Hunter Schafer
Gretchen
Overview
After reluctantly moving to the German Alps with her father and his new family, Gretchen discovers that their new town hides sinister secrets, as she's plagued by strange noises and frightening visions of a woman pursuing her.
Cast
12 people
Reviews
CinemaSerf
Dan Stevens had a chance in "I'm Your Man" (2021) to hone his German impersonation skills for this rather weak mystery. He owns a sprawling resort in the Bavarian countryside that's visited by the teenage "Gretchen" (Hunter Schafer) and her family. Her father "Luis" (Martin Csokas) is to design a new complex for "Herr König" who kindly offers the young woman a job in his hotel. It's when she cycles home after a very quiet shift one night that she is pursued by a mysterious woman with bright red eyes. Luckily, she can take refuge in the local hospital, but of course nobody believes her far-fetched tale. Meantime, her mute step-sister "Alma" (Mila Lieu) seems to be experiencing some serious inexplicable traumas and ends up in the same hospital. Might the incidents be connected; just what has their enigmatic host got to do with things and what's the agenda of the outwardly friendly ex-cop "Henry" (Jan Bluthardt)? Auteur Tilman Singer has a good go at creating something a little off-the-wall with this film, but sadly the really mediocre acting talent on display here let's the potential quirkiness of the plot down quite badly. There's far too much meaningless dialogue, dysfunctional familial drama and the pace, presumably designed to build a sense of menace, rather builds one of ennui and inevitability as the "cuckoo" theory is disappointingly undercooked and the denouement quite rushed. It's watchable enough, but I'm sure I'll never remember it,
Read full review†
A new midgnight classic.
Read full reviewRalphRahal
Cuckoo, directed by Tilman Singer, is kind of a mixed bag. I didn’t really like it, but I didn’t completely hate it either. The movie starts off with a slow, eerie pace in this isolated setting, and for a while, it felt like something big was coming. I was waiting for that moment where it would all click and be great, but it just didn’t happen. The story seemed lost, like it couldn't make up its mind, and it really dragged the whole experience down. It was frustrating because there’s good cinematography, and the production quality is there, but the plot? Just a mess. Hunter Schafer, who plays "Gretchen," didn’t bring much to the role. I know they can act; they’re solid in Euphoria, but here, Gretchen felt cold and flat, with no real emotion or depth. It’s like the character was there, but there was nothing to connect to. Overall, Cuckoo had some promising elements but just couldn’t bring it all together. It’s one of those movies that leaves you feeling a bit let down because you can see the potential — it just didn’t live up to it.
Read full reviewAudience Opinions
Audience 5.8/10
"A visually bold, weird horror thriller elevated by Hunter Schafer and Dan Stevens but dragged down by messy plotting and a tone that veers into unintentional silliness."
The film stands out for its eerie Alpine setting, surreal imagery, and inventive sound design, with Hunter Schafer’s committed lead turn and Dan Stevens’ gleefully off-kilter villain often singled out as the big draw. At the same time, the story is widely seen as unfocused and riddled with logic gaps, with late reveals and a genre-shifting finale that undercut the initial creepiness and leave the experience feeling more confusing and goofy than satisfying.
What viewers praise
- Distinctive visual style The Bavarian mountain resort, retro hotel decor, and off-kilter camerawork create a striking, dreamlike atmosphere that feels different from standard horror.
- Hunter Schafer’s lead turn Schafer is praised as engaging and charismatic, convincingly carrying the film through its stranger twists and weaker story beats.
- Scene-stealing villain Dan Stevens’ eccentric, devilish resort owner is frequently singled out as entertaining and memorable, adding personality whenever he appears.
- Original horror concept The creature mythology and core idea are regarded as fresh and inventive, offering a bizarre spin that genre veterans can’t easily predict.
- Strong mood and sound Sharp, eerie sound design and carefully controlled pacing in the early stretch build a tense, hypnotic mood with some genuinely creepy moments.
Common complaints
- Sloppy, hole-ridden script Plot threads are introduced and dropped, explanations arrive late or not at all, and several viewers find the story riddled with holes and undercooked ideas.
- Tonal whiplash What starts as a moody, artsy chiller drifts into loud action and over-the-top sequences that feel silly or even laughable instead of scary.
- Underwhelming payoff The final-act shootout and big reveal are often called dragged-out and unsatisfying, failing to deliver the payoff the buildup seems to promise.
- Not very scary Despite a few spooky set pieces and a creepy creature design, many report that it plays more like a strange thriller than a genuinely frightening horror film.
- Thin supporting characters Side characters are described as clichéd or weakly motivated, making emotional beats and relationships feel shallow.
