PREVIEW: WOKEN (2026 Film) - Starring Erin Kellyman

 

By Jon Donnis

Woken centres on a stripped back idea that quickly turns unsettling. A woman wakes up on a remote island with no memory of who she is or how she got there. She is heavily pregnant, surrounded by people who claim to know her, and expected to accept their version of events. From that starting point, the film builds a tense and uneasy situation rather than rushing into spectacle.

Erin Kellyman takes the lead as Anna, a role that leans heavily on confusion and instinct. Around her are figures who seem helpful on the surface, including her husband, played by Ivanno Jeremiah, and neighbours brought to life by Maxine Peake and Corrado Invernizzi. They attempt to fill in the gaps, but the more they explain, the less stable things feel. That tension sits at the centre of the film’s premise.

The wider situation is only revealed gradually. A pandemic has pushed humanity close to collapse, and the island setting suggests a form of separation from whatever remains beyond it. Even so, the real focus appears to stay close to Anna’s experience. Her uncertainty drives the story, especially as she begins to question whether the people around her are telling the truth.

Director Alan Friel keeps things contained, at least on paper. The setting, the limited group of characters, and the fractured perspective all point towards a film built on suspicion rather than scale. The presence of actors like Peter McDonald and Oscar Coleman adds to that sense of a closed circle, where everyone has a role but not necessarily a clear motive.

Set for a UK digital release on 25 May through 101 Films, Woken reads as a story that leans into paranoia and uncertainty. It keeps its ideas close, focusing on one character trying to piece together her reality while everything around her feels slightly off. That alone gives it a quiet tension that could carry through if handled carefully.

Apple TV - https://apple.co/3QELsZJ

PREVIEW: Krispr (2026 Film) - Starring Petrie Willink

 

Preview by Jon Donnis

A festive setting rarely feels this uneasy. Krispr arrives on UK digital this May with a premise that twists the idea of home for the holidays into something far more unsettling. Positioned as a horror-leaning sci-fi thriller, the film centres on a family gathering that quietly slips out of control, sparked by a scientific breakthrough that was never meant to leave the lab.

Dr Elijah Roelof brings his latest creation home for Christmas, a lifelike clone named Krispr, designed to learn, adapt and assist. At first, her presence feels almost harmless, even curious. There is a sense of wonder in how quickly she absorbs the world around her, taking in behaviour, language and emotion with unsettling ease. That curiosity soon darkens. As Krispr begins to uncover the harsher realities of human history, her understanding shifts, and with it, her intentions.

The tension builds from that simple idea. A creation learning too much, too quickly, and drawing its own conclusions about humanity. What begins as a technological marvel starts to feel like something far more dangerous, especially within the confined space of a family home already charged with seasonal expectation. The film leans into that contrast between warmth and unease, asking whether Elijah can recognise what his creation is becoming before the situation spirals beyond control. Krispr lands on UK digital on 18 May courtesy of Miracle Media, offering a holiday story where the gifts come with consequences.

Apple TV - https://apple.co/4eKpPB5

PREVIEW: The Vord (2026 Film) - From Writer-director M.T. Maliha

 

The Vord stakes its claim on a misguided soul in a dark and disturbing supernatural thriller steeped in mystery and mythology. Writer-director M.T. Maliha’s feature debut is set to arrive on UK digital 4 May 2026, courtesy of Miracle Media. 

An ancient Nordic being binds its fate to a corrupt priest, commanding him to claim the soul of a woman, Maria, and deliver her as an offering to ‘The Old One’, securing the creatures long-sought redemption.  

Torn between her pagan roots and the Church, Maria struggles to resist the insidious darkness of those she once trusted, while her spiritual guardian known as The Vord, wrestles with its own burdens, caught between guiding Maria to salvation and its own desperate hope for atonement. 

Blending suspense and spirituality, The Vord blurs the line between saviour and sinner to tell a centuries old tale of redemption.

On digital 4 May from Miracle Media

PREVIEW: A Mother's Recall (2026 Film) - Directed and co-written by Mauro Iván Ojeda

 

Preview by Jon Donnis

A Mother’s Recall arrives with a quiet confidence that makes it all the more unnerving. Backed by Black Mandala and shaped by the vision of Mauro Iván Ojeda, the film leans into psychological horror rather than cheap shocks, building something that feels personal before it turns deeply disturbing. Ojeda, who previously drew attention with La Funeraria, seems intent on pushing further into that uneasy space where grief and fear blur together.

The premise sounds simple at first. A teenage orphan named Genaro is welcomed into a new home, a fresh start that promises stability and belonging. That sense of comfort does not last. The house begins to feel wrong in ways that are difficult to explain, small shifts in atmosphere that slowly stack up. As Genaro bonds with his sister Nuria, the two start to realise they are not just dealing with family tension or past trauma. Something else is present, something that feeds on what they carry inside.

What stands out here is the tone. The film appears to favour a slow tightening of tension, letting dread seep in rather than forcing it. Every corner of the house, every quiet moment, seems loaded with intent. Ojeda’s direction looks measured and deliberate, using silence and shadow as much as anything visible. It gives the impression of a horror film that trusts its audience to sit with discomfort.

At the centre of it all is the relationship between Genaro and Nuria. Their connection feels like the emotional anchor, grounding the supernatural elements in something recognisable. Fear is not just external here. It grows from loss, from isolation, from the need to belong somewhere safe. That makes whatever is haunting them feel more invasive, more personal.

The cast, including Mateo Berti, Miguel Bosco, Lorenzo Crespo, Vilma Echeverría, Guadalupe Aldaz Gallo, Virginia Garófalo, Edgardo Molinelli, Julieta Palermo and Santino Resta, suggests a strong ensemble built around younger performances. The emphasis seems to be on character first, horror second, though the two are clearly intertwined.

