Look, It’s a Perfectly Timed Movie About Enraged Ballerinas

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The internet has been playfully teasing Timothée Chalamet for sharing his thoughts on ballet and opera, but the conversation continued at SXSW on Friday. Director Steven Spielberg spoke about the shared experience of enjoying performances in dark venues – like movie theaters, concerts, and, yes, ballet and opera. Later that night, a large ballerina statue appeared outside the festival’s main theater, seemingly timed to promote the premiere of “Pretty Lethal,” an action movie about ballerinas who find themselves in a dangerous fight for survival at a creepy hotel in Hungary.

The film opens with a voiceover saying, “Inside every ballerina’s heart is the blood of a warrior…” shown alongside close-up shots of well-worn pointe shoes and incredibly strong calf muscles. The narration goes on to explain that ballerinas aren’t just delicate figures in tutus; they transform pain into art and build their abilities through dedication and sacrifice. The audience was already applauding at this point.

Hitting theaters on March 25th, the new movie features Maddie Ziegler, Lana Condor, Iris Apatow, Avantika, Millicent Simmonds, and Uma Thurman. Director Vicky Jewson, speaking at SXSW, shared her long-held desire to create action films that are female-led and offer a female perspective. She was particularly drawn to this film’s script, written by former ballerina Kate Freund, because of its strong focus on the bond between sisters.

The film Pretty Lethal opens with a ballet troupe rehearsing in America. They’re preparing for a performance in Budapest, but their practice is chaotic – dancers are bumping into each other and competing for the spotlight. We quickly meet the main characters: Princess, the wealthy and privileged dancer; Bones, a talented but insecure scholarship student; sisters Zoe and Chloe, one of whom is deaf; and Grace, who provides comic relief with her unexpected fighting skills and frequent quotes from the Bible.

On top of their constant arguing, the group’s bus breaks down in the Hungarian countryside. They’re forced to walk, and eventually find the Teremok Inn. The bus driver darkly wishes them luck as they head towards it in the pouring rain – a clear warning that trouble is ahead. Things get even stranger when a creepy man in a trench coat, with a distinctive hairstyle (bald on top and long hair around the sides), waits outside and motions them inside. He welcomes them with a strange comment about them not belonging in the cold, and they step into a wildly decorated inn filled with pink lights, chandeliers, and stuffed animal heads, all covered in dust.

The innkeeper, Devora (played by Uma Thurman, with her hair in a tight ponytail), used to be a ballerina until an injury forced her to stop dancing. When the women change into their ballet costumes – the only dry clothes available – a dangerous man arrives. He’s the son of a local gangster and is there to collect a debt Devora’s father owes. He commits a violent act that terrifies the ballerinas, and they realize the simplest way for everyone involved to avoid trouble is to make it look like the ballerinas are dead. This sets the main story in motion.

After the film premiered at SXSW, the director explained that the story came from her experiences with a strong group of female friends during her childhood. One friend was even a black belt in martial arts. She recalled a time when she’d bring unusual items, even what she described as ‘weapons,’ in her ballet bag, and surprisingly, people didn’t question it because she wasn’t seen as dangerous. This contrast sparked the idea for the film, which she first conceived in 2009 and finished writing in 2016. However, she faced years of rejection from producers who were hesitant to fund a female-led action movie with an ensemble cast, preferring stories focused on a single female protagonist.

The director, Jewson, wanted to accurately portray the world of ballet. She spent time observing dancers at the Royal Opera in London, who described their bodies as both a source of strength and a protective shield. As one character in the film, played by Ziegler, puts it, despite appearances, ballerinas often perform through pain and injury, pushing their physical limits.

The actresses trained intensely for three weeks, putting in twelve-hour days split between ballet and stunt work. They combined graceful ballet moves, like jetés, with dangerous, spinning attacks. They even hid razor blades in their ballet shoes! It seems foolish to restrain such flexible and agile performers, capable of kicking their legs incredibly high. One particularly amusing scene shows them all squeezing into a kitchen, contorting their bodies to fit into unbelievably small spaces.

I was really fascinated hearing the cast talk about “Years and Years.” It sounds like Condor was on board with the project incredibly early, and she was thrilled to play a character she hadn’t been allowed to before – she actually said, “She’s such a bitch!” which was great to hear. Ziegler got emotional talking about it; she’d transitioned from ballet to acting and felt like a piece of her was missing, and then this script landed in her lap. But honestly, Thurman seemed the most excited of all. She was practically buzzing with energy when she got the mic!

At 56, she’s been making films since she was 16, dedicating four decades to the industry. Seeing women collaborate, support each other, and innovate in filmmaking is incredibly meaningful to her. She says she’s dreamed of this moment – witnessing such positive change for women and audiences worldwide – her entire life.

“I did what I could to improve things whenever possible,” the Kill Bill actress explained. “Tonight, seeing my long-held hopes come to life was incredibly rewarding.”

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2026-03-14 23:55