Women's Lifestyle April 2, 2026 0 Comments

Unlock the Dark Magic of Forbidden Fruits: Why This Witchy Feminist Tale Will Totally Change How You See Power and Passion

Ever found yourself wandering into a mall boutique—pretending to browse but secretly wondering if those effortlessly charming salesgirls might actually be running a clandestine coven behind the dressing rooms? Yeah, me too. That eerie little suspicion is exactly the juicy premise behind Forbidden Fruits, a wickedly funny horror-comedy conjured up by Meredith Alloway in her directing debut, spun from Lily Houghton’s thought-provoking 2019 play. Picture this: three savvy, glamorous twentysomethings hustling at a bohemian-chic shop called Free Eden, slinging overpriced threads with a side of sinister rituals. Then comes Pumpkin, a fresh-faced pretzel-slinger with a fruity name and a secret agenda to join—and shake up—their witchy world. It’s a wild brew of female friendship, raw power, and unapologetic self-celebration that nods to cult classics like Heathers and Mean Girls but lands smack in our current landscape — dissecting autonomy and sisterhood in a post-Roe reality. Plus, it’s got a killer cast of rising stars who bring their characters to life with a bewitching energy you can’t ignore. Dive in as we chat with Lili Reinhart, Lola Tung, Alexandra Shipp, and Victoria Pedretti about magic, mayhem, and why sometimes embracing the weird side of life is exactly what we all need.

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10 min read

Have you ever walked into a shopping mall boutique and thought to yourself: I wonder if the workers are running a secret coven back by the dressing rooms? That’s the driving story behind Forbidden Fruits, a new horror-comedy from Meredith Alloway in her feature film directorial debut, based on the 2019 play Of the woman came the beginning of sin, and through her we all die by Lily Houghton (who also co-wrote the screenplay).

In the film adaptation, we’re introduced to three glamorous twentysomethings in Texas—Apple, Fig, and Cherry—who scam people into spending thousands of dollars at the chic bohemian clothing store where they work, cheekily named Free Eden. One day, they’re approached by a young woman who works at the mall’s pretzel shop and is also coincidentally named after a fruit: Pumpkin. After passing a series of tests and embracing their spooky rituals, Pumpkin becomes a part of their group. However, it turns out she’s got secret intentions for wanting to assimilate into this witchy unit.

Forbidden Fruits drips with traces of the films about complicated female friendship that came before it—Heathers, Jawbreaker, The Craft, Clueless, Mean Girls. However, in a post-Roe world, it also feels very of-the-moment in the ways that it dissects female power, autonomy, sex, and spirituality. These women pray to Marilyn Monroe and drink potions out of a sparkly silver cowboy boot. They have sex and celebrate their bodies, while still promising each other that they’ll never have boyfriends. They try to create a feminist paradise, but soon the issues around them bring everything to a breaking point.

Played by four of Hollywood’s biggest rising stars—Lili Reinhart (Riverdale), Lola Tung (The Summer I Turned Pretty), Alexandra Shipp (Barbie), and Victoria Pedretti (The Haunting of Bly Manor)—our quartet of “fruits” drive the film with their enchanting performances and a committed vigor to these characters, who must navigate the many hurdles facing young women today.

Ahead of their movie’s release, Harper’s Bazaar sat down with the four leading ladies of Forbidden Fruits to discuss everything from how they embrace witchcraft in their everyday lives to the importance of championing female-centered projects and why we could all learn to embrace a little more camp.

Warning: Major spoilers ahead.

The movie is based on a play called Of the woman came the beginning of sin, and through her we all die. Looking at that title and then analyzing the movie—it’s clear there’s a lot of religious imagery present. The four girls work at a store called Free Eden. Lili, your character’s name is Apple. What does it meant to you all to have this store acting as a modern-day Garden of Eden. How did you interpret the religious symbolism in the movie?

Lili Reinhart: I think it’s obviously very intentional. It is our Garden of Eden, and that’s why our rituals that take place in the store are called Paradise… And then we talk about [how] there’s a snake in the grass, and there are biblical references for sure. But I think these women—their spirituality is centered around worshiping Marilyn Monroe and iconic women who were misunderstood and killed for being powerful and sexy. Basically, they worship women who are demonized.

