THE CARETAKER
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WINNER OF 20+ INTERNATIONAL FILM AWARDS.​​
UK PREMIERE 23RD AUGUST
FRIGHTFEST 2025.
Odeon Luxe, West End, 3.35PM.
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FrightFest 2025 Official Selection
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​COMING TO UK CINEMAS OCTOBER 3RD 2025.
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Psychological thriller / horror.
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113 minutes.
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Director & Writer - Luke Tedder​​
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Press:
THR (The Hollywood News) - Interview
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UK & Ireland Theatrical & VOD - Distributor AJAMAX.​
THE STORY & THEMES
A character-driven horror-thriller set at the isolated coastal Lockbridge Academy, run by the powerful aristocratic Aberdeen family, who are hiding a dark secret. Eddie, a mute burdened with caring for his cruel, ailing mother, who is on the cusp of losing their home, takes a caretaker position at the foreboding Lockbridge. There, he meets a cleaner named Marie, sparking an instant connection that will alter the trajectory of his life, while unraveling a sinister mystery lurking within the school that could shatter the Aberdeen family legacy forever.
The Caretaker explores the themes of overcoming communication boundaries, power dynamics and how childhood trauma shapes adult lives.
LEAD CAST & CHARACTERS
"Eddie" - Ben Probert
Eddie is a thirty-something year old mute, affected by a traumatic childhood and isolated adult life, to say Eddie hasn't had it easy would be an understatement. Luckily for Eddie his fortunes seemingly turn in his favor when he's offered a job at the elite Lockbridge Academy as a Caretaker.
Ben Probert is an award-winning British actor known for his emotionally raw performances and dedication to independent cinema. Born in Ascot, Berkshire, Ben discovered a passion for acting and storytelling while studying Drama and Art at Charters School in Sunningdale.
Ben’s growing filmography includes roles in major productions such as The Monuments Men, Powder Room, and A Royal Night Out, as well as numerous indie projects with Landa Pictures. In 2016, he starred as Hunter in Precognition, which premiered at Sci-Fi London and Other Worlds Austin before streaming on Amazon Prime.
During the pandemic, Ben wrote and directed Self-Isolation, winning Best Film and Best Acting Duo (with his brother Josh) at several international festivals.
"Marie" - Mackenzie Larsen
Marie is a down-to-earth and down on her luck cleaner working at the isolated Lockbridge Academy under the thumb of the controlling aristocratic Aberdeen family, after a painful break up she's determined to re-build her life and pass the entrance exam for law school.
This role is Mackenzie's feature film debut, for which she has won 6 best actress awards at international festivals, including the LA Film Awards.
Mackenzie is an award winning actor, writer, and musician. Since graduating with an MFA in acting from LAMDA in 2022, she has co-founded radio-drama theatre company "Other Mysteries Theatre", as well as being half of the writing partnership Larsen & Chalk. Her powerful musical a "Heaven Has No Rage" about new motherhood is premiering at The Other Palace in 2026, alongside developing a second musical "The Devil's Work".
Mackenzie is an accomplished songwriter & solo artist, currently working on her debut album "Hiding".
Her other most recent credits include: Lily in The Painting, Kate in Small Talks, Paige in Styx & Stones. Recent Theatre: A in Odd Jobs, Iris Osiris in The Graveyard Snack: Live (Other Mysteries Theatre), Myrtle in The Midnight Snack: Live (Other Mysteries Theatre, OffFest Nomination), Sarah Hollis in The Welkin, Mrs Van Buren in Intimate Apparel, and Natash in Three Sisters.
"Charles" - Scott Hume
Charles Aberdeen the 3rd is the son of a rich aristocrat, deputy head of the elite Lockbridge Academy and a complicated man with anger issues. His recent break up with Marie has sent him on an emotional downward spiral of jealous rage compounded with a dark past that he can't run away from.
Scott Hume is a versatile UK actor whose performances span film, television, and theatre. He recently portrayed Guy Woodhouse in the psychological thriller Apartment 7A (2024), and earned a Best Actor Award at the Eastern Europe International Movie Awards — for his powerful lead performance as Adam in the short film Purgatory #Breakthecycle (2021).
Scott’s screen work includes appearances in Netflix’s The Crown as a Royal Detective, Autopsy: The Last Hours of… as Jerry Lewis, and a brief turn as a Stormtrooper in Star Wars: The Last Jedi. He has also delivered compelling performances in shorts such as The Grey Room, Stuck, and the drama PREMature.
On stage, Scott was the understudy in the West End production of Lyonesse, starring Lily James and Kristin Scott Thomas, and played Scott in the off-West End production of The Girl on the Train, showcasing his depth and presence in live performance.
"Lisa" - Lauren Shotton
Born rich and on the surface a spoiled bully, Lisa on paper seems like she's had an easy life but an unresolved trauma has pushed her to make questionable decisions, in a family where she already feels like an outsider.
Lauren is an experienced, multi-skilled actor and performer from Portsmouth, UK. Her vast portfolio of work spans drama, fantasy, and comedy projects, and she continues to develop a strong crossover between film & theatre.
Lauren portrays “Becca” a cinema manager in the “The Regulars” (Santana Productions), screening August 2025 at the Prince Charles Cinema.
Other roles include “Cherice” in Dead Love, with early roles in major studio features such as National Treasure: Book of Secrets and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
Lauren is playing “Lizzie”, a lead role in the upcoming indie sci-fi drama “A Universe Apart” ,due out early 2026.
Recent stage credits include Whiplash (Lockdown Projections, dir. Saffron Woolven), A Most Mechanical Murder (Moonstone Theatre/Phantom Peak) and Cyanide in the Speakeasy (Moonstone Theatre/Collab Theatre)
"Aberdeen" - P G Pearson
Headmaster and father to Charles & Lisa, Aberdeen has spent his life running Lockbridge Academy and leveraging his massive wealth to his family's advantage. On the surface he appears a calm and pragmatic man but beneath the polished exterior lies a murky past that if discovered could destroy his family reputation.
P G is a seasoned actor with experience ranging across stage, screen, radio and internet. As a former academic, he is also Honorary Professor, Imperial College London & Emeritus Professor, Cardiff University.
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Films include: Cordell, A Universe Apart (Feature: Dir. Luke Tedder, 2025, forthcoming); Kellen, Glory Be to the Father (short: Dir. Lyndon Henley Hanrahan, 2025) Les, Scuffs (Short, pilot: Dir. Suzanne Curtis, 2025); Arthur, Hawthorn’s Gift (Short: Dir. Valeria Munoz Reyes, 2025); Tax, Losing Dogs (Short: Dir. Reggie Winchester, 2025, ongoing); Myles, Don’t be a Kabuki (Short: Dir Yildiz Kaydin, 2024); Priest, Belladonna (Short: Dir. Felix Sutton, Raindance, 2023); Poetry performance, An Earl’s Court Miscellany (Dir. Erica Miller, Catherine Harvey, 2022, 2023); Chester, Off the Coast (Short: Dir. James Hastings, 2021).
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Stage acting includes: Pavvo, Dark Oxygen (Drayton Arms Theatre, 2025); Sir Lawrence Wargrave, And Then There Were None (Wilde Theatre, Bracknell, 2024); 13 parts, Their Finest Hour (Waterloo East Theatre, 2023); Duke Alonso, The Tempest (Wilde Theatre, 2019)
