If you went into Trap expecting a mind-bending, last-minute M. Night Shyamalan rug-pull, the biggest shocker was probably that there wasn't one at all.
Instead of hiding the big secret until the final few frames, Shyamalan lays his cards out right from the jump.
As the trailers and the first twenty minutes make crystal clear, Josh Hartnett’s seemingly harmless "cool suburban dad" character, Cooper, is actually a ruthless serial killer nicknamed, "The Butcher."
The massive pop concert he took his daughter to? It’s not just a fun outing; it’s actually an elaborate, multi-agency police sting set up specifically to catch him.
The movie still packs a few unexpected turns, but Shyamalan completely upends his usual playbook here.
Rather than banking on a wild third-act revelation to save the day, he builds the entire story around a tense, high-stakes cat-and-mouse game from minute one.
Trap ended up sitting at a lukewarm 57% on Rotten Tomatoes, but that score doesn't tell the whole story.
Filmgoers didn't just feel "okay" about it, they either fell in love with the pure absurdity of the premise or completely loathed it. There was zero middle ground.
Shyamalan thinks the film probably should have performed better than it did at the box office (it grossed $82.7 million worldwide from a $30 million production budget), but he told The Wrap that he believes the film simply got lost between Deadpool & Wolverine's box office staying power and the controversy between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni that seemed to propel It Ends With Us.
Trap was released in theaters on August 2, sandwiched in between Deadpool & Wolverine (July 26) and It Ends With Us (Augsut 09).
“These are all wonderful things for them. But as you’re putting your movie out, if I had to do it again, I would have slid it away from all that noise. For original movies, it’s a delicate conversation we’re having,” Shyamalan told the site. “Hey, this is a new story with new colors and a new feeling, so I need you guys to live with it for a second before ‘Avengers’ comes in.”
M. Night Shyamalan's next project is the supernatural romantic thriller, Remian, which is set to hit North American theaters on February 5, 2027. The film was jointly created by Shyamalan and noted romance author, Nicholas Sparks (The Notebook, The Long Walk).
Though he has a first-look distribution deal with Warner Bros., Shyamalan commented that he will continue to self-finance his films so that he can retain creative control.
30,000 Fans. 300 Cops. 1 Serial Killer. No Escape.
A father and teen daughter attend a pop concert, where they realize they’re at the center of a dark and sinister event.
Written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan, “Trap” stars Josh Hartnett, Ariel Donoghue, Saleka Shyamalan, Hayley Mills and Allison Pill. The film is produced by Ashwin Rajan, Marc Bienstock and M. Night Shyamalan. The executive producer is Steven Schneider.
Original songs by Saleka as Lady Raven.