Lili Reinhart, Danny Ramirez and Suki Waterhouse are set to lead Violet, a new psychosexual horror film that brings together the director of Creep and the screenwriter behind the recent box-office success Verity. Patrick Brice will direct the project, with Nick Antosca and Alana B. Lytle writing the screenplay. Mark Duplass and Lukas Gage have also joined the cast. FilmNation Entertainment is launching domestic and international sales at the American Film Market (AFM), while production is scheduled to begin in spring 2027.
The story centres on Sean, played by Danny Ramirez, who is attempting to rebuild his life two years after the sudden death of his fiancée, Violet, played by Suki Waterhouse. He begins a relationship with his childhood friend Kate, portrayed by Lili Reinhart, and the couple moves into the house Sean once shared with Violet. What initially appears to be an opportunity for a fresh start soon takes a disturbing turn when Sean begins receiving unsettling text messages from someone—or something—claiming to be his dead fiancée. The messages bring his past into a relationship that he is trying to move forward with, threatening the life he is attempting to build with Kate.
The premise gives Violet a distinctly contemporary source of horror. Text messages, photographs and other digital traces can remain accessible long after a relationship has ended, preserving memories and connections that people might otherwise leave behind. The film turns that permanence into a potential threat, using an everyday form of communication as the starting point for psychological unease. As the messages continue, Sean is left questioning who is contacting him, why they are doing so and whether the person—or presence—behind them is connected to his deceased fiancée. The uncertainty also places his developing relationship with Kate under pressure, making the boundaries between his past and present increasingly difficult to separate.
Patrick Brice’s involvement will be familiar to horror audiences. He co-created and directed the Creep franchise alongside Mark Duplass, who also starred in the films. Their collaboration developed into a cult favourite through its unsettling, character-driven approach to horror. The two reunite for Violet, bringing their creative association to a project that explores a different form of psychological disturbance. Brice also co-created and directed The Creep Tapes, while his other directing credits include There’s Someone Inside Your House, The Overnight and Corporate Animals.
The screenplay is written by Nick Antosca and Alana B. Lytle and is based on Antosca’s original short story Ghostfish. Antosca has established a reputation in genre storytelling through television projects such as Channel Zero and Brand New Cherry Flavor, alongside The Act and the film Antlers. His recent screenplay Verity, adapted from Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel and starring Anne Hathaway and Dakota Johnson, crossed $170 million at the global box office earlier this year. The commercial performance of that adaptation has brought additional attention to Antosca’s next feature, although Violet moves into a different territory, building its horror around grief, memory and the unsettling possibility of communication from someone who has died.
Alongside Ramirez, Reinhart and Waterhouse, the film features Mark Duplass and Lukas Gage. Ramirez’s screen credits include Top Gun: Maverick and Captain America: Brave New World. Reinhart is widely known for her work in the television series Riverdale, while Waterhouse appeared in Daisy Jones & The Six. Gage, whose recent genre credits include Smile 2, adds further horror experience to the ensemble. Duplass’s return to a Patrick Brice project is particularly notable given their previous collaboration on the Creep films. His involvement also reconnects the director with one of the central creative partners from that franchise.
Emmy-nominated casting director Jessica Kelly is attached to the film. Her credits include Euphoria, A Real Pain and Pieces of a Woman, with experience spanning both film and television. Her involvement adds another established industry name to the production as the project brings together its principal cast.
SK Global and Generator Entertainment are producing and financing Violet. The producers include Kelly McKee and Kenneth Browning for Generator Entertainment, Elizabeth Haggard and Dylan Tarason for SK Global, and Nick Antosca and Alex Hedlund for Eat the Cat. FilmNation Entertainment will present the project to domestic and international buyers at AFM, with cameras expected to roll in spring 2027. No release date has been announced.
With Patrick Brice returning to work with Mark Duplass, Nick Antosca adapting his own short story and a cast led by Lili Reinhart, Danny Ramirez and Suki Waterhouse, Violet brings together filmmakers and performers with experience across horror, psychological drama and television. Its central source of fear begins with something familiar: a message appearing on a phone from a name that should no longer be there. By placing that unsettling possibility within a story about grief and the attempt to rebuild a life after loss, the film sets up a horror premise in which the digital traces of the past may become impossible to escape.