Black Phone 2 Rings Again: Is The Grabber Back? What We Know About Ethan Hawke’s Return

Horror is dialing back in. The Black Phone 2 is official, it picks up four years after the first movie, and yes, Ethan Hawke is back as the Grabber in a way that is... not exactly alive. If you thought the basement door was closed for good, think again.

Quick facts before the line starts ringing

• Movie: The Black Phone 2
• Director: Scott Derrickson
• Writers: Scott Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill
• Cast: Ethan Hawke, Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw, Demian Bichir, Miguel Mora, Jeremy Davies, Arianna Rivas
• Set: Four years after the first film
• Runtime: 1h 54m
• Rotten Tomatoes (so far): 80%
• Festival premiere: Fantastic Fest, September 20, 2025
• Theatrical release (US): October 17, 2025 via Universal Pictures

So... how is the Grabber back?

Short version: not as a regular guy. The first movie ends with Finney Blake escaping and killing the Grabber, the cops uncovering the bodies thanks to Gwen's visions, and pretty much everyone moving on with their lives. Clean ending, right? That was the assumption. Then Derrickson went and made a sequel anyway.

The trailer confirms the new story is set four years later, and the official line on the plot leaves little doubt that we are in supernatural territory this time:

"The Grabber seeks vengeance on Finn from beyond the grave by menacing Finn's younger sister, Gwen."

Yep, beyond the grave. The vibe is very dream-stalker, Freddy-adjacent without actually being that. Gwen starts getting calls in her dreams from that terrible black phone and seeing visions of three boys being hunted at a winter camp called Alpine Lake. She decides to end it for herself and her brother, convinces Finney to head to the camp during a winter storm, and the two of them confront a killer who has only gotten stronger in death. If the first film was a survival thriller with a supernatural assist, this one leans hard into the ghost story.

Who is back (and who joins the haunt)

Mason Thames returns as Finney 'Finn' Blake, now older but still carrying the weight of that basement. Madeleine McGraw is back as Gwen, whose psychic abilities are the key to this whole mess. Ethan Hawke returns as the Grabber in whatever spectral form he is taking. Jeremy Davies is back as their father. Miguel Mora, who played Finney's friend Robin (one of the Grabber's victims), is also returning, which pretty clearly points to dream/vision sequences. Demian Bichir and Arianna Rivas are on the call sheet too, rounding out the sequel's new faces.

Behind the camera, Scott Derrickson directs again and co-writes with C. Robert Cargill. If you liked what they did together on The Black Phone and Sinister, the band is basically intact.

The in-between sequel you might have missed

This is the first feature follow-up, but Derrickson and Cargill already dipped back into this world with Dreamkill, their short inside the horror anthology V/H/S/85. It doesn't follow Finney or Gwen; it centers on their cousin, Gunther, who is questioned by police amid a murder spree and has psychic abilities of his own. It is not a direct continuation, but it widens the mythology and hints at how far the supernatural side can go. Consider it a bridge between movies if you want extra context.

Release timing and early buzz

The Black Phone 2 premiered at Fantastic Fest on September 20, 2025, and got strong early reactions from the horror crowd. Universal rolls it into theaters on October 17, 2025, just in time for spooky season. With a 1 hour 54 minute runtime and an early 80% on Rotten Tomatoes, this looks like a bigger, meaner swing that pushes the story from grounded terror into full-on spectral revenge.

Bottom line

The first movie tied a pretty tight bow on the Grabber. The sequel cuts that ribbon with ghostly scissors. If the idea of Hawke's mask and that phone crossing into dreams gives you the cold sweats, mission accomplished. The line is open again.