Movies Kenneth Branagh surprised A Haunting in Venice actors with effects on set: 'They had no warning' The director's latest Agatha Christie adaptation stars Tina Fey, Michelle Yeoh, Jamie Dornan, and the filmmaker himself as detective Hercule Poirot. By Clark Collis Clark Collis Senior Writer EW's editorial guidelines Published on August 15, 2023 02:50PM EDT Both the title and the trailer of director-star Kenneth Branagh's A Haunting in Venice (out Sept. 15) tease that the movie will be the filmmaker's spookiest Agatha Christie adaptation to date. According to Branagh, he ensured that his starry cast — which includes Tina Fey, Michelle Yeoh, and Jamie Dornan — had an at times scary experience shooting the film as they were surprised with unannounced effects. "These actors had no warning about what would happen, what we did with lights, wind, doors opening," the filmmaker says in a new featurette. Speaking in the same clip, Dornan reveals, "I've never been on a set like this before. There's a great sense of authenticity. It will be a proper thrill for the audience." Kenneth Branagh as Hercule Poirot in 'A Haunting in Venice'. Courtesy of 20th Century Studios "It's not only a murder-mystery," says Fey in the featurette, "but there's also a supernatural element to the film which takes it to another level." A Haunting in Venice is Branagh's third Christie adaptation after 2017's Murder on the Orient Express and 2022's COVID-delayed Death on the Nile. "Agatha Christie was an incredible storyteller," says Branagh, who once again plays lushly-moustachioed detective Hercule Poirot in the new film. "She is the world's number one mystery writer because she understood a good detective story. Orient Express dealt with revenge. Death on the Nile dealt with greed. This film is about whether there is anything beyond us, a ghost, a god, whether Poirot believes in it, that involves him and us being scared." A Haunting in Venice will gondola its way onto screens Sept. 15. Watch that featurette above. Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more. Related content: Kenneth Branagh wins his first Oscar for Belfast after eight career nominations Belfast's Kenneth Branagh on Caitriona Balfe snub, his record-breaking Oscar nominations Death on the Nile docks at No. 1 at the box office