There is a sense that A Mother’s Recall is aiming for something that lingers rather than shocks and fades. Dark, intimate, and quietly relentless, it positions itself as another compelling entry in Latin American horror, one that is less interested in spectacle and more focused on what fear feels like when it takes root inside a home.

Coming Soon

PREVIEW: Shadows of Willow Cabin (2026 Film) - From actor turned writer-director Joe Fria

Preview by Jon Donnis

Buried traumas begin to take shape as something physical and inescapable in Shadows of Willow Cabin, a haunting new supernatural horror from actor turned writer-director Joe Fria, known for Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 and The Belko Experiment. The film blends romance with psychological horror, unfolding as a moody and intimate experience that plays out like a fevered descent into memory and fear.

Fria makes his feature debut with a confident fusion of tone and genre, drawing together emotional vulnerability and escalating unease. The result is a story that leans into both tenderness and dread, building a world where personal history refuses to stay buried and begins to reshape the present in unsettling ways.

Albert, played by Bryan Bellomo, and Devon, played by John Brodsky, retreat to a remote mountain cabin in search of space and connection. What begins as cautious desire slowly deepens into intimacy, until the environment around them starts to shift. The cabin itself becomes something far less passive, responding to what the couple have carried with them, and what they have tried to leave behind.

As the walls seem to whisper with voices thought to be silenced long ago, the pair find themselves trapped in a repeating, fractured sense of time. Ghosts emerge, reality bends, and repressed trauma begins to take form in ways that are no longer psychological alone. The cabin becomes a pressure point where identity, memory and fear collide.

Following its international premiere at Grimmfest 2025, Shadows of Willow Cabin arrives on UK digital on 25 May courtesy of GrimmVision.

Apple TV https://apple.co/4dEdiPg

PREVIEW: Red Rabbit Lodge (2026 FIlm) - Starring Rachel Myskiv

Preview by Jon Donnis

Red Rabbit Lodge arrives as a vicious new slasher that wastes little time setting its tone, placing horror right at the heart of a seemingly quiet sanctuary. The premise leans into familiar genre territory while grounding itself in a setting that feels both isolated and deeply unsettling.

The story centres on Abigail Mason, played by Rachel Myskiv, a foreign student hoping to leave her past behind as she moves into Red Rabbit Lodge. Set among Sydney’s bright, sunlit surroundings, the house itself stands apart as one of the city’s oldest and most mysterious buildings. It offers refuge on the surface, but something far darker sits beneath that calm exterior.

Unbeknownst to its residents, the lodge carries a violent history that refuses to stay buried. Hidden within its walls is a masked killer, waiting for the right moment to strike. As new tenants settle in, that threat begins to surface, turning the house into a trap where each death reveals more about what came before.

As the killings escalate, Abigail is drawn deeper into the horror, forced to face not only the immediate danger but also the personal struggles she had hoped to escape. The film positions her at the centre of both the external violence and the internal conflict, suggesting a story that ties past and present together as the body count rises.

Red Rabbit Lodge is set for a UK digital release on 13 April, promising a grim and relentless slasher experience built around a haunted setting, a hidden history, and a killer who has been waiting for the chance to begin again.

Apple TV - https://apple.co/3OgCot1

PREVIEW: Hollywood Hells (2026 Film) - Starring Fernanda Romero, Brian Austin Green, Bertila Damas, Naturela and Benjamin Fisher

 

Preview by Jon Donnis

Hollywood Hells arrives with the kind of premise that feels instantly recognisable on the surface, then quietly suggests something far more unsettling beneath it. Directed by Ben Peyser, this dark horror thriller leans into the glamour of the entertainment industry while hinting at the rot that sits just behind the spotlight. It is positioned as a blend of psychological tension, satire, and slow-burning dread, the sort of film that looks ready to peel back the fantasy of fame and expose something far less comforting.

At the centre is Vega, a struggling actress in Los Angeles trying to hold everything together. She is raising her young son, dealing with pressure from her mother, and still chasing a career that never quite seems to break open. That balance alone gives the story a grounded edge, but things take a sharp turn when she receives an invitation to an ultra-exclusive Hollywood party. It is the kind of opportunity that feels impossible to ignore, especially for someone standing just outside the industry’s inner circle.

What follows sounds like a descent into a world that is as alluring as it is dangerous. The party setting, packed with elite figures and hidden agendas, looks set to become the film’s central pressure point. As Vega moves deeper into this environment, the tone shifts from opportunity to unease. The promise of success begins to carry a cost, and the film seems intent on asking just how much someone is expected to give up in exchange for a chance at recognition.

The presence of Fernanda Romero and Brian Austin Green adds a familiar edge, particularly given their connections to genre work and mainstream television. Their involvement suggests a film that is not only interested in atmosphere, but also in character dynamics within this high-stakes setting. Everything points towards a story that builds tension steadily rather than rushing towards its horror elements.

What stands out most at this stage is the film’s focus on illusion. Hollywood Hells appears less concerned with traditional scares and more with the idea that the industry itself may be the horror. The glamour, the access, the sense of being chosen, all of it feels like part of a carefully constructed trap. By the time the night reaches its conclusion, Vega is expected to face a reality that goes well beyond professional disappointment.

There is a sense that this could land somewhere between psychological thriller and industry satire, using its horror elements to underline something uncomfortably close to real fears. If it delivers on that tone, Hollywood Hells could end up being less about what lurks in the shadows and more about what is hiding in plain sight.

Coming Soon