Return to Silent Hill finally has a release date, and there's not long left to wait now
It's been a huge week for Silent Hill fans There's been the Silent Hill f trailer and release date drop, news of who's starring in the upcoming film adaptation of Silent Hill 2, and now we even have a release date for it. Wait, hold on a second, what do you mean all of this has happened over years? I guess every day's a blur when you're starved of classic horror content.
Return to Silent Hill was first announced back in 2022 alongside other projects like the Silent Hill 2 remake and Silent Hill f. It then started filming back in 2023, with Christophe Gans, responsible for the 2006 original film with Sean Bean, taking the helm as director. It feels like I've lived a thousand lives since then, but I'm happy to say that it finally has a release date: January 23, 2026 (via Eurogamer), which isn't too far away.
Jeremy Irvine, who is best known for his roles in War Horse, Mama Mia! Here We Go Again, and Great Expectations, will be playing James Sunderland. Meanwhile, Hannah Emily Anderson, who was in Jigsaw, X-Men: Dark Phoenix, and The Purge, has been cast as Mary/Maria.
"Return to Silent Hill is a mythological love story about someone so deeply in love, they're willing to go to hell to save someone," Gans said. "I'm delighted to have the wonderful talents of both Jeremy Irvine and Hannah Emily Anderson take us on this journey into a psychological horror world that I hope will both satisfy and surprise fans of Silent Hill."
Gans actually discussed the film's synopsis not too long ago, promising fans that the movie would be "a faithful adaptation of the video game," (via Variety). Promises have been broken before, but I'm actually not that bothered about how faithful this film will be, I'm just morbidly intrigued to see how it will turn out.
I have a bit of a guilty passion for horror game movie adaptations, both good and bad. I've watched all of the Resident Evil films, more than once, and enjoyed the 2006 Silent Hill film. Although that scene with Pyramid Head outside the church still makes me feel a bit queasy.
So with that in mind, Return to Silent Hill is a bit of a win-win for me. Either it's great and I'll be able to fill the Silent Hill hole until the next project releases, or it'll be bad and I'll have yet another cheesy horror film to add to my watchlist.
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