So, I’ve seen the Eras Tour in person before, and I’m going again in November. I’d be lying if I said that after I saw the trailer for Trap, I didn’t get slightly nervous about seeing M. Night Shyamalan's thriller on the 2024 movie schedule before seeing Taylor Swift in concert again. This is because the film takes place at a massive concert, and it follows a killer trying to escape law enforcement. Now, Trap’s star Josh Hartnett has opened up about the similarities between the concert in his movie and the pop star’s massive show, and it’s made me even more scared and excited.
Ahead of Trap’s release, I’ve been thinking a lot about how the concert depicted in the movie is reminiscent of the Eras Tour. The film’s director also told Empire that he pitched his movie as “if The Silence Of The Lambs happened at a Taylor Swift concert.” Then, Josh Hartnett opened up to Extra about his own experience at the Eras Tour and filming this movie, saying:
After doing this movie it was bizarre, well, I mean, considering what this movie is about. It was only a couple of weeks ago. My girls are now, like, old enough to go to, sort of old enough to go to these things. They’re 8 and 7. I wanted to give them exactly what they wanted, the whole experience, and we did and they had such a wonderful time.
He went on to talk about the “fervor” at these concerts, and he noted that Shyamalan “captures” that energy in Trap. The Oppenheimer actor went on to explain that when they filmed the movie all the people who were playing fans were freaking out over the music, and it was wild:
I did the movie before I went to one of those concerts. I didn’t really know, and it felt to me on the day like these [people] have lost their absolute minds. Like, all the kids were so obsessed and they’d been given Lady Raven’s, Saleka’s, music beforehand and they became genuine fans, and they were all singing along and going crazy.
At the time, Hartnett didn’t have the Eras Tour to compare Trap to, so he ended up having the reverse experience of realizing these real-life concerts mirrored his movie, as he said:
It was exactly what I experienced at the Taylor Swift concert, basically.
Now, as a Swiftie who is constantly looking forward to Swift’s new projects and acts like the fans in Trap at the Eras Tour, Josh Hartnett’s words excited and terrified me.
For me, when I watch a thriller or horror movie, I immediately start to think that what’s happening could happen to me. Obviously, it’s an irrational fear, but it’s a fear nonetheless. So, since Trap targets and experience that I’ve had and love having so closely, I’m incredibly scared.
I have a feeling the next time I’m at a concert I’ll be looking over my shoulder and a little on edge, because based on the actor's comments, his movie shows a concertgoing experience that is very accurate (minus the serial killer part, of course).
On the flip side though, the fact that he experienced both things for himself and felt the similarities is so exciting. I’m fascinated by the film because it taps into a major event and trend that we’ve been following for over a year now, and it’s such a creative way to frame a thriller.
I’ll probably be watching Trap with my hands over my eyes, and I’ll maybe never feel the same when I go to a concert. However, these comments from Josh Hartnett were incredible and they are making me even more hyped about the movie.
To see if he’s right, and to compare the concerts referenced in this story, you can stream the Eras Tour with a Disney+ subscription now, and you can catch Trap in theaters on August 2.
