Photos of Magnolias has acquired the North American rights to “Never after dark.”
The Japanese horror film, written and directed by Dave Boyle from XYZ Films, premiered at SXSW and won the Midnighter Audience Award.
“Never After Dark” stars SAG Award and Critics’ Choice Award winner Moeka Hoshi (“Shogun”), Kento Kaku (“House of Ninjas”), Kurumi Inagaki (“House of Ninjas”), Mutsuo Yoshioka (“Chime”), Bokuzo Masana (“Toyko Vice”) and Tae Kimura (“All Around Us”). The film also recently won the Grand Jury Prize for Feature Film at the Overlook Film Festival and won the Golden Crow at the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival. Magnolia is planning a theatrical release in the fall.
The film follows Airi (Hoshi), a wandering medium who spends her life guiding restless spirits out of the world of the living. Summoned to an isolated country house, she comes face to face with a grotesque apparition with powers that defy Airi’s experience. As she delves deeper into the house’s past, a secret comes to light and Airi finds herself pursued by a much more unpredictable force. For the first time, their greatest adversary is not the supernatural, but the living.
“Dave Boyle and the team have delivered an incredibly beautiful and terrifying experience,” said Magnolia Pictures co-CEOs Eamonn Bowles and Dori Begley. “We look forward to sharing this truly exceptional film with audiences.”
“We are very excited for Magnolia Pictures to bring ‘Never After Dark’ to audiences across North America,” Boyle and Kaku said in a joint statement. “Their passion for the film, their commitment to its theatrical release and their long history as exceptional stewards of great cinema make this partnership a dream come true for our team. We made this film for the big screen and we are thrilled that North American audiences will have the opportunity to experience it that way.”
The film is produced by Signal 181, the Tokyo-based production company founded by actor-producer Kaku and Boyle following the global success of their Netflix series “House of Ninjas,” which debuted in 2024 and immediately rose to No. 1 on Netflix’s Global Top 10. The company develops distinctive film and television projects that bridge Japan and the United States, a mission reflected in its name, which combines the countries’ calling codes (+1 and +81). Executive director Kosuke Tsutsumi also produces alongside Kaku and Boyle, with Aram Tertzakian of XYZ Films, Todd Brown and Toshiyuki Suzuki of United Lounge Tokyo serving as executive producers.
The deal was negotiated by Magnolia Senior Vice President of Acquisitions John Von Thaden with Peter Van Steemberg and Pip Ngo of XYZ Films on behalf of the filmmakers.
The film will also be released in theaters across Japan on June 5, distributed by Toho Next.