Asa Butterfield Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Cast: Eva Green, Chris O'Dowd, Samuel L. Jackson, Rupert Everett, Judi Dench, Asa Butterfield, Ella Purnell, Kim Dickens
Director: Tim Burton
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy
Rated: M
Running Time: 127 minutes

Synopsis: From visionary director Tim Burton, and based upon the best-selling novel, comes an unforgettable motion picture experience. When Jake discovers clues to a mystery that spans alternate realities and times, he uncovers a secret refuge known as Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. As Jake learns about the residents and their unusual abilities, he realizes that safety is an illusion, and danger lurks in the form of powerful, hidden enemies. Jake must figure out what is real, who can be trusted, and who he really is.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is rich with fantastical and immersive imagery, memorable characters, epic battles, and unique time travel manipulations"all brought to life by Tim Burton, in the grand style of his films Edward Scissorhands, Alice in Wonderland, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Most significantly, it is about embracing the original and peculiar in us all.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Release Date: September 29th, 2016

About The Production

Stay Peculiar.

It is this theme of not only accepting our differences but taking pride in them that resonated most with the filmmakers. It's a two-word mission statement that it's cool"and even necessary"to be different.

What makes the young Peculiars different is also what makes them able, strong and special. Miss Peregrine's Home provides a safe haven from the outside world, which cannot comprehend or deal with the Peculiars' special abilities. It's also a refuge from their powerful enemies.

Each child has a unique peculiarity, including levitation, fire-manipulation and super-strength. The Peculiars' capabilities are not limitless, and these young people are bound by most of the things we non-Peculiars are. 'They just discover some creative uses for their abilities in certain situations," says executive producer Derek Frey.

'These children would be seen as freaks and would be persecuted in the outside world," notes Eva Green, who portrays Miss Peregrine. 'In the remote island where they live and thrive, their -strangeness' is celebrated as something special and beautiful."

Tim Burton clearly identifies with that idea. 'As a child you never really forget those feelings of being different. They stay with you forever," he explains.

'I was branded as being -peculiar' because as a child I loved monster movies. So you go through things like that in your childhood and sometimes even later in life. There are a lot of people out there who feel that way."

In today's social media-obsessed world, 'staying peculiar" is particularly challenging. Says Ella Purnell, who portrays Emma, a young woman who can control air: 'We're all surrounded by Twitter and Instagram and other kinds of social media, which make it so easy to compare yourself with others, and to think you're not good enough or that you don't belong. But what we should be celebrating is what makes you, you."

The film's social media outreach embraced this idea. Since the launch of the campaign, a movement around the hashtag #StayPeculiar continues to gain momentum. The hashtag surfaced in one-third of the conversation surrounding the film, which is 625 percent more than typically seen for a single hashtag during a film's campaign.

The 'Stay Peculiar" theme extends to family, which the film's young protagonist Jake (Asa Butterfield) discovers with the Peculiars at Miss Peregrine's Home. 'Family comes in all shapes and sizes"and peculiarities," says Jenno Topping, who produced the film alongside Peter Chernin. 'Jake comes to learn that his true family is the Peculiars, with whom he feels an enormous affinity."

From Best-Selling Book To Big-Screen Event

Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children is based upon the debut novel by Ransom Riggs, published in 2011. It was an instant global hit and topped The New York Times best-seller list, where it remained for years. The book has sold more than 3.1 million copies.

A sequel, Hollow City, was published in 2014, followed by the final book in the trilogy, Library of Souls.

Riggs's journey to Miss Peregrine's special Home began with his hobby of collecting vintage photographs at swap meets and flea markets"the more unusual the photo, the better. He also used to write freelance for Quirk Books (publisher of Pride, Prejudice and Zombies). One day he sent some of his photos to the Quirk team, thinking the images could make a haunting picture book. Instead, Quirk came up with the idea of using the photos to create a narrative for a novel.

'I've always had a fascination with old photos," says Ransom Riggs. 'I had an idea for a story and the photographs became a kind of touchstone for the characters. For example, I'd have a really interesting photo of a boy covered in bees. So, I wondered, who is that boy? What's his story?"

The rights to Ransom Riggs's best-selling novel Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children were snapped up by the Twentieth Century Fox-based production company Chernin Entertainment, whose president is the film's producer Jenno Topping. 'It's such a beautiful book that spoke to us on so many levels; it's spooky, haunting and is a wonderful coming-of-age story," she notes.

