If you haven’t seen it, Fresh is a movie that starts as a cute, slightly awkward rom-com and then pivots—hard—into a literal meat-market nightmare. It’s the kind of film that makes you want to delete every dating app on your phone immediately. While the script by Lauryn Kahn is sharp, the whole thing would have fallen completely flat if the cast of Fresh 2022 hadn't been so perfectly, disturbingly calibrated. You need a specific kind of chemistry to make a movie about cannibalism feel both grounded and terrifying.
I remember watching the trailer and thinking it was just another "dating is hard" indie flick. Man, was I wrong. The way the actors play off each other creates this suffocating atmosphere that stays with you long after the credits roll. It isn’t just about the gore; it’s about the psychological manipulation.
Sebastian Stan and the Art of Being a Sociopath
Sebastian Stan. Honestly, he’s the anchor. Before this, most people knew him as the brooding Bucky Barnes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but Fresh let him tap into something way more sinister. He plays Steve, a charming doctor who seems too good to be true. Because he is.
Stan doesn't play Steve as a mustache-twirling villain. He plays him as a guy who genuinely thinks he’s a romantic. He’s charismatic. He dances. He cooks. He just happens to harvest human meat for a living. The "dinner dance" scene is probably the most talked-about moment in the film, and Stan’s commitment to the absurdity of it is what makes it work. He’s got this boyish energy that masks a complete lack of empathy. It’s a masterclass in the "Ted Bundy" brand of charisma—the kind that makes you understand how someone could fall for him before realizing they’re in a basement.
Daisy Edgar-Jones is the Heart of the Horror
Opposite Stan is Daisy Edgar-Jones as Noa. If you saw Normal People, you already knew she had range, but here she has to play someone who is simultaneously terrified and incredibly calculating. Noa isn't a "final girl" in the traditional, screaming sense. She’s a survivor.
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The cast of Fresh 2022 needed a lead who could make the audience feel the exhaustion of modern dating. The opening scenes of her on a terrible date with a guy who complains about the bill? We’ve all been there. Well, maybe not the basement part later, but the "ugh, why am I doing this" part for sure. Her performance is subtle. You can see the gears turning in her head as she tries to figure out how to manipulate a manipulator. She has to pretend to fall for Steve’s twisted worldview to stay alive, and Edgar-Jones plays that "performance within a performance" beautifully.
The Supporting Players Who Make the World Feel Real
While the leads get the spotlight, the movie would feel empty without the supporting roles. Jojo T. Gibbs plays Mollie, Noa’s best friend. Usually, the "best friend" role in a horror movie is just fodder, but Mollie is the one who actually does the detective work. She’s the audience surrogate, the person yelling "Red flag!" at the screen. Her chemistry with Edgar-Jones feels authentic. You believe they’ve known each other for years.
Then you have Charlotte Le Bon as Ann. I won't spoil her exact role for the three people who haven't seen it yet, but she adds a layer of "Stepford Wife" eeriness to the third act. She represents the complicity that often exists around powerful, evil men.
- Sebastian Stan (Steve): The charming surgeon with a side hustle in human deli meats.
- Daisy Edgar-Jones (Noa): The protagonist who just wanted a decent boyfriend.
- Jojo T. Gibbs (Mollie): The loyal friend who actually follows the clues.
- Dayo Okeniyi (Paul): A bartender who gets caught up in Mollie's investigation.
- Charlotte Le Bon (Ann): A mysterious woman from Steve's past.
The cast is small. It’s intimate. That’s why it works.
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Why the Director Chose This Specific Group
Director Mimi Cave was looking for people who could handle the tonal shifts. Fresh is funny until it isn't. It’s stylish, then it’s gritty. Cave mentioned in several interviews around the Sundance premiere that the chemistry between Stan and Edgar-Jones was immediate. They had to trust each other because the material is so dark.
Specifically, the "basement" scenes required a lot of vulnerability. You’re dealing with themes of objectification and the literal consumption of women's bodies. If the actors didn't have that rapport, it could have felt exploitative rather than satirical. Instead, the cast of Fresh 2022 turned it into a sharp critique of how women are consumed in the modern world—emotionally, sexually, and in this case, physically.
Realism in the Middle of Absurdity
What’s crazy is how much prep went into the "food" scenes. The production designer and the actors worked with food stylists to make the "human" meat look appetizing but slightly off. Sebastian Stan apparently had to eat a lot of "prop" meat that was actually high-quality protein, but the psychological toll of pretending it was a person is something he’s discussed in press junkets. He had to stay in a headspace where he viewed his co-stars as "ingredients." Kinda gross, right?
The movie also touches on the "elite" world of secret underground clubs. While the film is a horror-comedy, it taps into real-world anxieties about what the ultra-wealthy do behind closed doors. The cast had to ground these wild concepts in reality. When Steve talks about his clients, he does it with the casualness of a guy talking about a country club membership.
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The Legacy of the Fresh 2022 Ensemble
Since the movie dropped on Hulu (and Disney+ internationally), the careers of the main cast have shifted. Daisy Edgar-Jones moved on to Where the Crawdads Sing, proving she’s a bankable lead. Sebastian Stan continues to bounce between indie weirdness and big-budget blockbusters, but Fresh remains one of his most transformative roles.
It’s a film that gets better on a second watch. You start noticing the little things. The way Steve looks at Noa’s skin. The way Mollie reacts to a text message. The cast of Fresh 2022 didn't just show up; they built a world that feels uncomfortably close to our own.
If you’re looking to dive deeper into the themes of the movie or want to explore more from this ensemble, here are the moves to make:
- Watch the "Making Of" featurettes: Many streaming platforms have behind-the-scenes clips showing how the cast developed their "prey and predator" dynamic.
- Check out Sebastian Stan’s other "villain" turns: If you liked him here, his work in I, Tonya shows his ability to play complicated, often detestable characters with a human edge.
- Follow Jojo T. Gibbs: She is a rising star with a background in comedy (check out Twenties) which explains why her timing in Fresh is so impeccable.
- Analyze the Soundtrack: The music is almost a cast member itself, punctuating the performances with jarringly upbeat pop songs during horrific moments.
The movie works because it knows that the scariest monsters don't have claws; they have a great smile and a decent wine collection.