BRING HER BACK
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Bring Her Back | |
|---|---|
| Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Danny Philippou Michael Philippou |
| Written by | Danny PhilippouBill Hinzman |
| Produced by | Samantha JenningsKristina Ceyton |
| Starring | Billy BarrattSora WongJonah Wren PhillipsSally Hawkins |
| Cinematography | Aaron McLisky |
| Edited by | Geoff Lamb |
| Music by | Cornel Wilczek |
| Production company | Causeway Films |
| Distributed by | Stage 6 Films (through Sony Pictures Releasing International) |
| Release date | 29 May 2025 |
| Running time | 104 minutes[1] |
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $15 million |
| Box office | $39.1 million |
Bring Her Back is a 2025 Australian supernatural folk horror film directed by Danny and Michael Philippou, the former of whom co-wrote the screenplay with Bill Hinzman. It stars Billy Barratt, Sora Wong, Jonah Wren Phillips, and Sally Hawkins. The film follows two step-siblings who find themselves orphaned and placed in the middle of an occult ritual by their new foster mother.
Bring Her Back was theatrically released by Sony Pictures Releasing International in Australia on 29 May 2025. The film received positive reviews, with Hawkins’s performance being highlighted for praise, and grossed $39.1 million[2][3] on a budget of $15 million.[4]
Plot
17-year-old Andy and his visually impaired step-sister Piper find their father Phil, who has been undergoing treatment for cancer, dead in the shower. They are sent to live with eccentric former counselor Laura, who is also fostering a pre-teen boy named Oliver. Laura claims Oliver has stopped talking since the death of Laura’s daughter, Cathy, who was also blind and drowned in their backyard pool. Andy becomes unsettled by both Laura and Oliver’s strange behavior, and Laura’s favouritism toward Piper. At Phil’s funeral, Laura steals a lock of hair from his corpse. That night, Laura encourages Andy to talk about his feelings, and he reveals that he resents his father for being abusive toward him but affectionate toward Piper. Laura reflects on Cathy’s death and states that she would do anything just to hear Cathy call her “mum” one last time.
The next day, Andy releases Oliver from the room Laura locked him in and encourages him to write on a notepad to communicate. Oliver subsequently tries to eat a kitchen knife, mutilating his mouth; when Andy carries him across the white border that circles Laura’s property to get help, Oliver violently convulses before uttering “help me”. Andy later finds that Oliver has written “bird” on the notepad.
Laura returns Oliver to his mute state by mimicking a ritual from a VHS tape and feeding him Phil’s hair. While showering, Andy hallucinates an apparition of Phil telling him, “She’ll die in the rain.” Andy slips and awakens in the hospital with a concussion. Laura takes Piper to the garden shed, where she has been keeping Cathy’s corpse in a freezer, and dresses her in Cathy’s sweater. After bringing Andy home from the hospital, she watches a VHS tape in which the corpse of the deceased is fed to a possessed host, who then regurgitates the corpse into the body of a person recently killed in the same manner as the one to be resurrected, bringing them back to life. Laura intends to drown Piper in the pool during the rainstorm, use Oliver — actually a kidnapped child now possessed by a demon summoned by Laura – to eat Cathy’s corpse, and regurgitate it into Piper to bring back Cathy. Later that night, Laura punches Piper while she sleeps and frames Andy for the assault to drive a wedge between the siblings.
As the demon grows increasingly hungry and restless, Oliver takes to eating inanimate objects and parts of his own body. Andy goes to the foster agency and sees a poster for a missing child named Connor Bird; recognising Connor as “Oliver”, he convinces his social worker Wendy to investigate. Andy leaves Piper a voicemail, in which he apologises for keeping their father’s abuse of him a secret and warns her about Laura, but Laura intercepts the message and cleans the house to deceive Wendy. During the visit, Wendy spots blood on Laura, and Laura breaks down and confesses her plan to resurrect Cathy. Wendy and Andy discover Connor eating Cathy’s corpse in the shed. They attempt to flee but Laura runs them over with her car, killing Wendy and injuring Andy, whom Laura then drowns in a rain puddle.