Recommended for
Arthouse horror experimenters Hunter Schafer admirers Weird creature-feature seekers Dan Stevens devotees Atmospheric thriller fans Offbeat Euro-horror enthusiasts
Buzz & Rumors
Public reports**Bloody Alps & Awkward Apologies: The Real-Life Madness Behind Cuckoo (2024)**
Horror in the German Alps? Cute. Horror behind the scenes? Even better. From casting chaos to a war-disrupted shoot and a director apologizing to his star for… speaking German too well, the making of Cuckoo is almost as unhinged as Herr König himself.
Casting Chaos & The Vanishing Malkovich
- Before Dan Stevens slithered into our nightmares as Herr König, the role was originally lined up for John Malkovich, with Gemma Chan also attached alongside Hunter Schafer back in 2021
. - Both Malkovich and Chan eventually dropped out due to “timing issues” — the official line — prompting a reshuffle that brought in Stevens and Jessica Henwick to round out the new cast [1].
- Director Tilman Singer originally wrote Herr König as an older, 60-something German villain, clearly tailored to the Malkovich era. When Stevens joined, he reportedly convinced Singer the character only needed to be “60 metaphorically” — a kind of symbolic creepy-grandpa figure instead of literally elderly .
- Translation: Dan Stevens charmed his way into a part written for a totally different type of guy, and the director rebuilt the villain around him. Power move.
On-Set Drama (The Adorably Awkward Kind)
- At their first meeting, Dan Stevens greeted Singer in perfect German, which apparently shocked the director so much he immediately apologized for being so impressed [2].
- Singer recalled almost falling off his chair, then blurting out an apology because he “shies away from digging too deep” [2]. Imagine nailing your multilingual intro so hard your director panics and says sorry.
- Any hopes of a toxic horror-movie set? Crushed.
- Stevens later described working with Hunter Schafer on Cuckoo as “refreshing and delightful,” making a pointed contrast to her intense, allegedly draining time on Euphoria .
- He said they could film “incredibly f*cked‑up, difficult scenes” and still stay friends, with “nobody needs to have months of therapy afterwards” [6].
- So while the movie is chaos, the vibe on set was apparently… healthy? How dare they.
War, Refugees & An Accidental Horror Location
- Real-world horror barged into production when some of Cuckoo’s planned locations in Germany became refugee housing due to the Ukraine War, forcing the team to completely rethink their shooting plan [2].
- The solution was almost too on-brand: they moved to an abandoned RAF shooting grounds near the Belgian border, a former British military base empty for around 15 years [2].
- That eerie, off-kilter resort environment? It’s partially built out of repurposed military infrastructure and last-minute location scrambling. Fans didn’t imagine that haunted energy — the place really is kind of cursed.
Film or Bust: The Director’s 35mm Standoff
- Tilman Singer came into Cuckoo with a list of demands, and top of that list: “I’m shooting on film.”
- He said his early nonnegotiable was to bring his key creative team and insist on analog — 35mm or a 35/16mm mix — even when the line producer tried to talk him out of it [2].
- He flat-out refused to go digital, and Neon backed him. So when you’re staring at that grainy, unsettling picture, know it exists because Singer basically said, “No film, no movie.”
Deleted Scenes, Confused Fans & Home-Release Gold
- Over on Reddit, viewers complained that the ending felt hacked to pieces, with one user insisting “there was a lot cut from the film… it was like they cut so many parts out of the movie”
. - Fans speculated that key explanations about the cuckoo creatures and the finale’s logic got shelved. While that’s unconfirmed, the studio quietly validated the “stuff got chopped” theory by loading the home release with extras.
- When Cuckoo hit digital (Sept 17, 2024) and physical media (Oct 22, 2024), it arrived with deleted scenes and behind‑the‑scenes material, including interviews with Hunter Schafer .
- In other words: if the theatrical cut left you feeling gaslit, the Blu‑ray basically admits, “Yeah, we left some organs on the table. Here’s what we could salvage.”
Hidden Connections & Fan-Universe Theories
- Hardcore Tilman Singer stans noticed that the surname “Vanderkurt” shows up in both Cuckoo and his earlier film Luz.
- Singer has coyly acknowledged the recurring name, saying he just likes those Dutch‑frontier vibes and refusing to confirm any official shared universe [2].
- Fans, naturally, ignore him and continue to theorize that Cuckoo and Luz live in the same cursed continuity. Until proven otherwise, this remains unconfirmed but persistent fan speculation.
Hunter Schafer: Final Girl, Covered in Blood, Still Standing
- Across interviews and coverage, Schafer talked about Cuckoo as her first major lead film role and something very different from Euphoria, with horror-sites and queer outlets highlighting how the film let her play a bloody, scream-queen-style final girl in a way that still felt personal and queer-aware [6].
- Lainey Gossip notes that both Schafer and Stevens are “very good” in the film and frames Cuckoo as a healthier, more balanced experience for Schafer after her reportedly rough TV workdays [6].
- Not a scandal, but in modern Hollywood? A horror movie set where the young trans star feels respected and supported is kind of the plot twist.
Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.
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