Norwegian director André Øvredal, the mastermind behind chilling successes like The Autopsy of Jane Doe and Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, is back to haunt the big screen. Passenger, his newest horror project, has just received an official title and a confirmed release date from Paramount Pictures. Scheduled to hit Brazilian theaters on May 29, 2026, the film promises to be one of the major genre releases for the first half of the year. The project’s relevance, however, goes beyond the director’s name, featuring a heavyweight team from the It and The Conjuring franchises behind the scenes.
Meanwhile, the plot of Passenger remains a total mystery, as the storyline details are still being kept under tight wraps. The screenplay, however, is written by Zachary Donohue (from The Den) and T.W. Burgess (from Mister Howl). The confirmed main cast includes Jacob Scipio, Lou Llobell, and Oscar winner Melissa Leo, which further raises expectations. Thus, the production combines experienced talents both in front of and behind the cameras to create a new horror experience.
The Producers of Panic Behind the Project
The production strength of Passenger is undoubtedly one of its greatest assets. The film is produced by Walter Hamada, a former Warner Bros. executive who led the successful cinematic universes of The Conjuring and It. He currently heads the production company 18hz, which has a first-look deal with Paramount. Gary Dauberman, screenwriter of the recent It version, is also part of the production through Coin Operated. Therefore, we are talking about a team that deeply understands how to build and sustain modern horror in cinema, which considerably raises the stakes for this new project.
This is not the only card up 18hz’s sleeve for horror fans. Before Passenger, the production company is set to release the horror film Primate, which premieres in January 2026. Thus, genre lovers have a sequence of high-level releases to follow. With the date now marked on the calendar, all that remains is to wait for the first trailers and images to get a glimpse of the horror that André Øvredal and his team have prepared. If the director’s track record and the producers’ expertise are any indication, the Brazilian audience can prepare for another tense and terrifying journey in the dark theaters.
