Justin Hardy, the UK director who had just completed a sequel to his father's cult horror film The Wicker Man, died of a heart attack on July 31, 2026, at the age of 61. His family said he passed away on a Friday night, weeks before his final film was due to premiere (BBC News).

The film Hardy never lived to see open is Wrath of the Gods, the third entry in the Wicker Man trilogy begun by his father, Robin Hardy, with the 1973 original. Robin Hardy followed that landmark of British folk horror with 2011's The Wicker Tree; Wrath of the Gods completes a loose trilogy more than five decades in the making (Deadline).

The project grew out of an extraordinary discovery. After the new owner of the Hardy family's former home reported finding six sacks of Robin Hardy's lost archive untouched in the attic, Justin and his half-brother Dominic Hardy began excavating their father's unpublished work. They documented the search in the 2024 film and book Children of the Wicker Man (Deadline).

Among the archive's revelations was that Justin's mother, Caroline Hardy, had been a secret, uncredited executive producer on the original Wicker Man. Caroline Hardy died in 1984 at the age of 51. The half-brothers dedicated the release of Wrath of the Gods to her memory (Deadline).

Justin Hardy co-wrote the new film's original story with Dominic. Shot entirely in Shetland, it stars Francis Magee, known to audiences from Game of Thrones, and Norwegian actress Christiane Schaldemose. Laurence Gornall's London-based sales and production company Unannounced Film launched the title in the Cannes market (IMDb).

Wrath of the Gods world-premieres at FrightFest in Leicester Square, London, on August 28, 2026 (Deadline).

Before turning to his father's legacy, Hardy spent most of his career in history and current-affairs filmmaking. His near-50 directorial credits included the Primetime Emmy-nominated The Last Dragon, the Bafta-nominated The Relief of Belsen, and Royal Television Society winners City of Vice and Trafalgar Battle Surgeon (Deadline).

Born in London on October 30, 1964, Hardy built a body of work rooted in factual drama before the discovery of his father's archive redirected his final chapter toward the family's mythic horror legacy. The premiere at FrightFest will now serve as both a debut and a farewell.