Modern horror movies aren’t always able to create actual scary moments. We know all of the tricks by now, and it’s hard to be intimidated by a movie slasher if we know they’ll be dealt with in the final act. However, The Black Phone looks like it’s taking all of the old tricks and putting a fresh spin on the material. And in the latest trailer for the film, Ethan Hawke’s villain, The Grabber, is truly chilling.
In the footage, a young boy named Finney Shaw has the misfortune of encountering The Grabber on a sidewalk. But rather than run away from this creepy clown magician, Finney sticks around long enough for The Grabber to make him disappear. Unfortunately for Finney, The Grabber has done this many times before, leaving several victims in his wake. But the murdered children have found a way to fight back through Finney, and an enigmatic black phone.
The Grabber doesn’t appear to realize that the dead children can speak to Finney through the phone, and they are using their connection to this world to provide him with a way to break free. Meanwhile, Finney’s little sister, Gwen Shaw, begins having visions that may lead to her brother. And the spirits of the dead may be speaking to her as well.
Here’s the synopsis for the film:
“Finney Shaw, a shy but clever 13-year-old boy, is abducted by a sadistic killer and trapped in a soundproof basement where screaming is of little use. When a disconnected phone on the wall begins to ring, Finney discovers that he can hear the voices of the killer’s previous victims. And they are dead set on making sure that what happened to them doesn’t happen to Finney.”
Mason Thames co-stars in the film as Finney Shaw, with Madeleine McGraw as Gwen Shaw, Jeremy Davies as Mr. Shaw, and James Ransone as Max.
Doctor Strange director Scott Derrickson helmed The Black Phone and co-wrote the screenplay with C. Robert Cargill based upon the original story by Joe Hill. Universal Pictures and Blumhouse will release The Black Phone on June 24.
