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'Passenger' Review

Release Date: 05/22/26 [Cinemas]

Genre: Horror.

MPAA: Rated R.

Distributor: Paramount Pictures.

The Verdict: A Maybe


Norwegian director André Øvredal understands one of horror’s oldest tricks: fear works best when it hitches a ride alongside another genre. With Passenger, he folds road-movie hijinks and lighthearted romance into a supernatural nightmare about a demonic traveler stalking dark highways. The result is an entertaining ride that presents plenty of gore and jump scares to satisfy midnight horror crowds. But the story takes one too many detours, and eases off the gas instead of flooring it toward pure dread.


Øvredal jumps right into the fear with an outstanding opening as Miles Fowler’s Daniel races away from tragedy and steers into malevolence. Øvredal shoots with a suffocating darkness that summons the supernatural terror of Jeepers Creepers or the stripped-down suspense of The Hitcher. The Passenger entity (Joseph Lopez) is introduced as an incomprehensible force lurking just beyond the headlights. Unfortunately, once the story shifts focus to the attractive Tyler and Maddie – played by Jacob Scipio and Foundation’s Lou Llobell – and their newfound van-life, the horror loses momentum. Miles go by, it seems, until the entity is confronted again. 


Co-writers T.W. Burgess and Zachary Donohue dig into the mythology of roadside folklore, weaving in hobo symbols, traveler superstitions, and religious talismans like St. Christopher medals. Much like the dream-logic rules of A Nightmare on Elm Street, the film establishes survival guidelines. Rule number one: don’t drive at night. Naturally, nobody listens. And thus allows Passenger to return to horror mode.


Øvredal stages several standout sequences that hint at a scarier movie hiding beneath the surface. Maddie sprinting through an endless parking lot while her van never seems to get closer taps directly into nightmare physics. This simple, practical scene delivers the kind of primal imagery horror thrives on. A roadside captivity scene later on finally lets the atmosphere drop into something oppressive. In moments like these, Passenger becomes deeply effective. The frustration is that this mood is never sustained.


The same issue haunted Øvredal’s The Last Voyage of the Demeter. The threat is ever-present, but the narrative often drifts between attacks. And unlike the well-established Dracula, the Passenger entity suffers from insubstantial supernatural rules. It can seemingly materialize anywhere, possess people, and shrug off physical harm, yet crumples all too easily once exposed to the Gospel of Hollywood’s holiness hokum.


Even so, Passenger remains a stylish and thrilling-enough ride. Øvredal knows how to frame darkness, isolate characters, and make ordinary spaces feel congested. The film succeeds whenever it embraces the lonely terror of the open road; those stretches of empty highway where every pair of headlights feels like a threat. Alas, it never fully commits to the breathless dread its trailer – and clever marketing campaign – promised. The Siouxsie and the Banshees cover, naturally, was fully expected. 


As road-trip horror goes, this one has plenty of memorable stops along the way. Passenger could have used a little less scenic routing and a lot more hell in the rearview mirror.


 
 
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