Netflix has released the frightening new trailer forMr. Harrigan’s Phone, the latest horror film to join the new lineup of Stephen King adaptations.
King has been having quite a resurgence of late. With a slew of new novels coming out,remakes ofIt,Pet Sematary, and fresh takes on his new books with hit HBO series likeThe Outsiderand the Apple TV Plus adaptation ofMr. Mercedes, he’s been having as hot a decade as the 1980s treated him when he was still the new kid on the horror block. A new trailer forMr. Harrigan’s Phone, from Ryan Murphy and Blumhouse Productions andNetflix, has dropped to day, leaving fans with a bout of that King goodness, equal parts nostalgic and terrifying.
Related:Netflix Shares The First Images From Upcoming Stephen King Adaptation Mr. Harrigan’s Phone
The trailer, dropped byNetflixonto their YouTube channel, sees stars Jaeden Martell and Donald Sutherland as Craig and the titular Mr. Harrigan to whom Craig gives the eponymous phone. John Lee Hancock, who wrote and directed the movie, will see his film drop as the fourth in a series of Netflix/King adaptations, which include the Thomas Jane-starring1922,In The Tall Grass, andGerald’s Game, the vehicle featuring Carla Gugino and written and directed by Mike Flanagan. The trailer begins with Mr. Harrigan narrating how Craig is a far different person now than when he and Mr. Harrigan first met over shots of Craig growing up into Jaeden Martell as he reads to Harrigan.
He asks the boy why he continues to visit, and Craig answers, “Because I enjoy our time together.” The next shot is of Craig giving Mr. Harrigana brand new iPhone, pegging the movie as a set sometime around 2007. Craig gets bullied at school and then asks Mr. Harrigan if anyone ever tried to take advantage of him and how he dealt with it. “Harshly,” Harrigan says.
Harrigan dies and Craig slips the phone into his pocket at the funeral. Afterwards, when he gets beaten up,he places a call to Harrigan’s voicemailand tells his former friend what happened. Speaking with Harrigan’s housekeeper, he mentions that Harrigan was a good man, though the housekeeper adds that you didn’t want to be on his bad side.
When the bully dies, Craig feels guilty. When he starts getting broken text messages and calls back from a phone whose battery should be long gone, he knows things are getting serious. As his school counsellor tells him, “A person shouldn’t call out unless they want an answer.”
