Buzzy survival slasher River has been the talk of the festival scene since its premiere at Toronto International Film Festival earlier this year, with Universal Pictures dropping the new official trailer today ahead of its release on January 15, 2027.
From writer/director Joshua Giuliano in his feature debut, River stars Jane Levy (Evil Dead), Jessica Rothe (Happy Death Day, Beware Boiúna), Max Mattern (Desert Road), and Dane DiLiegro (Prey, Only Murders in the Building),and centers on estranged siblings who reunite in their rural hometown after the death of their father.
As they set out to scatter his ashes at his favorite spot on a remote river, the trip devolves into a fight for survival as they are mercilessly hunted by a disturbing masked figure, who can be glimpsed in today's trailer, below:
In our glowing review, Brandon Wainerdi stresses that River is “actually scary”, which, for us desensitized horror fans, makes it a must-see for that alone. Already being touted as ‘the next Obsession‘, Universal and Blumhouse-Atomic Monster picked up River after a hot bidding war out of TIFF.
River is produced by Steven Schneider (executive producer Insidious franchise, Split) via his company Spooky Pictures, and Nick Antosca (creator Cape Fear series, Verity) and Alex Hedlund (executive producer Cape Fear series, Verity) via their company Eat The Cat.
Executive producers are Jeffrey Tinnell, Robert Tinnell, Matt Brodlie, Jonathan Kier, Ben Ross and Jason Blum. Universal Pictures, Blumhouse Atomic Monster and Independent Film Company present a Shudder Original Production, in association with Upgrade.
River hits theaters on January 15, 2027.