Their dream choice to helm the film was, to Topping, also an obvious one. 'The second we saw the manuscript we knew Tim Burton would the perfect director. It's as if it were written for him," she explains.
The teams at Chernin and Fox were right on target with their choice for director. 'I really connected with the book," says Tim Burton. 'I like the fact that Ransom Riggs made a story out of finding these photographs. The material was very compelling"dreamlike, powerful and mysterious."

Ransom Riggs, a filmmaker in his own right and a longtime Tim Burton admirer, is effusive in his praise of the director tasked with bringing his novel to life on the big screen. 'It's not hard to let go of my book when Tim Burton is the surgeon performing the operation," he states.

Tim Burton and the producers turned to noted screenwriter Jane Goldman (Kingsman: The Secret Service, X-Men: First Class, Woman in Black) to adapt Ransom Riggs's novel for the screen. Again, it was the perfect marriage of artist and material. 'Jane Goldman's sensibilities are close to Tim's Burton," says Jenno Topping. 'They respond to the same types of projects and occupy the same kind of creative world."

Collaborating with Tim Burton was, says Jane Goldman, 'incredibly exciting. The photos are a key part of the book, so it's not a huge leap to see the story in a cinematic sense. And it was a joy and privilege to work with Tim. I love his ideas, and whatever he's doing feels like you're in the most creative environment."

Jane Goldman's mandate, says executive producer Derek Frey, was to stay true to the spirit of the novel, while offering audiences a big movie-going experience. 'There was a real effort to keep what's special in the book for the movie," Derek Frey explains. 'There's a certain personal nature to the project, and the connection between the characters of Jake and his grandfather Abe [Terence Stamp] is the heart of the story, and it was important to keep that intact. But at the same time, you want to deliver certain things to film audiences."

'The book and the movie are not the same, and it took me a little while to make friends with that idea," Riggs admits. 'But when I visited the location, met Tim Burton, and saw the sets he created and the people he had cast, the scenes really came to life for me. I started to get it. In fact, I watched scenes being filmed, written by Jane Goldman and directed by Tim Burton, and said to myself, -I wish I had thought of that!'"

'I visited the set because…who wouldn't?" the author continues. 'I love movies and moviemaking, and to see Tim Burton making the film of my book on this grand scale was something I had to experience."

Miss Peregrine: Protecting The Peculiars

The titular heroine of the novel and film is the protector of the Peculiars, Miss Peregrine. Her peculiarity is being an ymbrine, meaning she can manipulate time and take the form of a bird. Miss Peregrine, along with other ymbrines, uses this ability to create a time 'loop," in which she and the children live within a single day that repeats over and over again. This protects them from the evils of the world that exist outside the loop.

Miss Peregrine is an intriguing and sometimes mysterious character, capable of being a maternal figure to her young charges, as well as a fearsome opponent to those who threaten them. 'We don't quite know what makes her tick, or where she's from," says Frey. Adds Jenno Topping: 'Miss Peregrine is not sentimental, warm or funny. She's atypical for the genre, which is why we love her so much. She's smart and tough."

Eva Green, who had last collaborated with Burton on Dark Shadows, portrays Miss Peregrine, whom the actress calls her 'a kind of dark Mary Poppins-like figure who is rather eccentric and fearless, and who wields a deadly crossbow to protect her Peculiars. 'Her children are her life, and Miss Peregrine will do anything for them. She's a ballsy character and a warrior."

Tim Burton, who sometimes referred to the character as 'Scary Poppins," is a fan of Miss Peregrine"and of the actress depicting her. 'We all could have only wished to have a headmistress at school like Eva or Miss Peregrine"someone who's very strong, funny, mysterious and protective."

Jake: A New Arrival

The new arrival at Miss Peregrine's Home is Jake, the hero of our story. An outcast who eventually finds acceptance among the Peculiars, Jake is a typical American teen with the attending awkwardness. He feels that he doesn't fit in, and doesn't seem to be able to connect with anyone except his grandfather, whose death sets him on a journey of discovery. Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children unfolds through Jake's eyes and quest.

