but underneath it’s about ego and the cost of chasing validation in a world obsessed with going viral,” she said. “You’ll be laughing hard with dips of fear.”
Further cast and production announcements are expected as filming gets underway.
From Variety US