M. Night Shyamalan’s Trap Release Date Moved

M. Night Shyamalan’s latest thriller, Trap, is heading to theaters just a little earlier than originally anticipated. On Thursday, Warner Bros. announced that the Josh Hartnett-starring film will now open in theaters on August 2nd, one week earlier than the previously announced release date of August 2nd. The release date shift will see Trap open up against Neon’s thriller Cuckoo starring Hunter Schafer, Columbia Pictures’ Harold and the Purple Crayon starring Zachary Levi and more. Warner Bros. also announced some additional release dates, including an untitled Atomic Monster/Blumhouse event film for April 17, 2026, an untitled Warner Bros. event film for March 26, 2027, an untitled WPBA/Locksmith film for July 23, 2027, and an untitled Warner Bros. Family sequel for December 17, 2027.

In Trap, a father and daughter go to a pop concert where they soon find themselves at the center of a dark and disturbing event. A recently released trailer for the film implies that Hartnett’s mild-mannered father is keeping a disturbing secret that could put the life he knows as well as others in jeopardy with it suggested that Hartnett’s character might not be the good guy here — but this is a Shyamalan film after all so anything is possible.

Trap is written and directed by Shyamalan and stars 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.

“That’s where Josh was when I met him. He was living outside London. At that time, raising three girls and you could he had curated his life in a way that’s rich and has a lot to say,” Shyamalan said previously. “When I talked to him, I realized he was very smart, very analytical. It was the right person at the right time. I saw him in Black Mirror. Terrific episode. So, Chris [Christopher Nolan] cast him in Oppenheimer. So, a lot of great choices. I’ve learned a lot. So, it’s so beautiful when you happen upon an artist with a lot to say.”

“It’s a pivot [for me],” Hartnett explained. “But I try to make all of my roles pivots. If you’re playing the same thing again and again, it gets boring to the audience. Working with M. Night was one of the best experiences of my career. I think he’s a true Artist in the capitol-A sense of the word. And I think people are gonna be really surprised and excited about the movie we make. It’s very bizarre, very dark, and it’s wild.”  

Trap will now open in theaters August 2nd.