A24’s horror trilogy heads to the ’80s in first Maxxxine trailer

It’s shaping up to be a promising summer of horror. Last week, we got a first glimpse at Tilman Singer’s Cuckoo, which comes out in August, and this week is starting off with the first trailer for Ti West’s Maxxxine. The movie will round out a trilogy that kicked off in 2022 with the release of both X and its prequel Pearl; it hits theaters on July 5th.

As the title implies, the new movie follows aspiring actress Maxine Minx (Mia Goth) as she attempts to make it big in Hollywood in 1985 following the gruesome events of X. Much like Pearl before her (also played by Goth), she seems willing to do anything to make it happen. But bad news: a mysterious killer known as the “night stalker” is on the loose, complicating those plans.

Despite telling parts of the same story, each entry in West’s trilogy has had a completely different vibe. X introduced both Pearl and Maxine and was modeled after ’70s slasher movies. Pearl, meanwhile, was set a few decades earlier and had elements of The Wizard of Oz (only, you know, much darker). So Maxxxine naturally is very ’80s, from the music to the fashion.

In addition to Goth, it stars Elizabeth Debicki, Moses Sumney, Michelle Monaghan, Bobby Cannavale, Halsey, Lily Collins, Giancarlo Esposito, and Kevin Bacon.