Reading time 2 minutes
When news about Maggie Gyllenhaal’s bold, punk rock-infused Bride of Frankenstein riff started filtering out, an early narrative had it being called a musical. Some of that might be down to The Bride! co-star Peter Sarsgaard, who’s also Gyllenhaal’s husband, giving an interview where he described the film’s “big dance numbers,” and people naturally connected the dots.
But to hear Gyllenhaal tell it, The Bride! is not, in fact, something that should be classified within the musical genre, despite the talk of dancing and the fact that its main stars (Jessie Buckley and Christian Bale) are known to be actors who can also sing very well. This isn’t Wicked or Chicago, in other words.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, the writer-director set the record straight: “Can we just put to bed the thing about it being a musical? It is not a musical at all. That’s a different form. I don’t know why that keeps coming up.”
However, that’s not to say Sarsgaard is a liar. Those big dance numbers? They are definitely there. Bale’s character, “Frank,” happens to be a big moviegoer, and his favorite star is a song-and-dance man played by Jake Gyllenhaal, the writer-director’s brother.
“He’s such an incredible singer, and I love hearing him sing,” Maggie Gyllenhaal said of her multi-talented sibling. “If you sit through all the credits, at the very end is one of his beautiful songs he sings. That was really a live, exciting connection, working with him on set.”
But the “musical” elements aren’t just contained within The Bride!‘s in-universe cinema screens. Bale and Buckley also cut a rug on-screen, including “a ginormous tap dance sequence,” as Buckley tells EW, that you can glimpse in the film’s trailer.
So to recap: The Bride! is not a musical in the traditional sense, but it definitely has some of that flavor in there. We’re intrigued with every new detail we learn about what looks to be a very unconventional monster romance, hitting theaters March 6.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
Explore more on these topics
Share this story
Subscribe and interact with our community, get up to date with our customised Newsletters and much more.
The writer-director also explains the offbeat 1930s setting of her 'Bride of Frankenstein' riff, which hits theaters in March.
Maggie Gyllenhaal directs Jessie Buckley and Christian Bale in the punk-infused monster romance hitting theaters March 6.
If you hunger for monsters and thirst for blood, 2026 is going to be an excellently gruesome year on screens both big and small.
Sam Raimi, Pixar, Ghostface, and Ryan Gosling all check in with big movies in the next three months.
Jessie Buckley and Christian Bale play creatures on a crime spree in Maggie Gyllenhaal's upcoming horror movie.
Plus, Tim Burton is returning to the world of animation.
©2025 GIZMODO USA LLC.
All rights reserved.
Source: Gizmodo