The Grudge 2020 Trailer Breakdown: We Dissect the Super-Scary Footage

(12/30/2019)

Thought you could escape? Think again: THE GRUDGE has returned! The latest chapter in the horror franchise arrives with new characters, a new story, and more terrifying ghosts. This new film is not quite a remake and not quite a reboot. THE GRUDGE follows a story similar to the previous installments, as a detective finds herself in the clutches of an insidious curse and must do everything in her power to stop it. With an awesome cast of familiar faces and an up-and-coming horror filmmaker behind the wheel, THE GRUDGE 2020 looks like a spooky and thrilling time.

What can we expect from the latest chapter in THE GRUDGE saga? Let’s take a closer look at the trailer and break it all down.

The Terrifying Trailer For The Grudge

[Image credit: Sony Pictures]

For those who couldn't make through the creepy trailer without covering your eyes, there are a lot of really intriguing elements in the new GRUDGE. It starts with John Cho (STAR TREK), who appears to be playing a real estate agent. He enters a house that definitely does not look friendly, and discovers something – or someone – in a bathtub filled with murky water. Like any reasonable person would, Cho calls the police and a pair of detectives are sent to the house to check things out.

At least one of the detectives (Demian Bichir) seems to be familiar with the home and says he’s gone out of his way to avoid it. But whatever is lurking in that house is angry, and it’s out for revenge against any living person who enters its doors – including the other detective (Andrea Riseborough), who becomes a target for the sinister ghosts and must fight to uncover the truth and protect her son from the Grudge.

What Is the Grudge?

The first American movie called THE GRUDGE, released in 2004, was actually a remake of a popular Japanese horror movie called JU-ON: THE GRUDGE. There was also a sequel, released in 2006. The Grudge is a curse that is born when someone dies in a moment of extreme rage and agony. In the original story, the main ghost is named Kayako; she was a Japanese woman whose husband discovered she was having an affair, so he murdered her and their young son, who also appears as a ghost. The curse lingers after death, turning the victim into a vengeful ghost who won’t stop terrorizing and killing people who come into contact with it.

You don't need to have seen the previous films to enjoy this one. (But they're great; track them down if you can!) THE GRUDGE 2020 seems to follow a similar setup, making it accessible to both fans of the original films and newcomers alike. We’re particularly excited (and downright terrified) to find out how this specific curse came into existence and to see some of these big scares (like the shower scene!) play out on the big screen. And, as with the prior movies in the American series, this one is produced by Sam Raimi, director of horror classics like THE EVIL DEAD and DRAG ME TO HELL.

A Frightfully Good Cast

Chances are you recognized more than a couple of faces in the trailer for THE GRUDGE, like leading man John Cho, who also starred in the inventive 2018 horror-thriller SEARCHING. Playing Detective Muldoon is Andrea Riseborough, star of BIRDMAN and MANDY, and her partner is played by Demian Bichir from THE NUN. Also on board are Betty Gilpin (“GLOW”), Jacki Weaver (STOKER), Frankie Faison (COMING TO AMERICA), and veteran cult actor William Sadler (BILL & TED’S BOGUS JOURNEY). For horror fans, the most notable of the bunch is Lin Shaye, the beloved character actress and star of the INSIDIOUS film series.

Bringing this terrifying tale to the big screen is director Nicolas Pesce, a rising star in the horror filmmaking world. He previously directed the acclaimed indie horror film THE EYES OF MY MOTHER, as well as PIERCING, which was released earlier this year. Pesce has promised something pretty mean and grimy, and that's a great direction for THE GRUDGE, which has always been a series with a pretty nasty, realistic vibe, even with all the ghosts and supernatural horrors. We can't wait to see everything he and the cast and crew have created.

THE GRUDGE comes to theatres on January 3.