Laura brings Piper home from goalball practice for the ritual. Having eaten some of Andy’s flesh, Connor speaks with Andy’s voice to lure Piper. Suspecting something is amiss, Piper locks herself in the bathroom and breaks down upon discovering Andy’s body. Laura drags Piper to the pool and begins drowning her while Connor watches. Piper struggles, and Laura tearfully releases her after Piper cries out “mum”. Piper escapes and is rescued by a passing car on the road. Connor, who had been chasing her, steps past the white border and collapses as the demon leaves his body. Police arrive, identify Connor, and find an unconscious Laura cradling Cathy’s corpse in the pool.
Cast
- Billy Barratt as Andy, a guilt-ridden and traumatised 17-year-old boy
- Sora Wong as Piper, Andy’s visually impaired younger stepsister
- Sally Hawkins as Laura, a grieving mother
- Jonah Wren Phillips as Oliver / Connor Bird, Laura’s foster son
- Sally-Anne Upton as Wendy, Andy and Piper’s social worker
- Stephen Phillips as Phil, Andy and Piper’s deceased father
- Mischa Heywood as Cathy, Laura’s deceased 12-year-old daughter
Production
In April 2024 it was announced that brothers Danny and Michael Philippou were developing an original horror film follow-up to their first film Talk to Me, with producers Samantha Jennings and Kristina Ceyton at Causeway Films. The film had Sally Hawkins attached to star and A24 was handling sales for distribution worldwide.[5] The Philippou brothers originally planned to direct a film adaptation of Street Fighter in 2023, but exited the film to focus on Bring Her Back.[6] They were inspired by psycho-biddy horror.[7] The script was written by Danny Philippou and Bill Hinzman,[8] and produced by the Philippou brothers with financing from the South Australian Film Corporation and Salmira Productions.[9]
In May 2024 Billy Barratt, Jonah Wren Phillips, Sally-Anne Upton, Stephen Phillips, and Sora Wong joined the cast of the film.[10] In an interview with People, Wong stated that she had “zero experience with acting” and auditioned after her mother discovered the casting call on Facebook.[11]
Principal photography began in June 2024.[8] The Philippous returned to their home state of South Australia to film in Adelaide and surrounding areas such as Lightsview.[12][13] Filming concluded after 41 days.[14] Aaron McLisky served as cinematographer.[15]
The Philippou brothers described the process of filming gory scenes with Phillips in his role as Oliver. For the scene where Oliver bites on a kitchen knife, Danny Philippou helped design the sound himself by biting on a real knife.[16] During filming, Phillips chewed on a prop knife made out of foam, the footage later enhanced with visual effects.[16] For the scene where Oliver chews through a wooden kitchen countertop, a prop countertop was designed. The prop was filled with chocolate, and was designed to break into soft pieces that looked like splinters. Phillips wore a “fake mouth” to assist the stunt.[16]
Production took place around Adelaide, including Adelaide Studios, with post-production led by KOJO Studios. The crew were mostly South Australian.[17] Editing was done by Geoff Lamb and the score was composed by Cornel Wilczek.[18][19] The film was executive produced by the Philippous, Daniel Negret, Salman Al-Rashid, and Sam Frohman.[19]
Release
In February 2025 Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions acquired the international distribution rights to the film excluding China, Russia, and Japan.[20] Stage 6 Films (through Sony Pictures Releasing International) are distributors of the film.[21]
Bring Her Back had a special screening for Adelaide Film Festival club members on 26 May 2025,[22] before being released in cinemas in Australia on 29 May 2025 by Stage 6 Films. It was released on the following day in the United States by A24.[23] It was released in the United Kingdom on 1 August 2025.[24]
Reception
Box office
As of September 6, 2025, Bring Her Back has grossed $19.3 million in the United States and Canada and $19.8 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $39.1 million.[3][2]
In the US and Canada Bring Her Back was released alongside Karate Kid: Legends and was projected to gross $5–7 million from 2,449 theatres in its opening weekend.[25] The film made $3.1 million on its first day, including $850,000 from Thursday night previews. It went on to debut to $7.1 million, finishing in third.[26]
Critical response
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On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 89% of 270 critics’ reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.6/10. The website’s consensus reads: “A domestic nightmare that draws its most profound scares from Sally Hawkins’ deranged performance, Bring Her Back is an exemplary chiller that reaffirms directors Danny and Michael Philippou as modern masters of horror.”[28]
Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 75 out of 100, based on 40 critics, indicating “generally favorable” reviews.[29] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of “B+” on an A+ to F scale, while those surveyed by PostTrak gave it an 80% overall positive score, with 57% saying they would definitely recommend the film.[26]
Monica Castillo from RogerEbert.com gave the film 3 out of 4 stars, writing that it is “perhaps more chilling—if slightly less focused—than their breakout feature debut”. Castillo noted the film’s fast pace and shocking moments, but criticised the VHS segments as being an “unnecessary scare tactic”. She praised the performances of Hawkins, Barratt and Wong for their emotionally-deep performances and the film’s sustained tension, but ultimately wrote that it did “not meet the high watermark of the brothers’ first outing.”[30] Jeanette Catsoulis of the New York Times acclaimed the “sublime lead performances” with particular praise for Barratt’s performance as Andy. Catsoulis also praised the film’s visual shock value and emotional weight, but called it “more logically muddled than its predecessor”.[31] David Fear of Rolling Stone wrote that the film is a strong follow up to Talk To Me, boasting a “superior grasp of pacing and catch-release tension”. Fear also praised Oliver’s character as rising above “the whole creepy-youngster trope”, having derided it as being “overused and lazy in most cases”.[32]
A review by Sammie Purcell from Rough Draft Atlanta praised the practical effects and upsetting nature of the film, but “it doesn’t earn the depth of emotion it wants to achieve.” Purcell praised Phillips’ performance as Oliver for being “one of the film’s best and, oddly enough, manages to offer a little bit of humor in an otherwise bleak narrative.” She further writes that “it’s hard to balance really effective emotionality with the type of vicious storytelling the Philippous appear to be interested in”, having found the mix of grotesque visuals and emotional themes to be ineffective.[33] Barry Wurst from HollywoodinToto was far more critical, giving the film one and a half stars. Wurst wrote that he found the film’s violent scenes far too intense, criticising it as being “desperate for attention.” However, he gave high praise to Hawkins’ performance as being the “reason to see [the film].”[34]
Accolades
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Trailer Awards | 29 May 2025 | Best Sound Editing | A24 / AV Squad (for “Trust No One”) | Nominated | [35][36] |
| Astra Midseason Movie Awards | 3 July 2025 | Best Actress | Sally Hawkins | Nominated | [37] |
| Best Horror | Bring Her Back | Won | |||
| Critics’ Choice Super Awards | 7 August 2025 | Best Horror Movie | Nominated | [38] | |
| Best Actress in a Horror Movie | Sally Hawkins | Nominated | |||
| Fangoria Chainsaw Awards | 19 October 2025 | Best Wide Release | Bring Her Back | Nominated | [39][40] |
| Best Lead Performance | Sally Hawkins | Nominated | |||
| Best Screenplay | Bill Hinzman & Danny Philippou | Nominated | |||
| Hollywood Music in Media Awards | 19 November 2025 | Original Score – Horror/Thriller Film | Cornel Wilczek | Nominated | [41] |
| Astra Film Awards | 9 January 2026 | Best Horror or Thriller Feature | Bring Her Back | Nominated | [42] |
| Best Performance in a Horror or Thriller | Sally Hawkins | Nominated | |||
| AACTA Awards | 6 February 2026 | Best Film | Bring Her Back | Won | [43] |
| Best Direction | Danny and Michael Philippou | Won | |||
| Best Screenplay | Danny Philippou and Bill Hinzman | Nominated | |||
| Best Lead Actress | Sally Hawkins | Won | |||
| Best Supporting Actor | Jonah Wren Phillips | Nominated | |||
| Best Supporting Actress | Sally-Anne Upton | Nominated | |||
| Sora Wong | Nominated | ||||
| Best Cinematography | Aaron McLisky | Won | |||
| Best Editing | Geoff Lamb | Won | |||
| Best Original Music Score | Cornel Wilczek | Won | |||
| Best Sound | Emma Bortignon, Nick Steele, Hamish Keen, Cameron Grant, Lachlan Harris, Pete Smith | Won | |||
| Best Costume Design | Anna Cahill | Won | |||
| Best Casting | Nikki Barrett | Won | |||
| Best Hair and Makeup | Rebecca Buratto, Larry Van Duynhoven, Paul Katte, Nick Nicolaou, Karen Gower, Mariel McClorey | Won | |||
| Best Soundtrack | Andrew Koťátko | Nominated |
References
- “Bring Her Back [MA 15+]”. Australian Classification Board. 5 May 2025. Archived from the original on 18 May 2025. Retrieved 12 May 2025.
