A24’s ‘Slayground’ Trailer Turns a Haunted Attraction Into a Nightmare
Haunted houses are built to make people scream on purpose. That is what makes them such a perfect horror setting, because the fear is part of the ticket price. Add a killer to the mix, and the line between show and real danger disappears.
Jeremy Saulnier knows how to make audiences squirm. The filmmaker behind ‘Blue Ruin,’ ‘Green Room’ and ‘Rebel Ridge’ returns to brutal genre territory with a new A24 project. It reunites him with the studio a decade after ‘Green Room.’
That film is ‘Slayground,’ and the first footage is finally here. It was described as a horror film set inside a haunted attraction. The 34-second clip is built around grainy, dimly lit imagery, with a pale figure staring straight into the camera.
The rollout has been unusually cryptic. A24 first attached a teaser to ‘Resident Evil’ screenings that looks more like an advertisement for a Halloween attraction than a movie. It is mostly security-camera footage from inside the haunted house, and it points viewers to RunLikeHell.com, where a countdown clock is running.
First trailer for Jeremy Saulnier’s ‘SLAYGROUND’. A horror film set inside a haunted attraction. Starring Cory Michael Smith, Chase Sui Wonders, Sophie Wilde, Young Mazino and Stephen Root. https://t.co/TpGEKF1sD0
— Film Updates (@FilmUpdates) September 21, 2026
The story centers on a fugitive played by Cory Michael Smith. According to reports, he plays a man suspected in a mass killing who slips police custody and vanishes into the haunted attraction the film is named after. A manhunt closes in around him. The film is written and directed by Saulnier.
The supporting cast is packed with recognizable faces. Chase Sui Wonders, Sophie Wilde, Young Mazino and Stephen Root all appear, and the ensemble also includes Imogen Poots, James Badge Dale and Matty Matheson. Macon Blair reportedly has a small part.
Smith’s casting was announced in June 2025 as his first major leading film role. The film was previously titled ‘October,’ and reports say A24 wasn’t willing to hold the release until next October, so the title was changed. World of Reel also reported that Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross are scoring the movie.
The film has spent a long time in the editing room. It has reportedly been in post-production for almost a year, and an internal screening reportedly clocked in at 2.5 hours. Word is that it is Saulnier’s most ambitious film to date, which could explain the wait.
As for when audiences can see it, the picture is murky. The teaser ends with a “Fall” tag, but no release date has been officially announced. One report has said a 2027 release is being eyed, along with a possible festival premiere.
The countdown on RunLikeHell.com may offer more clues. It started at roughly 30 days, which would put a full trailer around mid-October, perfectly timed for a movie set around Halloween. For now, this first look is enough to get horror fans buzzing.
If Saulnier’s track record is any guide, the payoff should be worth the wait. A haunted attraction is already a place where nothing is quite what it seems, and this trailer suggests the film will lean hard into that unease.
Are you excited to see Jeremy Saulnier’s Slayground turn a haunted attraction into a real nightmare?
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