Osgood Perkins is making quite a name for himself in the horror movie world. The writer and director Longlegs has been basking in the success of the record-breaking highest-grossing indie film of 2024, and he already has a new movie on the way. Neon just dropped a bloody new trailer for The Monkey, based on the Stephen King short story of the same name.
Neon has released a new trailer for Perkins’ adaptation of The Monkey, which hits theaters on February 21, 2025. First published in 1980 in Gallery magazine, “The Monkey” follows two brothers who find a cymbal-banging monkey toy in their great uncle’s attic. The monkey is revealed to be cursed, having tormented the boys’ father when he was a child. Every time the monkey crashes its cymbals, someone close to the cursed subject dies. From what we’ve seen so far, Perkins’ version of the classic short story will follow the twin brothers after they have grown up and find that they didn’t fully get rid of the monkey they found in their childhood. A classic cursed toy story from the master of literary horror seems right up Perkins’ alley.
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The film is in good hands with Neon, which has been a horror movie distribution powerhouse in recent years with titles like Cuckoo, starring Hunter Schafer, and Immaculate, starring Sydney Sweeney. Neon posted the trailer to X along with the ominous tagline “Everybody dies.” The soon-to-be killed off cast for The Monkey is stacked with familiar faces, like Elijah Wood (The Lord of the Rings) and Theo James (The White Lotus), as well as Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black) and Laura Mennell. The adaptation of the King story is shaping up to be another hit for Perkins, Neon, and horror fans everywhere.
The Monkey Brings Another Stephen King Classic to Life
Stephen King adaptations can be hit or miss for most fans, and even for the author himself. King famously dislikes one of the most well-known of his adaptations, Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining. Who can blame him when the first well-received ending he wrote was completely cut from the film version? Besides King’s personal gripes, fans have also rejected recent adaptations of the literary mastermind’s work, like Max’s Salem’s Lot, which disappointed fans in more ways than one, and 2022’s Firestarter, which failed to please audiences.
On the other hand, Mike Flanagan’s The Life of Chuck recently impressed audiences at the Toronto International Film Festival and is being declared one of the best, if not the best, King adaptation to date. As adaptations of the successful writer’s work continue to divide and surprise movie and book fans alike, audiences are on the edge of their seat waiting to see Perkins take his shot.
Adapted from the story of the same name by Stephen King, The Monkey is a horror mystery film that follows twin brothers Hal and Bill, who discover a mysterious monkey toy in their father’s attic that seems tied to several grizzly deaths. After years apart, the twins learn that similar deaths have begun again and must reunite to destroy the monkey.
- Release Date
- February 21, 2025
- Director
- Osgood Perkins
- Main Genre
- Horror