Asa Butterfield, who starred in the title role of Martin Scorsese's Hugo, describes his character as 'living an ordinary life and thinks he will never make a difference in the world. When his beloved granddad Abe dies mysteriously, Jake travels to Wales with his father to find out about Abe's past"and to find out if the special Home and its residents, which Abe had told Jake many stories about, really exist."

Jake could never have suspected what was in store for him there. 'What really stood out for me was how surreal everything was that was surrounding him," Asa Butterfield explains. 'He comes from something that's totally ordinary to joining something insanely different from what he's used to. At Miss Peregrine's Home, Jake must let go of everything he knows"or thinks he knows"and leave normal life behind."
It's a tremendous opportunity and challenge for Jake, and not unlike those many of us encounter in the everyday world. Although we don't face the kind of extraordinary challenges and choices Jake has with the Peculiars, the bigger picture, says Asa Butterfield, is all about 'taking that next big step."

Tim Burton says Asa Butterfield was right for the role because the young actor 'has a special kind of sensitivity, and he's a thinker. You could easily envision Asa Butterfield a being a Peculiar. He brings gravity to the role, like he's always discovering something. Asa Butterfield really conveys that Jake is going through what a lot of teens experience.

'There's no faking it with Asa Butterfield," Tim Burton adds. 'He's a lovely, soulful persona and actor."

Barron: On The Hunt For Peculiars

Every story needs a memorable villain, and Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children has that and more with Barron, a shapeshifter and a sinister, evolved form of the Peculiars' monstrous enemies, the Hollows. Barron believes the key to immortality"and maybe to regaining his humanity"is through hunting the Peculiars and Miss Peregrine.

'In the culture of the Peculiars, some are trying, not with the best of intentions, to attain immortality. But they end up turning into monsters," Tim Burton summarises.

The director had only one actor in mind to bring Barron to life: Samuel L. Jackson. 'I've always wanted to work with Samuel L. Jackson," says Tim Burton. 'If he's in a movie, then I want to see it." Jackson returns the compliment: 'I love the way Tim Burton's mind works."

From the beginning, Samuel L. Jackson and Tim Burton were in sync in their vision for the character. 'Tim Burton and I understood that we didn't want to make Barron overly sinister," the actor explains. 'Barron is scary enough already, with his razor sharp teeth and milky eyes. I wanted to play against that and see how much fun we could have with him.

'People who know Barron from the book may be surprised to see him in this film because I actually had a great time being Barron, in terms of playing his unique psychosis," Samuel L. Jackson continues. 'He has these moments where you know Barron is enjoying himself"when he looks at the Peculiars and thinks they're kind of fun."

Emma: An Air Of Mystery And Romance

Emma, portrayed by Ella Purnell, has the ability to manipulate air, and must wear a pair of lead shoes to keep herself from floating away. As the adventure unfolds, Emma draws ever closer to Jake.

Jake reminds Emma of Abe, with whom she shared a close bond when Abe was a young man in the -40s and was a visitor to the Home. 'So, she's reluctant to grow close to Jake because she's afraid of losing him, too," says Ella Purnell. Of course, young romance prevails. 'Emma and Jake's relationship becomes a sweet, naïve teenage love, and he's all nervous because he unsure of himself"and she floats!"

For Ransom Riggs, that relationship is 'the soul of Jake's journey to becoming an extraordinary young man. And it works because Asa Butterfield and Ella Purnell are funny, charming and have tons of chemistry." (The actors were longtime friends who had met at the prestigious Young Actors Theatre.)

That praise from Ransom Riggs is especially noteworthy, because in his novel it is the character of Olive that has the ability to control air, while Emma has the power to put anything she touches aflame. Tim Burton and Goldman swapped those peculiarities because, says the screenwriter, 'Tim Burton and I were captivated by the Jake-Emma romance and the idea of floating, which facilitated more possibilities in the interactions between the two characters." Emma walks Jake through the experience of living as a Peculiar and utilizes the manipulation of air to further the relationship and see them through difficult situations.

Abe: The Inspiration For An Adventure

Jake's beloved grandfather Abe has more in common with his grandson than the young man could have ever imagined. It is Abe's clues that trigger Jake's 'peculiar" adventure. Noted actor Terence Stamp, who previously worked with Tim Burton on the director's 2014 drama Big Eyes, takes on the role of Abe. Terence Stamp embraced the opportunity to reunite with Burton, and was intrigued by Abe's role as a storyteller, whose tales, enhanced with vintage photographs, trigger an unforgettable journey for his grandson.