As you noted, it’s sort of a makeshift cult that these girls create. However, it’s also a strong form of sisterhood. This film deals with a lot of loss and the ways in which these young women turn to each other for companionship and power instead of turning to men. What do you think this film says about female empowerment? What did you take away from their specific form of sisterhood?

LR: Well, I think there’s a sadness. I feel sad for Apple, and I feel sad for Cherry and Fig. I don’t feel as sad for Pumpkin [Laughs] because I think she knows what game she’s playing—

Victoria Pedretti: And she gets herself killed!

LR: But, I guess there’s a sadness in the sense of what these women do to belong, [because] they can’t quite authentically be themselves. Then in the end, their paradise and their coven is basically built on bullshit because it’s not authentic. They’re not really based in reality or who they are. It’s just very performative.

Lola Tung: I remember talking to Meredith super early on. She was like, “They’re just not set up for success.” They all have trauma and have nobody really, no resources, and they are trying to build something on their own. She was saying like, “How can you create a garden from a concrete block?” This environment is not made for them to…

LR: Flourish.

LT: Flourish! So it is really sad, because you want to root for them and you want all of them to be able to find some sort of community and sisterhood, but they’re just not going about it in the right way. And Pumpkin really, really comes in and messes that up [laughs], even though ultimately, deep down, she wants that too, I think. But it’s not an environment where they can thrive.

A young woman in a delicate outfit engaging in an intimate moment.

Independent Film Company

Victoria Pedretti in Forbidden Fruits.

Speaking of unconventional ways in which these women come together—obviously witchcraft is a big part of that. In the film, I recognized inspiration from various sources, from Practical Magic to The Craft and even a little bit of Hocus Pocus. In preparing for these roles, did you do any sort of research into witchcraft, or were there any past movies or performances that inspired or colored the way in which you approached them? How did you learn to embody that “witchiness”?

LR: I think we’ve all touched pieces of witchcraft in our life, like in one form or another. It’s not a very eloquent way of saying that, but we’ve all dabbled in spirituality and witchcraft. Like literally sitting outside and meditating under a tree could be witchcraft. It’s just kind of how you look at it.

LT: Manifestation—I believe in that for sure. I like to carry a crystal in my bag just to feel something. I got some crystals on set. We had some crystals on set. And it does, I don’t know, it’s kind of nice to have that—to feel the energy connection. It’s the same way people have good luck charms. You hold a crystal and you have that sort of feeling of like, there’s some good energy coming to you.

VP: I think what we do is magic. I remember when I was in college, I started getting really obsessed with David Blaine. What he does is he’s ultimately a hustler, you know? He’s manipulating people… He’s able to offer people experiences of awe. And I think our work is meant to create illusions. None of these things are actually happening. We are telling a story. Especially with all the violence and the horror, none of these things are actually happening, but we can provoke an emotional response in people (hopefully) that offers them moments of wonder like how did they do that. And there are subtle ways we can affect ourselves that help lure people into this sense of a false reality. And I think that’s really powerful.

As a group, you all certainly create some magic with your chemistry—it’s very palpable. When watching this film, it’s obvious that you all were having fun embodying these characters. I’m curious if there were any rituals or bonding exercises that you did together?

LR: Our trailers were not walking distance from the mall [where we were shooting], so it was kind of nice because when you’re done, you cut, and then everyone convenes in the cast tent. It kept us in each other’s sphere constantly and I think that was helpful in crafting the bond. We didn’t have months to create this chemistry. We worked on our characters and then came together and it just worked, because we as four women vibed, which is great.

Alexandra Shipp: We were open to each other.

Woman with braided hair against a softly lit background.

Independent Film Company

Alexandra Shipp in Forbidden Fruits.

In talking about the themes of the film, this movie takes such an interesting trajectory through many different genres. It starts out more comedic, then becomes supernatural, and before you know it, there’s body horror What do you think this breakneck pace, and the journey through these genres, illustrates about the story?

AS: I think what we’re seeing in this film is a bit of a reflection of society in that it’s just a bunch of women who are at their breaking point. They are trying to play at something, then are brought to the brink—whether that’s environmentally, whether that’s politically, what have you—it brings them to this point in which they really have to look at themselves and say, Do I want to be this person and What is authentic? And that sadly ends in a lot of blood.

LR: And women know blood.

AS: Women know blood!

