Four years after his escape from the clutches of The Grabber, Finn (Mason Thames) carries the trauma of the ordeal with him. In Black Phone 2, Finn, along with his sibling Gwen (Madeleine McGraw) relive the nightmare. Writer-producer Robert C. Cargill explains how they want to unpack Finn’s burden as a survivor and how it’ll play into the sequel.
“Finn went through something horrific, and while he came out of it strong, the weight of what happened has not left him,” writer-producer C. Robert Cargill says. “He is haunted by the Grabber. He sees him everywhere, and he is using drugs to try to numb the fear. He wants nothing to do with the spirits, with the phone, with any of it. He is trying to shut it all out and live in denial. So, as Gwen starts uncovering this new mystery, Finn is doing everything he can to stay out of it. But of course, life does not let you run forever. Eventually, he will have to face what he has been avoiding.”
In Black Phone 2 sees Finn and Gwen revisiting their nightmare as The Grabber vows vengeance from beyond the grave. Gwen starts to see visions of an eerie winter camp, along with three boys being stalked by The Grabber. Determined to end the cycle of pain, the siblings set off to confront a killer who has grown stronger in death.
Thames, returning to from his breakout role in the first film, aims to portray a Finn who has grown more experienced and complex. “In this film, we see that Finn has changed,” Thames says. “He has been holding all this anger inside, and he is not the same kid we met in the first movie. Back then, he was already complex, but now he is even more layered. Instead of facing his trauma, he smokes weed to cope. The moment he feels any of that PTSD creeping in, he shuts it out. This film becomes a question of whether he is ready to confront the Grabber again or keep running from him.”
Madeleine McGraw also returns to take on the role of Finn’s younger sister. Haunted by chilling visions, she’s left feeling isolated and anxious about a growing sense of danger. “In the first film, we hinted that the kids inherited different parts of their mother’s abilities of speaking with the dead and having prophetic dreams,” writer-producer C. Robert Cargill says. “Gwen got the dream side of it. She can glimpse the future and communicate with the dead through her dreams. Finn, meanwhile, has the ability to hear the dead through the phone, but in this film, he is trying to shut it all out. He is numbing himself and refusing to engage with his ability, but Gwen is embracing hers. She is exploring it, evolving and growing stronger. By the end, she is not just receiving messages, she’s communicating back, asking questions, controlling her dreams, even interacting with spirits inside them.”
McGraw also wanted to transform her performance for Black Phone 2, understanding that Gwen has changed after the events of the previous film. “One of the most exciting parts of this film was exploring Gwen’s dreams and how much she has changed,” McGraw says. “In the first movie, she was fiery and fearless. Now she feels like an outcast. She is beaten down, getting bullied at school and carrying a lot of pain. It was harder to get into her head this time. In the first film, our personalities were alike. Now, we are kind of opposites. She has become quiet and introverted, and I am more extroverted. But that made it even more interesting to explore who she is becoming.”
Horror returns as Black Phone 2 is now showing in Philippine cinemas. Follow Universal Pictures PH (FB), UniversalPicturesPH (IG), and UniversalPicsPH (TikTok) for the latest updates.
