Lots of Dead Bodies, But -- Surprise -- No Blood and Gore in 'Wild Target'

Movies about hit men typically go through a few buckets of prop blood what with all those dead bodies onscreen.

That's not the case, however, with Jonathan Lynn's new crime comedy Wild Target, starring Bill Nighy as a professional killer whose family's been doing hits for generations, and Emily Blunt as the object of his attention, first, and affection, thereafter.

It's the "thereafter" part that poses life-threatening complications for them both as well as for Rupert Grint, playing Nighy's naive but eager apprentice.

After enjoying an early look at Wild, which expands from its current New York and L.A. playdates Friday and goes wider Nov. 26 via Freestyle Releasing, I was happy to catch up with Lynn, whose many credits include My Cousin Vinny and The Whole Nine Yards.

"Although it's absolutely full of people getting killed, you never see anyone getting killed," he told me, adding that even in one key murder scene, "you only see a body."

Why no blood and gore?

"I was determined to avoid that. I don't think it's necessary. I think that's become a real cliche. It was all very exciting when Sam Peckinpah started doing that in the '70s, but prior to that there were many good thrillers where you didn't see any blood."

Like Psycho where Hitchcock famously created the illusion of Janet Leigh being stabbed in the shower without actually showing that knife in action.

"I think it's possible to have suspense and excitement without throwing blood all around the set," Lynn observed.

Wild's roots are in a 1993 French film called Cible Emouvante, written and directed by Pierre Salvadori.

"It's a lovely movie, but in my view it didn't wholly work. But it had lovely performances and some terribly funny things in it and I enjoyed it immensely."

That was about 10 years ago, he said, "when a company based in Hollywood owned the rights and sent it to me. I didn't like their adaptation and nothing came of that."

Six years later, Lynn was contacted by Martin Pope, who wound up producing Wild with Michael Rose.

"He had bought the rights when they'd lapsed. He'd been trying to make the film apparently ever since he saw it."

Although Lynn liked the material, he thought it needed work.

"I'd become very wary about getting into things unless I think they're going to turn out right."