- “Bring Her Back“. Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
- “Bring Her Back – Financial Information”. The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
- Rubin, Rebecca (1 June 2025). “Box Office: ‘Lilo & Stitch’ Rules Again With $63 Million, ‘Karate Kid: Legends’ Opens to $21 Million”. Variety. Archived from the original on 1 June 2025. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- Wiseman, Andreas (30 April 2024). “A24 Re-Teams With Talk to Me Directors Danny & Michael Philippou on New Horror Bring Her Back With Sally Hawkins Set to Star”. Deadline Hollywood. Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on 30 April 2024. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
- Ewing, Jeff (1 April 2025). “”I Don’t Want to F*ck It Up”: Philippou Brothers Explain Why They Dropped ‘Street Fighter'”. Collider. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- Melanson, Angel (8 May 2025). “Bring Her Back Directors Say This Is a Slow Burn Psychological Horror”. Fangoria. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- DeVore, Britta (13 June 2024). “Talk to Me Directors’ Horror Follow Up Bring Her Back Just Got a Huge Update”. Collider. Valnet Inc. Archived from the original on 2 December 2024. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
- Frater, Patrick (2 July 2024). “Talk to Me Directors Danny and Michael Philippou to Shoot Bring Her Back in Australia”. Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on 17 July 2024. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
- Stephan, Katcy (29 May 2024). “A24’s Bring Her Back Adds Billy Barratt, Jonah Wren Phillips, Sally-Anne Upton, Stephen Phillips and Sora Wong. (Exclusive)”. Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on 29 May 2024. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
- Andersson, Eric (31 May 2025). “Sora Wong’s Journey from School Plays to Bring Her Back with ‘Zero Experience’ in Professional Acting (Exclusive)”. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- “Film set spotted at Lightsview | South Australia’s Phillipou brothers have returned to Adelaide to begin filming their latest movie at Lightsview. Download the 7NEWS app:… | By 7NEWS Adelaide”. Seven News Adelaide. 3 July 2024. Archived from the original on 16 July 2024. Retrieved 16 July 2024 – via Facebook.
SA’s Philippou brothers have returned to Adelaide to begin filming their latest movie. The cast and crew of Bring Her Back were spotted shooting in Lightsview this morning. The plot is a secret, but the film’s being supported by the Film Corporation and will be distributed worldwide.
- Sudario, Erielle (3 July 2024). “Here’s Where the Talk to Me Directors Are Filming Their Next Horror Movie”. Collider. Valnet Inc. Archived from the original on 3 July 2024.
- @michael_philippou; (3 August 2024). “THAT’S A WRAP on Bring Her Back!!! 41 day shoot. What an incredible experience … Cannot wait to show you guys this”. Retrieved 29 December 2024 – via Instagram.
- “Aaron Mclisky and Anna Cahill reunite on the A24 and Causeway Horror Film Bring Her Back“. Cameron’s Management. 1 May 2024. Archived from the original on 13 October 2024. Retrieved 23 February 2025.
- Robinson, Tasha (31 May 2025). “How Bring Her Back’s most stomach-churning shot happened”. Polygon. Retrieved 5 January 2026.
- “Adelaide hits the red carpet for Bring Her Back premiere”. SAFC. 28 May 2025. Archived from the original on 20 June 2025. Retrieved 14 October 2025.
- Whitney, Nadine (27 May 2025). “Grief hungers and consumes in the Philippou brothers’ Bring Her Back”. The Curb. Archived from the original on 8 July 2025. Retrieved 14 October 2025.
- Gleiberman, Owen (16 May 2025). “‘Bring Her Back’ Review: Sally Hawkins Is Chillingly Creepy as a Foster Mother From Hell in the Philippous’ Terrifying Follow-Up to ‘Talk to Me'”. Variety. Retrieved 14 October 2025.
