When a beloved pet chimp snaps, a group of friends must fight to survive. Primate is a razor-sharp thriller where intelligence turns dangerous and a controlled environment becomes a deadly trap. In this Goggler exclusive we spoke to Primate director Johannes Roberts about his approach to directing a different type of villain and designing that horrifying swimming pool sequence.
Primate is out in cinemas January 22.
When Lucy Pinborough (Johnny Sequoyah) returns home to Hawaii after her freshman year in college, she is looking forward to a carefree holiday with pals Hannah (Jessica Alexander), Kate (Victoria Wyant) and Nick (Benjamin Cheng), her sister Erin (Gia Hunter), and the family’s beloved pet chimp, Ben. With her father Adam (Academy Award® winner Troy Kotsur) called away on business, Lucy and the girls are looking forward to decompressing by the pool at the family home, a luxury hideaway tucked into a secluded cliffside.
Docile Ben, who was brought up as a treasured sibling of the Pinborough girls, is happy to see Lucy home at last, but the chimp soon becomes uncharacteristically aggressive. As his hostile behavior escalates, Lucy realizes too late that something is seriously wrong with Ben.
Primate is directed by Johannes Roberts (47 Meters Down, The Strangers: Prey at Night), from a script by Johannes Roberts and Ernest Riera (Nowhere, 47 Meters Down). The film stars Johnny Sequoyah (“Believe,” “Dexter: New Blood”), Jessica Alexander (The Little Mermaid, “Get Even”), Troy Kotsur (CODA, “Black Rabbit”), Victoria Wyant (“Foundation,” “I Fought the Law”), Gia Hunter (“Sherlock & Daughter”), Benjamin Cheng, Charlie Mann (“Lazarus”), and Tienne Simon (All the Devils Are Here).
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