Horn Again

MALEFICENT: MISTRESS OF EVIL - Angelina Jolie’s cheeky villainess returns for a wicked sequel, and it’s time to pick a side…

Released in 2014, Maleficent ushered in a lucrative era of live-action remakes for Disney. But unlike Beauty And The Beast and Aladdin, which recreate the animated originals almost shot for shot, Maleficent put a new spin on the Sleeping Beauty myth, (re)telling its tale from the perspective of Angelina Jolie’s titular fallen fairy. “I think people were surprised by how moving it was,” says Joachim Rønning, the Pirates 5 director who replaced Robert Stromberg for sequel Mistress Of Evil. “It’s what I gravitated towards, that universal bond between a mother and a daughter.”

At the first film’s end, Maleficent emerged as a maternal figure for Elle Fanning’s Princess Aurora following the death of her dastardly dad, King Stefan (Sharlto Copley). The sequel moves things forward half a decade, mirroring the five-year gap between Maleficent movies – an eternity in modern sequel terms. The audience that turned out in droves for the original (to the tune of some $758 million at the worldwide box office) may have grown up in the years since, but so has the film’s sleeping beauty.

“I found that quite fascinating,” says Rønning, talking to Teasers during the final weeks of post-production. “Elle was 16 when she did the first film, and now she’s 21. To see that character mature, and also Elle as an actress, it was fantastic for the movie because it felt so natural. She is much more in charge now. She has a strong will of her own. And that’s what catapults our story into gear when Aurora decides to move out and leave Maleficent.”