‘Ginger Snaps’, Together Forever [Digital Feature]
Closing in on three decades since its release and Ginger Snaps remains one of the greatest and most beloved werewolf films ever made. Director John Fawcett and writer Karen Walton‘s Canadian horror classic expertly uses lycanthropy to explore menstruation, sexual awakening, girlhood, and the true monstrousness of high school. And there’s still nothing else quite like it.
Now, Ginger Snaps has finally arrived on 4K via Lionsgate’s Vestron Video Collector’s Series as of May 19, giving the beloved genre staple a new spotlight. To mark the release, I sat down with Fawcett and its stars Katharine Isabelle and Emily Perkins for an in-depth conversation about the making of the film, its enduring legacy, and where it could be headed next.
For the cast, the realization that Ginger Snaps had become a cultural phenomenon didn’t happen overnight. “I wasn’t really until I started going to fan conventions and connecting with fans and hearing their stories of just feeling super connected to the characters,” Perkins shares. “That was when I realized that there was some kind of cultural impact that had happened.”
Isabelle has her own metric for measuring the film’s impact. “A lot of people have Ginger Snaps tattoos. There’s a lot of Ginger mid-transformation tattoos on people. It’s been very cool and lots of really cool fan art too. But yeah, it’s the tattoos that definitely stand out to me.”
And with the franchise’s enduring popularity, fans (myself included) have long hoped for more stories set in the Ginger Snaps universe. A TV series has been in development, and Fawcett remains committed to the project. “That is still very much a hot topic right now. And it’s been a challenge, but it’s a passion project of mine to have a TV series based on the OG, Ginger Snaps. Yeah. With the mythology that the movie has created… it’s a work in progress, but it’s been a long and winding road. It is something though that is very much—there is some heat and some creative minds working on this as we speak.”
When asked whether they’d want to see the original cast return or new faces take over, Isabelle is open to both possibilities. “A combination of both. I think that’d be great. With the creative team behind it, there’s definitely more to be mined out of this story, out of the relationship of the girls, out of all of that. I definitely, as a fan, would be into seeing that for sure.”
Perkins shares the enthusiasm, though she’s uncertain about the logistics. “I would love to see where the story goes. I would love to see what happens with these characters. Would we be talking about, I don’t know, their kids or… Well, they don’t have kids. Wait a second, that’s not really possible…”
They agree that whatever comes our way next, hopefully, it’ll still be a Canadian production. So, when asked what makes Canadian genre cinema distinct, Fawcett doesn’t hesitate. “We’ve grown up in the shadow of this giant media machine, and it’s hard to get noticed. We just don’t have the kinds of budgets that they have—you have to be very creative. I think of Canadians as very resourceful and very creative.”
Emily Perkins, who has worked on both sides of the border, sees a clear distinction. “I’ve always found there’s a certain camaraderie and closeness that a Canadian kind of production, we feel with each other. And I always think that the horror genre is so much about the outsider and bringing what is outside the mainstream culture into the center. Canada does that well because we are on the margins of the US of this big monolithic culture.”
Katharine Isabelle agrees, drawing on her experience working on major American productions. “Yeah, I think there are a lot of times on the American things, again, like what Emily said, there can be a bit more of a corporate vibe to it. I did a very small part on Tron: Aries last, whenever that was. And with this huge, massive budget, it was definitely the biggest possible budget. There’s a level of terror that everyone’s feeling. No one’s really relaxed.“
Twenty-five years later, Ginger Snaps remains a testament to the power of Canadian genre filmmaking, authentic women’s stories, and the experience of being an outsider. A deadly cool combination if there ever was one. And as it finds new audiences through its 4K release, the film’s legacy as a coming-of-age horror classic only continues to grow. And hopefully, one day soon, that legacy will expand in a more literal sense, too.
Ginger Snaps is now available on 4K via Lionsgate’s Vestron Video Collector’s Series. Get yours here.
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