Special feature from Criterion’s release of Desperate Living, where writer-director John Waters tours the Baltimore location that served as the site of Mortville, the twisted penal colony inhabited by fugitives, outcasts, and deviants – including hysterical housewife Peggy Gravel and her fed-up housekeeper – and presided over by the despotic Queen Carlotta.
Watch the official Return to Mortville 2026 trailer in HD below.
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John Waters as Self
Mink Stole as Self (archive footage)
Susan Lowe as Self (archive footage)
Mary Vivian Pearce as Self (archive footage)
Jean Hill as Self (archive footage)
Edith Massey as Self (archive footage)
Vincent Peranio as Self (archive footage)
Timothy Geraghty Editor
Gabriel Chávez Editor
Susan Arosteguy Producer
Peter Becker Executive Producer
Kim Hendrickson Executive Producer
Fumiko Takagi Executive Producer
Jonathan Turell Executive Producer
United States 23 June 2026
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Have you watched Return to Mortville yet? What did you think about it?
Artwork, screen shots, trailers and other imagery is © 2026 The Criterion Collection.
