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Whenever a new version of Cape Fear arises, it brings with it the buried terrors of a new generation. Today, Esquire presents an exclusive look into the upcoming Apple TV series, debuting June 5, which expands the classic stalker story in disturbing ways that befit a disturbing time.
In our first story, Amy Adams and Patrick Wilson delve into the all-American family that is mercilessly targeted by a twisted psychopath, although no one around them believes it is really happening. Showrunner Nick Antosca explains how the ten-episode story taps into the worst of contemporary anxieties, breaks down the differences from the two previous films—and reveals what executive producers Martin Scorsese, who directed the 1991 version, and Steven Spielberg contributed to the series.
In our second story, Javier Bardem discusses his new take on the iconic villain Max Cady, and how he crafted the character to stand outside the shadow of Robert Mitchum and Robert De Niro’s versions, while still incorporating some of their darkness. He also muses about what sets Cady apart from his other infamous psychopath—No Country For Old Men’s Anton Chigurh.
The actors who are bringing the new Cape Fear to life each found their characters in different places. Adams says she found inspiration virtually everywhere to star as Anna Bowden, an attorney, wife, mother, and social activist who is overwhelmed by the weight of her responsibilities. “I mean, I could just look to my left and look to my right and find a woman who embodies those qualities and those realities,” Adams says. “I do think that is the reality of so many women, and I’ve definitely been in that place of trying to do it all.”
Wilson, who plays her husband, Tom Bowden, took his cues from the middle-aged, career-focused fathers who obsessively sweat out their stress by pushing themselves to physical exhaustion. “I knew this guy growing up, he was a dear friend of mine, and I would see his dad running 10 miles away,” Wilson says. “It was important to establish that Tom is really trying. He may fail at times, but he’s definitely trying and he’s a good dad.” The drive toward perfection in all things can itself become a fatal flaw.
Then there is Javier Bardem as the intensely charismatic stalker Max Cady, who publicly makes himself out to look like the good guy while scheming to destroy this husband and wife out of suspicion that the two attorneys conspired to send him to prison seventeen years ago. Now free, and seemingly vindicated, he wears the mask of reason, of good humor, of belonging even as he schemes the most malevolent revenge.
Bardem found this character during the start of shooting in Savannah, Georgia, while looking up in the trees. “I was watching this Spanish moss hanging from the trees. It was a nice, warm, humid, windy day,” he says. “It gives you a sense of fascination. It’s not super colorful. I felt the sense of patience. With time, it goes down and can touch the floor even. It has all the time in the world to grow and grow and grow. And I thought, ‘Yeah, that’s Max Cady.’”
Spanish moss also frequently grows on weak or fragile branches, and left unchecked it can eventually amass enough weight to break the tree apart. That, as viewers who tune in to Cape Fear will see, is also very much like Max Cady.