The character resonates with Tim Burton, who likens Abe to his grandmother. 'She was very magical and special and the most important person in my life," Tim Burton relates. 'So I really get the relationship between Jake and Abe. A connection with a grandparent is different from that with a parent or friend. It's a unique situation."

Another key adult figure in the story is Miss Avocet, played by the acclaimed Judi Dench. Like Miss Peregrine, Miss Avocet is an ymbrine; she embodies an avocet, a fragile and nervous bird, unlike Miss Peregrine, who is more like a predator.

Tim Burton notes that, in a 'first" in her distinguished career, Dame Judi 'got to handle a crossbow"and get yanked out of window by a monster.

'I thought, well, that's something I'd like to see," he adds with a laugh.

Jake's well-meaning, straight-laced parents are portrayed by Chris O'Dowd and Kim Dickens. Dad Frank accompanies Jake to Wales, and as Jake embarks on his great adventure, Frank pursues his interest in ornithology, and clashes with another bird fancier, played by Rupert Everett. Notes Tim Burton: 'Chris brings warmth and paternalism to the part, while conveying the father-son miscommunication."

Helping Jake through the difficult period following Abe's death is Dr. Golan (Allison Janney), who tries to put into perspective some of the feelings he's experiencing. She encourages Jake to travel to Wales to seek answers about his grandfather's life"and the truth behind his stories.

The Peculiars

To cast the young residents of Miss Peregrine's special home, Tim Burton went against expectations. Casting director Susie Figgis, who is a longtime Tim Burton collaborator, notes: 'Everyone thinks Tim Burton wants unusual looking people for his films, but I've always felt the opposite was true. For this film, my mandate was to find actors who were real, relatable and who touched you. In the end, that's what this story is about"people who just feel uncomfortable with the skin of normal life."

Enoch (Finlay MacMillan) is the oldest boy in the Home for Peculiar Children. Enoch's peculiarity allows him to temporarily give life to inanimate objects, a skill he employs during an epic showdown with dark forces. Sometimes he uses it for his own amusement, such as when he triggers a fight scene between doll figures, which is brought to life onscreen through stop-motion animation, a signature Burton style employed to equally wondrous effect in his productions of Corpse Bride and The Night Before Christmas. Actor Finlay MacMillan, says Figgis, is 'a bit sexy and dark, but not depressing."

Olive (Lauren McCrostie) is a free spirit"with fire at her fingertips. She must wear long black gloves at all times because she ignites everything she touches. Lauren McCrostie, a statuesque redhead, won the role because, says Frey, she 'had the necessary delicateness to balance her intense peculiarity."

Bronwyn (Pixie Davies) is small but mighty"the youngest and by far the strongest of the Peculiars. The pint-sized, brave, and dynamic character was a particular favorite of Burton's. 'It's the idea of this little person capable of such extraordinary things," says Topping. 'Again, it reflects Tim's work and his interest in how people can surprise you."

Fiona (Georgia Pemberton) has a peculiarity that allows her to manipulate plant growth; in an instant she can turn the smallest seed into the tallest tree. Figgis remembers Georgia's audition: 'She demonstrated such incredible concentration. I've never seen a youngster do something like that."

Claire (Raffiella Chapman) is a young Peculiar who by all appearances is normal"except for the set of razor-sharp teeth on the back of her head. 'We called the character the -back-mouth girl'," jokes Frey. 'Hers is one of the more peculiar peculiarities. Tim wanted someone you'd never suspect possessing that special trait. Raffiella had a kind of Shirley Temple innocence."

Hugh (Milo Parker) is the resident 'Lord of the Bees," and he must wear a beekeeper's mask to prevent the hive of bees that live within him from wreaking havoc on his friends. 'There's something so appealing about a young boy with a cherubic, peaceful face but who has this crazy thing living inside of him," says Topping.

Horace (Hayden Keeler-Stone) has the peculiarity of prophetic dreams. Every night, the Peculiars gather together and watch Horace's vivid dreams projected onto a screen. With his distinctive look and fine English suit, 'Horace looks like he came from another era," says Topping.

