Written and directed by Adrian Chiarella, starring Joe Bird, Stacy Clausen, Mia Wasikowska, Jeremy Blewitt, Ewen Leslie, and Davida McKenzie. Wasikowska served as an executive producer on the film.
Leviticus is a dark tale of desire, focusing on two teenage boys in an isolated Australian small town who fall in love. A love deemed forbidden is now ever-present, awakening a violent entity unknown to them, yet familiar as it takes the form of the person they desire most — each other. Chiarella’s feature debut tackles the issues of sexual repression, homophobia, and conversation therapy in a frightening and sensual way. This film poses the question of how far are you willing to go to love fearlessly as one battles the horrors of conformity.
The premiere brought familiar and fresh Australian talent to Park City for the last installment of the festival in Utah.
Chiarella spoke on what motivated him as a queer filmmaker to write this story and how it fits in amongst the wide landscape of horror.
“As a queer person, as a queer filmmaker, I always wanted to make something that addressed homophobia. You know, I wanted to address the fact that it’s a type of fear. There’s a clue in the word, you know, and this genre has always been about fear. That’s what it is. That’s the cornerstone of horror movies. And so it just made sense to do that.”
In the past years, Chiarella mentioned that he was an avid reader of stories regarding varied types of practices and exorcisms performed on LGBT+ youth.
“It didn’t just happen in particular religions. It happened in cultures all around the world. And I really wanted to do something that explored that. So I had a lot of conversations with various people who had experienced different forms of institutionalized homophobia against themselves. And that’s what I really wanted to explore through this particular genre that I care about and feel very passionately about.”
Wasikowska, a strong supporter of independent cinema, has been a part of multiple films that have debuted at the Sundance over the years. She discussed what drew her to the part and her role.
“It was such an amazing exploration of homophobia. And I play Arlene. She’s Joe Bird’s mother in the film. She’s part of a religion that is, you know, a homophobic religion that is trying to exorcise, you know, her son and his boyfriend. And so it’s, yeah, she’s not a nice character.”
McKenzie spoke about her experience working with Chiarella.
“Adrian really let us dive into the characters in our own way and make them so realistic, bring them to life. I mean, they’re like real characters, obviously. And yeah, it’s like, I think it’s a film of many tones. Like, there’s some moments where you laugh, some moments where you’ll cry, and you just feel a lot throughout.”
Lead actor Joe Bird talked about the similarities between himself and his character.
“He holds on to a sense of guilt for him toward himself. And the way it manifests in him is quite different to how it manifests in me. But that feeling of carrying guilt was quite… Yeah, definitely a feeling that I’d felt personally before. And something that was really nice to be able to kind of explore and dig at and go, where does that come from? What does that mean? Yeah, so I’d say that. Carrying around a feeling of guilt.”
Director Chiarella spoke about Joe Bird, who made a lasting impression on him after starring in Talk To Me in 2022. He said he was an incredible actor and cast him due to realizing that he had grown older and was in a new phase of his life.
“And I forgot that kids grow up fast and movies take a long time to make, I suppose. So that was a real revelation when we sort of realized, oh, it’s got to be Joe. And then with Stacey, who plays Ryan, it was just undeniable the chemistry that he and Joe had.”
“And that was a really important part of making this film work, not just for the horror element, but also for the other really important flip side of this film, which is the love story, which I hope everyone can appreciate when they see the film.”
Stacy Clausen described the emotional core of the film and the message.
“I think the movie, as a whole, at its core, is about love. And I think the main message that I want people to see through Ryan and the film itself is that no matter where people come from or what sex they are or whatever it might be, love is love and love conquers all. I think that’s the main thing.”
The film was acquired by Neon for release on June 19th, 2026. Due to its positive reception at Sundance, it was selected as a festival favorite for the 2026 South by Southwest Film Festival for audiences in Austin, TX, to screen.
Watch our entire interviews and coverage of the premiere in the video above.
