In the 2016 psychological thriller Split,Anya Taylor-Joy portrays Casey, a resilient young woman caght in a kidnapping plot. Directed by M. Night Shyamalan, the film serves as a surprising connection to the earlier movie Unbreakable.
The 117-minute bridge between Unbreakable and Glass
M. Night Shyamalan used Split to re-establish his presence in the thriller genre while subtly expanding a shared cinematic universe. As the report notes, the film acts as a soft sequel to Unbreakable, which originally featured Bruce Willis as David Dunn and Samuel L. Jackson as Mr. Glass. While the 117-minute runtime focuses on a localized kidnapping in Philadelphia, the film's conclusion reveals a much larger interconnected world of superheroes.
This narrative expansion eventually paved the way for the third installment in the trilogy, titled Glass. By returning to this specific world, Shyamalan moved away from the standaloe twists that defined his 1990s output and toward a more complex, interconnected mythology.
Anya Taylor-Joy’s evolution from 2015’s The Witch
Anya Taylor-Joy’s performance in Split solidified her status as a leading talent following her breakout in Robert Eggers' 2015 folk horror film, The Witch. In that film, she played Thomasin, a Puritan girl facing supernatural terror, a role that established her ability to handle intense, atmospheric material. According to the source, her work in Split proved she was far more than a "flash in the pan," using emotional intelligence to anchor a high-stakes thriller.
Her ability to portray deep emotional resilience helped elevate the film beyond a standard genre piece. This transition from folk horror to mainstream psychological thriller marked a pivotal moment in her rapid ascent within Hollywood.
James McAvoy’s portrayal of 23 distinct personalities
James McAvoy delivers a transformative performance as Kevin Wendell Crumb, a man living with Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). The character is defined by his 23 different personalities, one of which is a terrifying entity known as "The Beast." The report highlights how McAvoy physically and psychologically shifts to inhabit these various personas, providing a formidable foil to Taylor-Joy's character .
The intensity of McAvoy's performance is central to the film's tension. By portraying the internal struggle of a man with multiple identities, he turns a kidnapping plot into a complex character study of a man losing control to his own fractured psyche.
The role of trauma in Casey's survival against The Beast
Casey’s survival in Split is fundamentally driven by her unique psychological perspective. Unlike her companions, Marcia and Claire, Casey’s history of sexual abuse provides her with a heightened level of emotional intelligence. This background allows her to navigate the terrifying environment created by Kevin Wendell Crumb with a level of empathy and caution that her peers lack.
While the film is often remembered for its twists, the strength of Casey's spirit is what ultimately facilitates her escape. Her ability to use her wits to outmaneuver a captor with 23 personalities provides the film with its emotional core.
The unresolved link between Casey's survival and the Unbreakable lore
While the film successfully integrates into a larger narrative, several elements remain unverified by the current reporting. The source does not clarify how the specific survival of Casey impacts the broader superhero mythology established by David Dunn. Furthermore, while the film explicitly sets up the third movie, Glass, the report provides no details on how the kidnapping plot directly intersects with the established conflict between Mr. Glass and the superhero community.
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