Millard (Cameron King) possesses the peculiar trait of invisibility, which makes him the most elusive"and mischief-prone"of the Peculiars. Since the character, and actor portraying him, would be unseen, finding the right 'voice" for Millard was especially important. 'We had to have a child's voice that was distinctive from the others, and would make you wonder, what does this young man look like?" says Frey.

The Twins (Thomas and Joseph Odwell) are the most enigmatic of the Peculiars. They wear masks that obscure their faces, and are speechless, and have a hidden peculiarity that only comes to light in the most dangerous situations. It was essential for the actors portraying The Twins to be able to mirror one another and play the same things at the same time. The Odwell twins had the necessary synchronicity.

Peculiar Stunts

Choreographer Francesca Jaynes, whose credits include Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Dark Shadows and Alice in Wonderland, worked with the young actors, focusing on the movements specific to each character's special ability. But Francesca Jaynes notes that, 'What was most important to Tim Burton was conveying the humanity of the children. These peculiarities are not superpowers. It's part of who they are."

Francesca Jaynes worked especially close with Ella Purnell to help the actress get the feeling and movement of being weightless. Ella Purnell recalls how it wasn't always easy, given the special, leaded footwear that Emma must wear to keep her grounded. 'It's really interesting when you're doing a scene and Tim Burton says, -Okay, be really scared and run as fast as you can.' I'm like, -Have you seen the [prop] shoes I'm wearing?'"

Stunt coordinator Rowley Irlam (Game of Thrones) also worked with Ella Purnell, who largely eschewed the use of a stunt double, particularly on scenes depicting Emma floating twenty feet in the air"courtesy of an elaborate wire rig. Ella Purnell also learned to drive a horse and cart, and she and Butterfield underwent diving training for a key set piece set under the sea.

All the young actors portraying the Peculiars were pleased to take part in a thrilling escape sequence, where they must climb out of a window on the top floor of the Home and slide down its roof, amidst a torrential downpour. 'All the children did their own stunts and were happy as anything to do it," says Frey.

Peculiar Costumes

Three-time Academy Award winner Colleen Atwood, who previously worked with Burton on Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood, Mars Attacks! Sleepy Hollow, Planet of the Apes, Big Fish, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Alice in Wonderland, Dark Shadows and Big Eyes, rejoins the director on Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children.

The film is set in two time periods"2016 and 1943"and Atwood utilized traditional patterns, colors and textures of both eras. She also faced the challenge of characters wearing the same outfit for the entire film, because they're reliving the same day over and over, thanks to Miss Peregrine's time loops. 'Each costume had to stand alone," she notes.

Since Miss Peregrine is an ymbrine, her outfit took elements of a bird without having an actual bird design. 'She has kind of pointy shoulders and clothes that flutter a bit," says Atwood. 'It has a quirkiness at the end of her sleeves"little details that look like they could take flight, in way."

There's also a bird-like quality to the outfit worn by the film's other ymbrine, Miss Avocet. 'Judi Dench was keen on being a bird," Colleen Atwood recalls. 'She remarked, -Look at the avocets' wonderful grey legs.' So we did her costume with grey stockings and boots."

Atwood designed the costumes for Jake and Abe together because, says the designer, 'Jake's real heart tie is to Abe. I put Jake in mostly classic modern versions of -40s clothes."

Says Asa Butterfield: 'I'm one of the few actors who actually had a change of costume." The character of Tim Barron, as well as the other ex-Hollows, the more humanoid version of their monstrous brethren, are timeless, spanning the Victorian and modern eras, and so their costumes are evocative of both periods. Emma's costumes are, appropriately, comprised of air-like material and colors. Atwood also designed many versions of leaded shoes, wanting them to look like 'heavy, old irons that were modified for the character's feet."

Olive's gloves, which shield her and others from her fiery abilities, were made of really fine, black patent leather, while the bee lord Hugh has an appropriate beekeeper kind of quality. Horace, says Atwood, is a 'romantic character, like a character out of an old movie, and an elegant, Cary Grant-like figure." The costumes for The Twins hewed closest to their incarnations in the novel, with Atwood using hand-woven gauze from Turkey.

Colleen Atwood calls the character of Fiona 'a little tomboy Kate Hepburn-type character, wearing trousers. I thought one of the girls should be into the modern side of the period."

Peculiar Locations

The film was shot in Florida, Belgium and Blackpool, a famed U.K. resort town in its heyday from Victorian times to the 1960s.

