Everything we know about M. Night Shyamalan’s Trap

Forget what you think you know about M. Night Shyamalan’s Trap because if there’s one thing we know for sure about the work of the filmmaker behind twisty hits like The Sixth Sense, Signs and The Village, it’s that nothing is quite as it seems.

Shyamalan’s latest promises to be his most ambitious yet, locking viewers inside the confines of a packed concert stadium with a notorious serial killer who’s been backed into a corner. Billed as the latest ‘M. Night Shyamalan experience,’ Trap has already teased its high-concept premise and yet we’re still waiting for the narrative rug to be pulled from under us.

While there’s plenty that we don’t yet know about the movie, there are a good few things that have been confirmed. With that in mind, here’s everything we officially know about Trap before it’s unleashed onto cinema screens worldwide.

When is Trap being released?

Trap will be released in UK cinemas on Friday 9 August — a week later than its US debut which is Friday 2 August.

The film will be Shyamalan’s first since his rural 2023 horror Knock At The Cabin and hits cinemas the same year as his daughter, Ishana Night Shyamalan’s directorial debut, The Watchers, which was released in June.

Is there a trailer for Trap?

The second Trap trailer amped up the tension, placing us in the psyche of Shyamalan’s new villain and showing us the depraved lengths he’ll go to to survive.

Watch the trailer for Trap:

Released in April, the first trailer for Trap started innocently enough. It followed a father accompanying his daughter to a pop concert but it didn’t take him long to suspect that something was up.

Turns out, that something was him. Find out how he reacts by watching Trap’s first tease below:

What is the plot of Trap?

Trap stays true to its title. It’s set inside a bustling arena where pop star Lady Raven is set to play a sell-out show. Among those in the audience are Cooper and his teenage daughter Riley.

While the latter is giddy with excitement at the impending show, her dad becomes increasingly suspicious of the heightened police presence at the venue. After enquiring with an employee, he learns that the authorities have caught wind that a notorious local serial killer known as The Butcher will be attending Lady Raven’s show and they’ve set up a trap to try and catch him.

As such, no one’s getting in or out without crossing paths with the police - a factor that’s especially worrying for Cooper considering that he is The Butcher.

That’s the elevator pitch. However, if Shyamalan’s previous work has taught us anything, it’s that Trap is no doubt hiding a few secrets up its blood-soaked sleeves. Whatever they are, they remain a secret for now — with promotional material for the movie keeping its cards close to its chest.

Who is starring in Trap?

Josh Hartnett continues his career resurgence following turns in Black Mirror and Oppenheimer by leading Shyamalan’s latest, starring as Cooper — the loving father and vicious murderer who finds himself caught in a very public trap.

Wolf Like Me star Ariel Donoghue plays his young teenage daughter Riley who, from what we’ve seen in the trailers at least, appears oblivious to her father’s double life. Meanwhile, Shyamalan’s real-life daughter Saleka Shyamalan — known professionally as Saleka — plays Lady Raven, the artist whose gig is doubling as a serial killer honeytrap.

Elsewhere, Trap will feature appearances by Hayley Mills, Arrested Development’s Alison Pill, Marnie McPhail, Vanessa Smythe and real-life musician Kid Cudi in as-yet-undisclosed roles.

Trap is released theatrically on Friday, 9 August 2024.