The Way Out: Trailer, Poster Released for Thriller Starring Riverdale's Ashleigh Murray

Terror Films has released the official trailer and movie poster for The Way Out, a new thrille from writer/director Barry Jay. The film, described as "an unnerving and rivteing thriller" in press materials, stars Jonny Beauchamp (Penny Dreadful), Emmy winner Mike Manning (Teen Wolf, This is Us), Ashleigh Murray (Riverdale), and Sherri Shepherd (Life is Perfect). Jay, the founder of Barry's Bootcamp gym in West Hollywood, includes a bit of the horror he's known for as a filmmaker and a bit of the real-world gym scene in the film, which centers on Alex, an abused young man who finds a mentor figure in the form of a fighter who teaches him how to defend himself.

Soon, as the trailer shows, there's a murder, and Alex becomes the target of the police investigation. But what's really going on? It seems pretty sinister.

"Absence doesn't always make the heart grow fonder," Jay said in a statement. "Sometimes it gives you the time and distance to gain the clarity to see how badly you were mistreated and the courage to finally do something about it. That was me – I moved out of an abusive household when I was 20 years old. I had been abused until after I was a senior in high school. Severely underweight, shut down, feared everyone and everything and with good reason. Sobriety was a gift that helped me heal through all of that, a day at a time and that is the inspiration for The Way Out."

You can see the trailer below.

"My hope is to send a message to the abuser and the abused," Jay added. "To the abuser, I hope to show the ripple effect of their heinous actions, and how it can boomerang back to them, rightfully destroying their lives. To the abused, I hope to show there is hope, hope for better days, ability to find the self-esteem and strength to create boundaries, how forgiveness can be the thing that helps you finally drop the rock so you can create a better new and healthy life."

Here's the film's official synopsis, along with the movie poster:

Alex is an aspiring singer/songwriter, a drug addict who's been damaged from childhood abuse. After the death of his father and inheriting the family home, he takes in a roommate, a fighter, who takes Alex under his wing, teaching him how to fight back and stand up to abusers. But soon this leads Alex down a dark path that threatens his sobriety and his life.

The Way Out will be released on digital video on demand platforms beginning February 10, 2023.