Meredith Alloway, a filmmaker based in New York’s East Village, is still processing the surreal whirlwind that was the premiere of her debut feature film, "Forbidden Fruits," at the 2026 South by Southwest (SXSW) festival. "I feel like I’m in a David Lynch film," Alloway confessed to WWD, referencing the dreamlike quality of her recent experiences. "Like I’m in ‘Mulholland Drive.’ I’m going to wake up on my couch and it was all a dream."
But it was no dream. "Forbidden Fruits" landed at SXSW as one of the festival’s most anticipated films, marking a significant milestone for Alloway, who, until recently, was better known for her work in film journalism and short films like "Deep Tissue" and "Ride." Introducing her movie to a packed Paramount Theatre audience of 1,200 was, as she put it, an "out-of-body experience."
The film itself is a genre-bending comedy horror that follows a group of young women—Cherry, Apple, and Fig—who work at a boutique in their local mall. When they meet Pumpkin, a pretzel store employee, they invite her into their after-hours witchy coven. The cast is a veritable who’s who of rising stars and established names: Lili Reinhart, Lola Tung, Victoria Pedretti, Alexandra Shipp, Emma Chamberlain, and Gabrielle Union-Wade bring these quirky, fruit-named characters to life.
"This is such a tiny indie that could," Alloway told WWD, expressing both pride and disbelief at the film’s reception. The script, co-written with Lily Houghton, is adapted from Houghton’s play "Of the Woman Came the Beginning of Sin, and Through Her We All Die." The two writers were introduced by their mutual manager, who recognized their shared fascination with stories about female killers. But as Alloway recalled, "When I read this play, there were no deaths. It was like someone steals a baby pink thong, there’s a mutiny, whatever. But what I loved was that it was just about women. It was about the nuance between female relationships in a way that I was like, ‘Wow, this is so sad that I have not read something like this in a really long time.’"
That inspiration led Alloway to reimagine the play through the lens of body horror, a genre she finds uniquely suited to "hyperbolize feelings that you feel watching what the character’s feeling" and to reflect on the visceral experiences of women. The mall setting—specifically, the fictional Free Eden boutique—draws from Alloway’s own nostalgia for the Dallas mall of her youth. "There’s an ecosystem to the mall," she explained, "that I was like, ‘I think we’ll better understand who these girls are to other people by placing them in relation to the food court, other employees, other shoppers.’"
Costume design became a crucial part of the film’s world-building. Alloway, a self-professed fangirl of designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy of Rodarte, was determined to dress her cast in the brand’s ethereal, witchy designs. After several unanswered emails, a last-ditch effort paid off. "Laura emailed back and, literally, Sarah [Millman, the costume designer] and I started jumping up and down with tears in our eyes," Alloway recounted. The collaboration added a layer of visual magic to the film, perfectly matching its off-kilter, feminine energy.
The cast, described by Alloway as "such hard workers and so vulnerable and so witchy in their own ways," relished the opportunity to collaborate on a project both fun and meaningful—especially one made by women, for women. "For actresses of that age, it’s rare that they all get to be in a movie together," she observed.
Alloway’s own journey to filmmaking began in childhood, where she and her friends would spend spring breaks making home movies instead of heading out on ski vacations. Horror films were a family affair—"The Lost Boys" and "Bram Stoker’s Dracula" adorned bedroom walls and filled the family’s collection of T-shirts. "The movies became a part of the world and the movies created a world that we were a part of," she reflected. That passion for cinematic world-building carried her through theater school, a stint in Los Angeles, and a career in film journalism for outlets like Vanity Fair, Playboy, Filmmaker Magazine, IndieWire, and Nylon, before she transitioned to writing and directing her own work.
The enthusiasm for "Forbidden Fruits" was palpable at a recent New York screening, where fans arrived in costume—some dressed as fruits, others as coven members. "It goes back to that world building," Alloway said, recalling the collaborative effort with her team and cast. "We were like, ‘OK, if someone dresses up as one of the fruits for Halloween, we’ve done our job.’"
Beyond the film itself, the cast’s camaraderie and chemistry have become a promotional asset. In a video released on March 30, 2026, Lili Reinhart, Lola Tung, Alexandra Shipp, and Victoria Pedretti played a game of confessions, revealing quirky truths and fibs about their lives. The video, released as part of the film’s rollout, showcased the stars’ personalities—discussing everything from past acting roles and musical instrument mishaps to tattoo counts and snowmobiling accidents. As the cast bantered and laughed, it was clear they’d built genuine bonds during the making of "Forbidden Fruits."
Fans learned that Lola Tung was indeed cast as Belly in "The Summer I Turned Pretty" during her freshman year at Carnegie Mellon, that one cast member played Audrey in a seventh-grade production of "Little Shop of Horrors," and that another once worked at Pier One Imports before landing her breakout role. These anecdotes, shared in the spirit of fun, helped humanize the cast and deepen fan engagement around the film’s release.
"Forbidden Fruits" stands out not only for its fresh take on female friendship and horror but also for the way it brings together a dynamic ensemble and creative team, each adding their own flavor to the project. The film’s blend of nostalgia, body horror, and humor has struck a chord with audiences, as evidenced by enthusiastic festival buzz and early fan devotion.
As Alloway settles back into her East Village apartment, she seems both humbled and energized by the journey so far. The film’s success at SXSW and the excitement it’s generated among viewers—many of whom are already dressing up as their favorite characters—suggest that "Forbidden Fruits" has tapped into something special: a hunger for stories that celebrate the complexities, camaraderie, and sometimes spooky joys of young womanhood. For Alloway and her team, it’s a dream come true—one that, for now at least, shows no sign of ending.