Demi Moore Transforms in First Teaser for Body Horror Hit The Substance

One of this year’s buzziest premieres at the Cannes film festival was The Substance, the new horror film from Revenge director Coralie Fargeat. MUBI has released the first official teaser for the upcoming film, in which Demi Moore plays an A-list celebrity whose career is waning with age — until she decides to take matters into her own hands.

Moore received major acclaim for her daring performance in The Substance, in which she plays Elisabeth Sparkle, a renowned celeb whose misogynistic boss (Dennis Quaid) pulls the plug on her fitness show. In an effort to regain control of her image and career, Elisabeth takes a game-changing new drug. The eponymous Substance promises to transform users into stunning, younger versions of themselves, but there’s a catch: the results are temporary, and the side effects are truly gnarly.

Reviews out of Cannes praised The Substance for its thoughtful, gruesome satire of beauty standards and celebrity, while singling out Moore’s performance as her best in years. Here’s the official synopsis for The Substance from MUBI, which will distribute the film this fall:

“Have you ever dreamt of a better version of yourself?

You. Only better in every way.

You’ve got to try this product: The Substance.

It changed my life.”

“Demi Moore gives a career best performance as Elisabeth Sparkle, a former A-lister past her prime and suddenly fired from her fitness TV show by repellent studio head Harvey (Dennis Quaid). She is then drawn to the opportunity presented by a mysterious new drug: THE SUBSTANCE. All it takes is one injection and she is reborn – temporarily – as the gorgeous, twentysomething Sue (Margaret Qualley).

“The only rule? Time needs to be split: exactly one week in one body, then one week in the other. No exceptions. A perfect balance. What could go wrong?

Deliriously entertaining and ruthlessly satirical, Coralie Fargeat’s Cannes sensation turns toxic beauty culture inside out with a be-careful-what-you-wish-for fable for the ages. Explosive, provocative and twisted, THE SUBSTANCE marks the arrival of a thrillingly visionary filmmaker.”

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Watch the Tantalizing First Teaser for The Substance

For all the talk of body horror and gore, you might be surprised by the darkly comedic tone of the first teaser for The Substance. It feels like the much-needed feminist successor to Death Becomes Her, Robert Zemeckis’ campy horror film from 1992, starring Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn. Zemeckis’ film took a similarly satirical approach to examining sexist beauty standards, and while Death Becomes Her has only gotten better with age, the subject matter undoubtedly benefits from the female perspective.

Margaret Qualley co-stars in The Substance as Sue, the younger version of Elisabeth who unsurprisingly begins vying for control over their shared body.

The Substance

Elisabeth Sparkle, renowned for an aerobics show, faces a devastating blow on her 50th birthday as her boss fires her. Amid her distress, a laboratory offers her a substance which promises to transform her into an enhanced version of herself.

Release Date

September 20, 2024

Director

Coralie Fargeat

Runtime

2h 20m

Distributor(s)

Mubi

If you’re unfamiliar with filmmaker Coralie Fargeat, I highly recommend watching her directorial debut, Revenge, which is streaming on Shudder. That film stars Matilda Lutz as a young woman whose vacation with her wealthy boyfriend and his friends takes a violent turn, sending her on a brutal odyssey of survival.