The Strangers: Chapter 1 may not have been received very well, but Lionsgate, and the entire creative team, got together, listened, and made lots of changes—and now the product of those adjustments is nearly here with Chapter 2. The second film in the recent The Strangers trilogy will follow Madelaine Petsch's Maya after surviving the events of the first movie, now trying to survive on the run in a town where she can't trust anyone.
Something many fans have been vocally hesitant about regarding these new films in the franchise is how it will explore the backstory of the titular villains—something Chapter 2 follows through with. Many feel as if that unknown element is key to what makes them terrifying.
The Strangers: Chapter 2 star Madelaine Petsch spoke with The Direct's Russ Milheim on the Los Angeles red carpet, where she made a bold promise to fans. The star proudly declared, "I promise you I will never ruin what makes The Strangers scary:"
Petsch: "I promise you I will never ruin what makes The Strangers scary, which is giving them a why, giving you a why, a reason who they are. Like, all we're doing here is just opening, [taking a peak behind] the curtain [and] those characters. I'm such a big 'The Strangers,' 2008 fan, like the Brian Bertino film is a perfect film, in my opinion. I would not allow that to happen, nor would Courtney [Solomon]. He also loves it, our producer, so just, I promise we're just kicking the curtain. We're not giving you any answers to questions.
Petsch, alongside many of the other cast and filmmakers of the movie, also spoke about how Paranoia is central to Chapter 2. The entire list of talented people The Direct spoke to include: Madelaine Petsch (Maya), Renny Harlin (Director), Brook Lena Johnson (Nurse Danica), Pablo Benavides Sandstrom (Neil), Sara Freedland (Annie), Rafella Biscayn (Producer), and Alan Freedman (Co-Writer).
The Strangers: Chapter 2 debuts in theaters on September 26, 2025.
The Strangers: Chapter 2 Star Madelaine Petsch Join the Cast and Filmmakers to Explain the Film's Paranoia
The Strangers: Chapter 2 Features Maya "Question[ing] Her Reality 24/7."
- The Direct: "Paranoia is such a big part of these films, but it seems central to [Chapter 2] in a way that we haven't seen yet. How does paranoia really make this second film stick out as a unique entry in the trilogy?"
Madelaine Petsch: Well, you're watching Maya in real time struggle with grasping the circumstances she's been placed in. I don't think anybody put in this situation would really believe it or come to terms with it that quickly. And so what I love about movie two is that you actually are watching a human being be like, this can't possibly be real, and question her reality 24/7, which is exactly what I would be doing in this scenario as well.
Renny Harlin: Well, there was a certain level of frustration that I felt with the first movie, because, in essence, it was a remake of the original, which was great, but we had to do it to set up this story, this four-and-a-half hour saga.
And for me, the second movie was always sort of my favorite, in a way, because I got to break out of that house and go out into the world and go from a home invasion to a town invasion, and do this almost like a 'Rambo: First Blood,' kind of a survival story in the wilderness...
Which I loved and developed, the paranoia, as you mentioned, to the level of not being able to trust anybody and anywhere our main character goes, anybody could be The Stranger, and to have, hopefully, the audience relate to that and realize that they should look at their family members twice.
Brook Lena Johnson: I feel like the first movie sets us up to have the original that we kind of really loved and their new spin on it, especially with Madeleine. But I do feel like, with the second movie, she's now in the midst of this city, she can't get home, and so she is trying to figure out who it is that she can trust that's here. And I think that's really scary.
You know, anyone who's been in a new town, it's kind of like, who can I turn to? And she can't really escape. So, I think that plays a different kind of paranoia when you're least expecting it. In the first movie, it's kind of like you take it as it comes, but now she's in the midst of it, and so she really has to figure out how she's going to navigate
Pablo Benavides Sandstrom: Well, if you think about it, the good thing, or the scary thing, of this, these movies, is that this could perfectly happen to you. You're just in a house, and suddenly three masked people show up. What's supernatural or weird about that?
Sara Freedland: I think there's something about feeling like privacy has been invaded, and paranoia is so universal. I think that's why they're such great horror films right now, and this one is really good at having the unexpected in it. So, I hope that people are scared and they leave surprised and scared and wanting more.
Rafella Biscayn: It's one of my favorites, and to what you're saying, the paranoia in this movie, we're really, really getting into Maya's psyche, and not only the paranoia, but it's almost like a psychological thriller. Yes, it's a horror movie. And yes, you're gonna have all of what a horror movie promises, but even more in a realistic survival manner. And I just can't wait for audiences to see it, because it's not like anything they've seen before, because this is purely us, reimagining this.
Alan Freedman: Well, I think it's important, because these are three movies that take a character, that we can take through three movies, and hopefully, as an audience member, you go, what would I do in all these situations? And so I think that's, to me, was a driving force in writing it...
Where you're like, Okay, I'm in my issues, or Ryan's shoes, in movie one, you know, what am I going to do here? And what things would I do, and what is a real thing that I might try to do? And who can I trust, and who can't I trust? So it was always, always at the forefront.
All of the red carpet interviews can be viewed below:
