'The Radleys' First Images Feel Like Grown Up 'Lost Boys'

The supernatural black comedy The Radleys finally has reared its head and bared its teeth for the first time since June 2023, when the film was first announced. Based on the popular novel of the same name by Matt Haig, the story follows the titular Radley family — parents Peter and Helen and kids Clara and Rowen — a seemingly ordinary family in a quiet, suburban English town. But, under the surface, Peter and Helen hold a dark secret. They're "abstaining vampires," aka vegan vampires, the kind that don't drink blood in a desperate attempt to assimilate with human culture.

The original novel is a parable about what happens when we ignore our deepest desires and suppress our true selves to please the outside world. Peter and Helen ignore their natural cravings, refusing to drink blood, even though it's making them hungrier by the day. In the novel, Peter's hedonistic, bloodthirsty twin brother Will arrives in town, upending their very controlled lives and facing that they've lied to their children about their condition without considering that their kids might have also inherited the same genes. 

The Radleys might have just been your run-of-the-mill TV vampire movie if it weren't for the topline cast. A-list British actor Damian Lewis (Wolf Hall), also an executive producer and a driving force behind the project, stars with Kelly Macdonald (Line of Duty) co-starring alongside him. Those two names elevate the upcoming film by dint of their talent alone.

Here is the film's synopsis:

Nestled in a quiet, suburban English town live The Radleys. To their neighbors, they are as ordinary as they come. Yet, beneath the surface, parents Peter (Lewis) and Helen (Macdonald) are concealing a devastatingly dark secret from their teenage children, Rowan and Clara. They are abstaining vampires, choosing not to drink blood despite their natural cravings, yet becoming more and more bloodthirsty by the day.

When a boy unexpectedly attacks Clara in her class and her natural instincts take over, Peter and Helen are forced to reveal the truth. The shocking revelation encourages lovesick son Rowan and previously vegan Clara to question their own identity and suppressed desires. At this pivotal juncture, Peter’s twin brother Will arrives on the scene (played by Damian Lewis in a dual role). A proud, practicing vampire who openly embraces his hedonistic, bloodthirsty lifestyle, Will forces the family to face their repressed urges even further. Can the family continue to hold back their hidden bloodlust, or will they give in to their true nature?  

Lewis and MacDonald play vegan vampire couple, Peter and Helen, with Lewis double-cast as Peter's twin brother Will. Harry Baxendale (Holmes & Watson) and Bo Bragason (The Ballad of Renegade Nell) play Peter and Helen's children, Rowan and Clara. The rest of the cast includes such buzzy names as  Sophia Di Martino (Loki), Shaun Parkes (Small Axe), Jay Lycurgo (I May Destroy You), and Siân Phillips (Keeping Faith). 

Jo Brand (An Extra Slice) developed the idea with Talitha Stevenson adapting Haig's novel for the screen, Euros Lyn (Heartstopper) directing, and Debbie Gray producing. Lewis executive produces through his production company, Ginger Biscuit Entertainment, alongside Julia Stuart and Laura Grange at Sky; Mark Gooder and Alison Thompson at Cornerstone; Peter Touche, Andrea Scarso, and Christelle Conan at Ingenious Media; and Julian Gleek of Genesius. 

The Radleys does not yet have a release date on Sky or an American distributor. However, if I were a betting woman, I'd put it landing at Sundance Now/AMC+ along with the rest of the current vampire programming sometime in 2025.