- Wiseman, Andreas (3 February 2025). “Sony Lands International Rights To A24 Horror Bring Her Back, The Next Film From Talk To Me Directors Danny & Michael Philippou”. Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 3 February 2025. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
- “BRING HER BACK | Stage6”. Stage 6 Films. Sony Pictures Digital Productions. Archived from the original on 25 February 2025. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- “Bring Her Back”. Adelaide Film Festival. 26 May 2025. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
- Grobar, Matt (19 February 2025). “Bring Her Back Trailer: First Look At Talk To Me Duo’s A24 Follow-Up Dated For May Launch”. Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 20 February 2025. Retrieved 19 February 2025.
- Buckmaster, Luke (28 May 2025). “Bring Her Back review – Talk to Me directors return with a film you’ll watch from between your fingers”. The Guardian. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
- D’Alessandro, Anthony (28 May 2025). “‘Karate Kid: Legends’ Will Provide Kick To Summer Box Office But Won’t KO ‘Lilo & Stitch’s $60M Second Weekend – Preview”. Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 28 May 2025.
- D’Alessandro, Anthony (1 June 2025). “‘Lilo & Stitch’ Kicks Up $63M Second Weekend, ‘Mission Impossible 8’ $27M+, ‘Karate Kid: Legends’ At $21M – Box Office Update”. Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
- Scott, Ryan (8 May 2025). “One Of The Best Horror Movie Performances Of 2025 Comes From An Unexpected Oscar Nominee”. SlashFilm. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
- “Bring Her Back“. Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Archived from the original on 6 June 2026. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
{{cite web}}:|archive-date=/|archive-url=timestamp mismatch; 1 July 2025 suggested (help) - “Bring Her Back“. Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Archived from the original on 3 June 2025. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
- Castillo, Monica (31 May 2025). “Bring Her Back”. RogerEbert.com. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- Catsoulis, Jeanette (31 May 2025). “‘Bring Her Back’ Review: A Foster Mother Like No Other”. New York Times. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- Fear, David (30 May 2025). “‘Bring Her Back’ Proves the ‘Talk to Me’ Guys Aren’t One-Hit Wonders”. Rolling Stone. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- Purcell, Sammie (30 May 2025). “‘Bring Her Back’ is all shock, no value”. RoughDraftatlanta. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- Wurst, Barry (28 May 2025). “‘Bring Her Back’ Is Repulsive, Not Revolutionary”. HollywoodinToto. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- Couch, Aaron (29 May 2025). “’28 Year Later’ Tops the Golden Trailer Awards”. The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 30 May 2025.
- Pedersen, Erik (8 May 2025). “Golden Trailer Awards Nominations: ‘Wicked,’ ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ & Disney Lead Field”. Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 13 May 2025.
- Neglia, Matt (30 June 2025). “The 2025 Hollywood Creative Alliance (HCA) Midseason Astra Award Nominations”. Next Best Picture. Retrieved 6 July 2025.
- “‘Deadpool & Wolverine’, ‘Thunderbolts*’, ‘The Last Of Us’ Lead Nominees For Critics Choice Super Awards”. Deadline Hollywood. 11 June 2025.
- Sullivan, Kevin P. (9 July 2025). “The horror! ‘Sinners’ and ‘The Substance’ lead Fangoria Chainsaw Awards nominations of year’s scariest offerings”. GoldDerby. Retrieved 9 July 2025.
- Levy, Giana (9 July 2025). “Ryan Coogler’s ‘Sinners’ and Coralie Fargeat’s ‘The Substance’ Lead Fangoria’s 2025 Chainsaw Awards Nominations”. Variety. Archived from the original on 9 July 2025.
- Neglia, Matt (5 November 2025). “The 2025 Hollywood Music In Media Awards (HMMA) Nominations”. Next Best Picture. Retrieved 5 November 2025.
- Alter, Ethan (25 November 2025). “‘One Battle After Another’ leads Astra Film Awards nominations”. GoldDerby. Retrieved 25 November 2025.
- “Winners & Nominees”. AACTA. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
External links
- Bring Her Back at IMDb
- Bring Her Back at Salmira Productions
- Bring Her Back at Causeway Films
- 2025 films
- 2025 Australian films
- 2025 English-language films
- 2025 psychological horror films
- 2025 supernatural horror films
- Australian supernatural horror films
- English-language horror films
- Films about grief
- Films about human sacrifice
- Films about missing people
- Films directed by Danny and Michael Philippou
- Films set in South Australia
- Films shot in Adelaide
- Films with screenplays by Danny Philippou
- Films set in 2024
- Stage 6 Films films
- Psycho-biddy films