Shudder remains the go-to platform for horror fiends craving something new. This July, the streaming service is bringing a slew of original films and exclusives, including “Touch Me,” a special for “The Last Drive In with Joe Bob Briggs,” “Faces of Death,” and the liminal horror film, “Exit 8.” With the upcoming “Nightborn,” director Hanna Bergholm (“Hatching”) promises to offer chilling frights about pregnancy and motherhood.
The film’s central story stems from Bergholm’s own experiences of motherhood following the birth of her first child. “I had a very difficult time in many ways,” she said on the Nordic Film Talks podcast. “There are so many emotions related to being a parent that aren’t talked about enough – how confused you are, how much rage you might have at some moments… You’re really losing your own space, and how do you cope with that?”
Out of those tangled emotions, “Nightborn” births what promises to be one of the year’s best horror films.
Rupert Grint Learns What Fear Is
Famed “Harry Potter” actor Rupert Grint steps into the role of a doting husband named Jon. His very pregnant wife Saga (Seidi Haarla) is due any day now, and the couple couldn’t be happier. Based on the trailer, however, the birth leads to erratic changes in behavior for Saga, and even the infant appears off. “Why did it look so weird?” another child comments.
Jon finds himself standing amidst utter chaos as Saga descends further into madness. The trailer makes it seem there’s more than meets the eye, with critics praising it for its wild creativity and deranged storyline. The cast also includes Pamela Tola, Pirkko Saisio, Rebecca Lacey, John Thomson, Silvia Saloranta, and Satu Tuuli Karhu.
Of course, this isn’t Grint’s first horror rodeo. Previously, he’s appeared in M. Night Shyamalan’s “Servant” series, “Knock at the Cabin,” and Guillermo del Toro’s “Cabinet of Curiosities” for Netflix.
‘Nightborn’ Follows the ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ Tradition
Pregnancy and motherhood were thrust into the mainstream with Roman Polanski’s landmark “Rosemary’s Baby,” starring Mia Farrow as a pregnant woman gaslit by her husband, doctor, and her nosy next-door neighbor. The 1968 film demonstrated a hunger for woman-focused horror, particularly as it relates to the physical transformation of pregnancy and the subconscious fears that arise through the process. As Farrow’s character nears her due date, it becomes resoundingly clear that the people in her apartment building have nothing but nefarious intentions.
Through the decades, horror dove deeper into exploring these themes. Such films as “It’s Alive,” “The Brood,” “Inside” and “The Unborn” broke the genre open to discuss the varied wishes, desires, and terrors of what it means to give birth and struggle with maternal instincts. Hanna Bergholm’s previous film, “Hatching,” also involves the birth of something.
In an interview with Vulture in 2022, Bergholm teased the central focus of “Nightborn,” saying, “The baby is scary and so demanding. It sucks blood from her breasts. She becomes convinced that this baby is actually not human. It’s about these difficult emotions of motherhood and aggressions that you might have.”
“Nightborn” premieres on Shudder on July 31.
