The Grabber is back in Black Phone 2, which premiered at Fantastic Fest to positive reviews. Scott Derrickson’s horror sequel again stars Ethan Hawke as a serial killer whose young victims communicate by phone from the dead. Mason Thames, who plays the boy who seemed to kill the Grabber in the end, is also back in this movie, which some reviews are saying is even better than the 2021 original.
Here’s what critics are saying about Black Phone 2:
The first film was certainly solid, but this one is excellent. The rare sequel that outshines its predecessor.
— Germain Lussier, io9.com
Black Phone 2 surpasses its predecessor in just about every way.
— Meagan Navarro, Bloody Disgusting
Black Phone 2 is a perfect sequel in that it leans into what worked in the first film, while also taking the story in interesting and unexpected directions… [It’s] bigger, and better.
— Chris Tilly, Dexerto
Director Scott Derrickson and screenwriter C. Robert Cargill deliver a film that’s so different that it stands out on its own, while also serving as an improvement on its predecessor in almost every way.
— Rafael Motamayor, Slashfilm
I’m excited to say that Black Phone 2 lives up to the high quality set by its predecessor.
— Emily von Steele, Daily Dead
Black Phone 2 is an experimentally juiced-up version of the first film.
— Rocco T. Thompson, Slant Magazine
Black Phone 2 is a wildly different movie from the first. It’s weirder, more ambitious, and leans as hard as it can to ‘80s horror staples… If you come into this film expecting more like the first film, then you’ll be let down.
— Kate Sánchez, But Why Tho? A Geek Community
It’s a little slower, more deliberately paced than the original, but never feels like a sequel cash grab… Overall, it is a worthy successor that fans of the first one will enjoy.
— Brandon Wainerdi, Fangoria
Good enough for a horror sequel. But good enough will never be more than just that.
— Katie Rife, IndieWire
Not only [is it] a great follow-up to the first time, but [it] somehow makes it even better, knowing what we know now.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky
It’s a sequel that changes and elevates the original in ways you’d never expect.
— Germain Lussier, io9.com
Black Phone 2 is a fantastic sequel. It’s a movie that isn’t content to do the same, just bigger, but actually explores new avenues and adds to the experience of the first film in surprising ways that make the overarching story as a whole better.
— Rafael Motamayor, Slashfilm
Black Phone 2 might be [Derrickson’s] most blatantly devout film to date—a faith-based supernatural slasher that expands the first film’s mythos into a realm of frostbitten dream logic.
— Rocco T. Thompson, Slant Magazine
I will prefer to think of The Black Phone as a standalone.
— Caitlin Kennedy, Simply Cinema
The best thing about Black Phone 2 is Finney and Gwen.
— Germain Lussier, io9.com
The main reason this sequel works is that it fleshes out the brother and sister duo from the first film even more.
— Sean Boelman, FandomWire
The way Gwen’s dreams are portrayed in Black Phone 2 is brilliant.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky
The most impressive feat Black Phone 2 pulls off is finding a way to bring the Grabber back that feels coherent and actually adds to the character.
— Rafael Motamayor, Slashfilm
Black Phone 2’s strongest storytelling choice is its setting in the Colorado cold, in the ice, in the beautiful snowy mountains.
— Brandon Wainerdi, Fangoria
What’s compelling about Black Phone 2 is that Derrickson and screenwriter C. Robert Cargill have written characters who take the spiritual dimension of life as a given.
— Zachary Lee, MovieWeb
My favorite surprise of Black Phone 2 is its earnestness.
— Amelia Emberwing, Nerdist
Black Phone 2 is very reminiscent of A Nightmare on Elm Street: Dream Warriors. I absolutely love this aspect.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky
Gwen takes on a leading role in this film that’s very similar to Patricia Arquette’s character in A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors.
— Katie Rife, IndieWire
[It] reminded me of the transition that Freddy Krueger underwent for Wes Craven’s New Nightmare.
— Emily von Steele, Daily Dead
There are more than a few shades of Freddy Krueger along the way… [and] the snowy setting brings to mind The Shining; that it’s a camp near a lake brings to mind Friday the 13th.
— Germain Lussier, io9.com
Notes of The Shining and Curtains. The religious seeds laid in The Black Phone sprout also in this installment, providing a nominal amount of spirituality, quoting scripture back at the Grabber like The Exorcist.
— Brandon Wainerdi, Fangoria
It takes talented filmmakers to understand how the themes and visuals of something like Elm Street movies work and make them their own instead of just echoing.
— Brian Tallerico, RogerEbert.com
The Grabber’s resurrection is hardly a Wes Craven knockoff. The filmmakers’ new nightmare is an ambitious evolution of The Black Phone that proves horror sequels don’t have to recycle the same cheap thrills for another go-around.
— Matt Donato, IGN Movies
Derrickson avoids retread with a distinct visual language for Gwen’s dream states.
— Meagan Navarro, Bloody Disgusting
How many ’80s slang words do we need to cram into each conversation?
— Brandon Wainerdi, Fangoria
Beautifully shot.
— Kate Sánchez, But Why Tho? A Geek Community
As can be expected from a Scott Derrickson joint, the visuals remain high capacity (especially the trademark Super 8mm sequences).
— Brandon Wainerdi, Fangoria
There are lengthy dream scenes, shot on grainy Super 8 that really works for such sequences.
— Chris Tilly, Dexerto
The Super 8 (and modified Super 16) sequences in The Black Phone 2 provide the film with its most horrific imagery.
