After the well-received Silent Hill 2 video game remake brought the series back from the mists, anticipation was high for Christophe Gans’s next chapter: Return to Silent Hill.
The new film’s debut trailer plunges viewers back into the eerie fog—James Sunderland (Jeremy Irvine) seeks his lost love Mary, only to encounter monstrous creatures like Pyramid Head, Creepers, and Red Nurses in a town distorted by darkness. Watch below:
Yet, the reception has been lukewarm at best. Some fans take issue with this approach. One user on Reddit offered a reasoned reminder: “Return to Silent Hill is an adaptation, not a direct copy. Who actually wants a 1:1 carbon copy of the game?” But others were less forgiving: “The movie is shtty, gets the lore wrong… It’s just a B-horror movie. Seriously, how are you all okay with such a good game having such a trash adaptation?”*
Others, though nostalgic for the minimalist dread of Silent Hill 2, accept the shift in tone as necessary: *“I know everyone wants psychological horror… but this is modern 2025 Hollywood. Return to Silent Hill appears to be a fun and thrilling romp… I’d rather have this than nothing at all.”
Fans are also speculating about which ending the movie will embrace—after all, the game and its remake offer multiple conclusions, from tragic to meta and even bizarre. One theory: “Knowing Christophe Gans, he will probably create his own ending. Maybe the loop theory—James trapped, repeating the story—will be the twist.”
There are even questions about expanded roles. The IMDb page lists characters like “Kaitlyn,” unfamiliar to long-time fans. “All these extra characters and hooded figures carrying someone—has the cult from Silent Hill 1 and 3 been shoehorned in?” a fan speculated.
This isn’t Gans’s first rodeo with the franchise. His 2006 film was visually bold but dramatically uneven. Some critics still call it the best video game movie yet, while others note it sacrificed substance for style.
As the January 23, 2026, release date approaches, the question remains: Will the return to Silent Hill honor the haunting, minimalist spirit of Silent Hill 2, or will it lean into a showier horror spectacle? Fans are watching—and waiting.
The Geek is a working screenwriter, director and screenwriting instructor.
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