If the  next installment of the Halloween franchise is the most anticipated horror film of 2018 then Hereditary is a close second. The buzz for Ari Aster’s supernatural chiller has been building slowly but steadily since its debut earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival’s Midnight Section. Scheduled for a June 8th release this year, Hereditary has been tagged as the one of the scariest films in years, with some critics comparing it to The Exorcist.

What We Know So Far

To date, little information has been available about this upcoming horror release. Writer and director Ari Aster has several short films under his belt but Hereditary represents his first feature-length offering. The first trailer was dropped about two months ago, and a second trailer debuted last week.

Neither trailer offers much detail about the film’s story. According to the official synopsis at A24 Films’ website:

When Ellen, the matriarch of the Graham family, passes away, her daughter’s family begins to unravel cryptic and increasingly terrifying secrets about their ancestry. They more they discover, the more they find themselves trying to outrun  the sinister fate they seem to have inherited.

With this synopsis, both trailers, and the title of the film itself, we can assume that the supernatural presence in the film is centered on the daughter, Charlie, and may be an evil that is “inherited”. Toni Collette, who has some experience with the cinematic supernatural (The Sixth Sense, Krampus), stars in Hereditary along with Gabriel Byrne.

Indie Film Buzz

While both trailers seemingly promise intense scares accompanied by a brooding atmosphere, indie film buzz doesn’t always translate into box office success or audience love. Get Out and A Quiet Place both benefited from critical praise and were equally well received by film-goers. In contrast, The Witch and It Comes At Night divided audiences and critics, with It Comes At Night particularly polarizing people who felt the film delivered something very different form what was promised by the trailer and title. At present, Hereditary is sitting at 100% on Rotten Tomatoes with a total of 26 votes. Even if you ignore the critical praise both trailers are pretty amazing on their own. At the very least, Hereditary looks like a slickly made, eclectic horror offering for fans.