— Katie Rife, IndieWire
Derrickson knows how to frame and pace a movie like this one, pushing the narrative forward with memorably terrifying images… He uses the forced perspective of the camera in ways that lesser filmmakers would never consider.
— Brian Tallerico, RogerEbert.com
The way that Derrickson slowly evolves the rules behind the analog sequences by the third act ensures this strong style choice has substance, too.
— Meagan Navarro, Bloody Disgusting
The visuals give the dream sequences a retro, tactile aesthetic that feels just slightly off.
— Rafael Motamayor, Slashfilm
The inside and outside of the camp look like a sound stage with lots of CGI to transport the audience to the Colorado wilderness. Because of how fake it all looks, it detracts somewhat from the terror.
— Molly Henery, The Blogging Banshee
There are just as many frights [as in the original].
— Emily von Steele, Daily Dead
Black Phone 2 really ramps up the nightmarish sights and sounds.
— Molly Henery, The Blogging Banshee
This film is has more blood and gore than the previous one, mostly done with practical effects. They are impressive and really heighten the effectiveness of the scares.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky
The snowy Colorado mountains create an absolutely terrifying backdrop that is only amplified by the haunting score. The kills here are as good as ever, but the threat of the kill manages to be even spookier.
— Amelia Emberwing, Nerdist
Derrickson and Cargill have somehow managed to get away with even more gore here — once again, much of it happening to kids.
— Zachary Lee, MovieWeb
Derrickson ensures stakes are dreadfully real in either universe, unleashing violence that leaves your mouth agape.
— Matt Donato, IGN Movies
The hisses, pops, flares, and detectable scratches of the temperamental film stock add a tactile old-school creepiness.
— Rocco T. Thompson, Slant Magazine
Ethan Hawke is as terrifying as ever, even as we mostly see him in the mask.
— Germain Lussier, io9.com
Ethan Hawke once again manages to send shivers down my spine every time he speaks.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky
There are some thick blocks of dialogue to get through here, and only an actor of Hawke’s caliber could make them work.
— Katie Rife, IndieWire
Ethan Hawke finds new ways to step up his already considerable game here… He’s never been scarier as the Grabber.
— Jeff Ewing, Collider
It’s still so cool to have Ethan Hawke in this role, adding a gravitas to the Grabber that is frankly unmatched. One of our greatest living performers is hamming it behind a frozen mask; you have to love it.
— Brandon Wainerdi, Fangoria
This sequel does suffer from the lack of his presence. He’s still great for the moments he does have, but you’re just left wishing for more.
— Sean Boelman, FandomWire
Madeleine McGraw delivers an incredible performance that left me in tears more than once.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky
The true star is McGraw, whose potty-mouthed, religious-leaning dream warrior is funny, heartbreaking, heroic, and delightful all at once.
— Germain Lussier, io9.com
McGraw is excellent. Here she’s a scream queen par excellence, with numerous moments showcasing her acting prowess.
— Jeff Ewing, Collider
The thing that really makes the film worth watching are the performances by Thames and McGraw. Both actors give it their all and it shows.
— Molly Henery, The Blogging Banshee
Mason Thames’s return as Finn is just as endearing as he was in the first film. Still, it’s his depth as Finn struggles with the aftermath of surviving and defeating the Grabber that makes Black Phone 2 stand out.
— Kate Sánchez, But Why Tho? A Geek Community
It’s Miguel Mora’s Ernesto that gets some of the biggest laughs, and serves as a fantastic addition to the cast.
— Rafael Motamayor, Slashfilm
Demián Bichir makes easy work of the film’s toughest supporting role in delivering crucial exposition with lively flair.
— Meagan Navarro, Bloody Disgusting
If there is any issue with Black Phone 2, it’s that it spends too much time not trusting its audience to follow along.
— Kate Sánchez, But Why Tho? A Geek Community
It’s a tick too long and has a section that’s far too expository for a film that’s at its best when it leans into surreal nightmare logic.
— Brian Tallerico, RogerEbert.com
It’s a long movie, though, and some of the newer cast members feel underserved.
— Brandon Wainerdi, Fangoria
Black Phone 2 has a lot to establish at the start, and, for that reason, it takes a while to get going.
— Germain Lussier, io9.com
Most of the flaws in Black Phone 2 can be traced back to its screenplay, from some of the more cringeworthy dialogue to the unwieldy chunks of exposition.
— Katie Rife, IndieWire
Black Phone 2 does its best to get some distance from the first film’s pedophilic undertones—a choice that makes sense on paper but also somehow leaves it feeling defanged.
— Rocco T. Thompson, Slant Magazine
The film is a template for how sequels can reach further and push for standalone appeal, valuing originality over redundancies that reward fans instead of manipulating their dedication to fandoms.
— Matt Donato, IGN Movies
This is the kind of theater horror we have been missing… It’s hard to find a film in recent memory that pushed on dreams quite as hard as this, at least not since Nightmare on Elm Street went into its slumber.
— Kate Sánchez, But Why Tho? A Geek Community
Does Black Phone 2 signal the start of a bigger franchise? No. Does it end in a way that opens up to more? Not really. Does it make me want to see about five more of these, so we can get to The Black Phone: New Phone and The Grabber going after Ethan Hawke playing himself? Absolutely.
— Rafael Motamayor, Slashfilm
I’d happily go on more adventures with these kids for as long as they want to keep going on them.
— Amelia Emberwing, Nerdist
Black Phone 2 opens in theaters on October 17, 2025.
