There are a handful of movie makers whose work is guaranteed to make your skin crawl. One is Blumhouse, the production company behind Sinister, Get Out, M3GAN and Paranormal Activity; the other, of course, is A24, who’ve blessed us with horror gems like Hereditary, Midsommar, X, It Comes at Night and The Witch.
The latter’s latest, Talk to Me, directed by internet horror content creators Danny and Michael Philippou (known collectively as RackaRacka), was picked up by the studio after its buzzy premiere at Sundance Film Festival in January. Critics are calling it “one of the scariest movies of the decade”; now, audiences are flocking to it en masse. Even in the midst of Barbenheimer hysteria, Talk to Me has become a box office success. The film grossed over $10 million in its opening weekend, meaning it’s A24’s biggest opening weekend since Hereditary. Now, naturally, a sequel is coming too.
So what’s Talk To Me about? Is there anyone famous in it? Can we watch the trailer, like, now? And what can we expect from a prequel movie? Here’s everything you need to know about A24’s Talk to Me.
What’s the plot of Talk to Me?
On the night of the anniversary of her mother’s death, Mia joins friends at a party to distract herself. But there’s a twist: at the party, her friends are gathering round to participate in a seance, communicating with the afterlife through an embalmed hand. When Mia takes hold of it, the situation spirals, the spirits leaking out into the real world with drastic and terrifying consequences. She takes it upon herself to reverse the damage before it’s all too late.
Who stars in it?
For the most part, the cast of the film is comprised of up-and-comers. Mia is played by Sophie Wilde, for whom this is her real break-out moment, alongside a supporting cast that includes Joe Bird, Otis Dhanji, Chris Alosio and Marcus Johnson. Actor Zoe Terakes has a key role in the film, following their appearance in the Amazon series Nine Perfect Strangers. Beyond that, the most notable name is Miranda Otto, the actor known best for her recurring role in The Lord of The Rings.
What are the reviews like for Talk to Me?
The film’s premiere in the Midnight section of Sundance Film Festival this year cultivated a collection of strong reviews. Mashable called it “terrifically scary”, while Screen Rant said “its horror settles deep into the bones”. JoBlo, meanwhile, said the film was “destined to become a new horror classic”. As of August 2023, it has a rating of 95% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Is there a trailer?
Yes! A24 and Altitude have both released a trailer for the film, which you can watch below.
Is it true there’s already a prequel?
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, director duo RackaRacka shared that they’d filmed more scenes that explained the backstory of Duckett, the boy from the opening scenes of the movie. “We actually shot an entire Duckett prequel already. It’s told entirely through the perspective of mobile phones and social media, so maybe down the line we can release that,” said Danny. Would it explain how he came into possession of the hand? Or show more scenes from that ill-fated night? We’ll have to wait till when, or even if, that footage is released. It’s likely these scenes don’t amount to much more than a short film, though.
Will there be a Talk to Me sequel?
Yes! On 8 August, A24 confirmed that a sequel to Talk to Me — tentatively titled Talk 2 Me — had been greenlit, with Danny and Michael directing. The pair have already said they were open to creating a sequel for the movie. “While writing the first film, you can’t help but write scenes for a second film,” Danny told The Hollywood Reporter. “So there’s so many scenes. The mythology was so thick, and yeah, if A24 gave us the opportunity, we wouldn’t be able to resist. I feel like we’d jump at it.” Michael confirmed this too, adding: “We have a lot of original stories that we want to tell, but the Talk to Me stuff is exciting to us, too. So the idea of a sequel, we wouldn’t be opposed to it.” Looks like they got their wish!
When is Talk to Me released?
Talk to Me is in US and UK cinemas now.
This story has been updated with new details and republished.