Samara Weaving Returns as Cameras Roll on High-Anticipation Sequel to Cult Horror Hit

Production has officially begun in Toronto on the follow-up to one of the past decade’s most surprising cult horror successes. The sequel, currently titled Ready or Not: Here I Come, brings Samara Weaving back to the big screen in the role that redefined her as a modern scream-queen and positioned the original film as a genre standout with razor-sharp wit and social commentary. With a fresh cast expansion and heightened expectations, the new chapter aims to build on the original’s momentum and expand its fiercely loyal fanbase.

The first film — released in 2019 to strong acclaim — was an unexpected breath of life for mid-budget horror. Directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, two members of the filmmaking collective Radio Silence, the story followed Grace (Weaving), a young woman who marries into the wealthy and eccentric Le Domas family. What begins as a lavish Gothic wedding at the family estate quickly veers into a grotesque rite of passage: an initiation ritual disguised as an innocent game.

In the original, Grace is asked to draw a card from a mysterious heirloom box as part of the family’s longstanding tradition. When she pulls “hide-and-seek,” she laughs — until she slowly realizes the game is deadly, the house is sealed, and her new in-laws are arming themselves with antique weapons. The Le Domas clan, played by Adam Brody, Henry Czerny and Andie MacDowell, transform from charming aristocrats into ritualistic hunters. Their justification? A generations-old pact with the devil that demands bloodshed to preserve their wealth and legacy.

What followed was a breathless mix of horror, jet-black comedy and sharp social metaphor. Weaving, shifting seamlessly from slapstick panic to gritty determination, delivered a breakout performance that critics immediately hailed as star-making. The film’s tonal balancing act — often flipping from grisly violence to biting satire within seconds — was cited as one of its greatest strengths, along with its canny critique of class privilege, patriarchy and inherited power.

With its blend of originality and pointed thematic bite, the film quietly grew into a cult favorite, drawing comparisons to Get Out for its combination of accessible thrills and social resonance. Now, with production underway on the sequel, anticipation is running high.

The new film finds Weaving’s Grace once again thrust into peril — only this time, she is not alone. Joining her is her younger sister, played by Kathryn Newton, whose rising star power adds another layer of mainstream appeal. According to early production details, the sequel will expand the mythology surrounding the Le Domas rituals, diving deeper into the conspiratorial networks and supernatural undercurrents only hinted at in the first movie.

While Radio Silence is not directing this new chapter, the creative DNA remains intact. The script is penned by Guy Busick and R. Christopher Murphy, who co-wrote the original and have become known for blending sharp genre instincts with sly humor. Producers Tripp Vinson, James Vanderbilt, William Sherak and Bradley J. Fischer return as well, ensuring continuity in tone, scope and world-building.

The first film’s themes — particularly its exploration of privilege, indoctrination and the symbolic violence embedded in traditional institutions — appear ready to deepen. Much of the original’s commentary centered on how women entering marriage are often expected to adapt, sacrifice and conform, sometimes at the expense of their own identity. By placing Grace, an outsider raised in foster homes, into the heart of an old-money family fortress, the film exposed the distortions of wealth and legacy with both horror and humor.

One of the most chilling moments of the first film involved not an adult killer, but a young boy — barely old enough to understand his weapon — aiming a gun at Grace with the intention of killing her. The moment underscored how generational rituals perpetuate violence without questioning their morality.

Weaving’s performance, already celebrated for her role in The Babysitter, was instrumental in grounding the first film’s extremes. She delivered a physical, frantic and emotionally layered turn that made Grace both hilarious and heartbreaking. The sequel, with the added element of sisterly protection, promises to push the character into new emotional territory.

Production sources suggest the new film will broaden its settings, expanding beyond a single estate to a larger world of high-stakes cat-and-mouse terror. With shooting underway in Toronto, the sequel aims for more expansive action, elaborate set pieces and a mythology that reaches well beyond the original’s devilish pact.

The first film’s enduring appeal has always been its ability to entertain while offering pointed commentary, and if early buzz is any indication, the sequel intends to stay true to that formula. With Samara Weaving once again at the center — and a growing cult audience eager for more — the franchise seems poised to reassert its place as one of modern horror’s smartest and most mischievous creations.