Burton shot the film mostly on locations, 'which means you have to go with what's there and that can be quite exciting and inspirational," says production designer Gavin Bocquet, who designed the Stars Wars prequels and who makes his debut on a Tim Burton film.

The opening scenes are set in Florida, where Tim Burton had filmed his masterful Edward Scissorhands. In the city of Tampa, the filmmakers found the required 'uninspiring and simple architecture with neutral colors," including a supermarket and two houses, which Gavin Bocquet stripped down to create Jake's suburban home life.

The palette and architecture of the Florida scenes provide a stark contrast to those that follow, as Jake begins his adventure in the village of Cairnholm, in Wales. After scouting several locations, the filmmakers landed on the hamlet of Portholland on the coast of Cornwall to stand in for the fictional town. Bocquet and his team added a pub and three shops to the village.

For the film's titular domicile, the production shot in Torenhof, a castle located near Antwerp, Belgium, which was originally owned by a noted biscuit maker. Tim Burton loved the structure and felt it had the right 'personality" to be the Home of the Peculiars. 'It just felt like a home for peculiar children," he says. 'It looked a bit tired but it still seemed like a homey place that had great character to it, and like somewhere children would want to live."

Adds Eva Green: 'I arrived there and thought, okay, Miss Peregrine could live in this house."

All the Home exterior scenes, as well as some in its dining room, kitchen and parlor, were filmed at Torenhof. The production then moved to London-area soundstages, where it constructed replicas of the Home's second floor bedrooms, dining room and parlor. 'This was done to so we could shoot part of the day and then be on other sets when the children's [restricted] working hours were used up," Gavin Bocquet explains.

Tim Burton and Gavin Bocquet's handiwork impressed Riggs during his visit to the set. 'Tim and his team did an extraordinary job of bringing Miss Peregrine's Home to life," he notes. 'I saw a number of the interior sets, and they were grand and eccentric and Victorian, and so immense and detailed that I had a genuine out-of-body moment when I came onto the soundstage. I thought I'd walked into the pages of my book. And then to watch Tim bounding around the sets like an enthusiastic kid in a life-sized play land…double out-of-body!"

Tim Burton filmed the action-packed conclusion on the Blackpool pier and in the Victorian circus at Blackpool Tower. Blackpool was a beach haven during Victorian times, and a working class playground in the 1960s, when area factories would shut down and people would flock there to relax in one of the city's many boarding houses or hotels.

The city's circus"'there is probably nothing like it in the world," says Gavin Bocquet"provided a colorful backdrop for a battle between the Hollows and the Peculiars. Irlam employed intricate wirework for key moments; a major character is set on fire, as another ends up underneath a frozen pool; and almost everyone"including an army of reanimated skeletons"is running, climbing, jumping and fighting.

Visual effects supervisor Frazer Churchill helped create the unique look of the Hollows, based on found images of tall, emaciated figures with sharp teeth, shallow eyes and unhealthy looking skin, but lacking a face, 'all of which looked like something from a child's nightmare," he explains. 'That was a starting point for the design. We wanted the Hollows to look not too distant from the humans they once were. They are just -monster' enough to be scary."

Churchill also supervised the VFX that helped create the bees inside Hugh; the mouth in the back of Claire's head; and the skeletons in the epic battle at Blackpool, which also possess a stop-motion quality; Miss Peregrine's time loops, employing on-location time lapse photography; a huge lighting array simulating day and night; and complicating things even more, rain. Visual effects also brought to life much of the R.M.S. Augusta ship, where Emma demonstrates to Jake the full power of her ability to manipulate air.

As Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children neared release, the filmmakers took time to reflect on their hopes for the film, as well as its themes. 'This will be a feast and a very emotional experience," says Topping. 'The film says be yourself and embrace your uniqueness, as well as the original and peculiar in everyone."

'Fans are going to get a no-holds-barred -Miss Peregrine' experience," adds Derek Frey. 'It's a full rendering of that story."

Perhaps no one is more pleased with that rendering than its original architect. 'As someone who grew up loving Tim's movies, it was so exciting to me that he was interested in my book," says Riggs. 'I said to myself, -Okay, well, this is genius. Tim is perfect for the material, and he's going to make it all his own. I love where he went with the film."

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Release Date: September 29th, 2016