LR: Women are less squeamish than men. Like we see blood and we’re like, nothing bad is happening. Everything is normal and fine. Women just deal with pain constantly. We move through the world with a cold, on our period, postpartum. Do you know what I mean?

VP: We had women working on this that were going through menopause, and they’re showing up every fucking day to work.

LR: Did you hear the fact that women directors often get UTIs when directing their movies because they don’t feel like they can go take a bathroom break? And it’s like, yeah, that’s just being a woman anywhere in any workplace. You can’t not show up 100% of the time.

VP: We want women in power, but we don’t deserve UTIs as some sort of punishment.

LR: So Meredith made sure she took her bathroom breaks.

VP: I put the pressure on female directors to go pee. [Laughs] There’s a really great comedian that was like, “Everything would be different if women could just piss on the side of the road.”

There’s definitely been a trend of movies about female rage, or women (especially mothers) who are being pushed to a breaking point. It’s really refreshing to see this perspective, especially from female directors.

LT: I remember we were talking about The Substance and the fact that it did what it did is a really cool thing to see because it’s a female director and two female leads and a horror movie and a body horror movie, and as a group of women making a movie about horror with a female director and female writers—it’s really cool to see something like that happen.

I was really drawn to the costuming in this film, too. Obviously it takes place within in a boho clothing store, and I feel like clothes are so central to this movie. Each of the “fruits” has such a distinct style. How do you think the wardrobe speaks to each of your characters and their personalities in the film?

VP: It felt like such a playground and I feel like I found so much of the character. The first time I put on those little pink bloomers, just finding how to move in them and feel free wearing that little clothing, was really interesting. Also, having to kind of celebrate my body in a different kind of way because of how this character, I think, would inhabit my body. I go from this kind of country vibe to more inspired by Pam Anderson, Anna Nicole Smith, that kind of iconography. Then, she kind of shifts, especially as the seasons change, into a more ’50s-inspired aesthetic, whether it’s like Brigitte Bardot, Marilyn Monroe—that kind of vibe, which I think also symbolizes a large internal shift.

LR: I bugged Sarah [Millman, our costume designer] for like three weeks before I went to Toronto. I just kept sending her pictures of things and being like, Do you like this? What do you think about this? And obviously Meredith as well. Like I saw this Coperni cardigan and underwear set that had blue apples on it, so I bought it for [my character]. I was like, “I think I need to wear this.” And, you know, we’re on an indie budget, so there were also discussions like, “Oh, well, some of these pieces are things that Apple has probably stolen from the mall and ripped the tags off and she can get away with it, but then pieces that are cheap that she makes look expensive because of how she accessorizes it.” There’s a little bit of a dominatrix vibe to Apple’s wardrobe. It’s not super feminine and it’s a little bit more sexy with a you can’t touch me vibe. I don’t know how to explain it. It’s not a warm, inviting femininity through her clothes. It’s more of a: “Stay away from me. You can’t touch me.”

VP: Mine’s like: Touch me, touch me![Laughs]

AS: You’re just fully gagging the girls though. Do you know what I mean? Like it’s not for the male gaze. It’s for the female appreciation.

At the end, we get this fabulous reveal that Gabrielle Union has been playing the manager of Free Eden, named Sharon. She obviously has such a rich history of film, especially female-centered classics. Did she have any words of wisdom for you all while making the movie?

AS: We all did not get to work specifically with her a lot of the time, but what I will say is Gabrielle Union is a fucking icon. We are so lucky to have her in this film, and she is just a beacon. She is a northern star when it comes to these types of movies, from Bring It On to literally this, her filmography is insane and she is always a part of the zeitgeist.

LR: Meredith also went out of her way to make sure—she was like, “I need Sharon to be iconic.” Meredith was like, “Who is a Sharon that would intimidate Apple?” And it was Gabrielle Union.

VP: She’s in all these really iconic films and made such a huge impact on me. She has also spoken openly about female friendships in a way that I found really inspiring. There was this whole moment where she was really owning the fact that she was a hater, and I thought that was really, really fucking powerful and absolutely had an effect on me.

LT: She came on the last day and it was just the two of us, and I just remember being really struck by her kindness and willingness to just sit and chat with us… She was really, really lovely and so down to be weird with us in this movie. She’s taking a chance on this movie, which I think is so special and we’re really, really grateful that she did that.

And cool to see her kind of pass the torch to the next generation of great young female actors.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.