Will Black Phone 2 Hit Netflix? Release Window, Where to Watch, Cast and Plot Details
The Grabber is back on the line. The Black Phone 2 is ringing into theaters soon, but when it goes digital, don’t expect to answer on Netflix.
The Black Phone turned a creepy rotary into a hotline to the beyond back in 2021. Now the sequel is nearly here, and yes, the Grabber is back. If you were hoping to catch it on Netflix, temper expectations. Different pipeline. Here is the plan for theaters, what the streaming window looks like, who is in this thing, and what the story is actually doing this time.
When and where you can watch it
Black Phone 2 hits US theaters on October 17, 2025 — prime spooky-season placement.
As for streaming: this is a Universal Pictures release backed by Blumhouse, which usually means a short run in theaters followed by a drop on Peacock. Lately, the Universal/Blumhouse titles have landed on Peacock about 90 days after opening weekend. Quick receipts from this year:
Wolf Man opened January 17, 2025 and hit Peacock on April 18, 2025. The Woman in the Yard opened March 28, 2025 and started streaming June 27, 2025. Drop arrived April 11, 2025 and moved to Peacock July 11, 2025.
Following that pattern, expect Black Phone 2 to begin streaming in mid-January 2026. The date that fits the math: January 16, 2026 (expected). Again, not Netflix — Peacock is the likely destination.
So your choice is pretty simple: go see it big and loud around Halloween, or wait a few months and scare yourself at home with the lights off.
Who is back (and who is new)
- Ethan Hawke returns as the Grabber
- Mason Thames is back as Finney Blake
- Madeleine McGraw returns as Gwen, Finney's younger sister
- Demian Bichir joins as Armando, the supervisor of Alpine Lake camp
- Jeremy Davis plays Terrence, Finney and Gwen's father
- Miguela Mora is Ernesto, Robin's brother, a role they also played in the first film
- Anna Lore appears as Hope, Finney and Gwen's late mother
- Graham Abbey plays Kenneth
- Maev Beaty plays Barbara
What the sequel is actually about
Black Phone 2 picks up four years after the original. Finney is still carrying the trauma from his run-in with the Grabber. Gwen, now a teenager, is getting hit with nightmares and eerie visions — complete with that infamous phone ringing again when no phone should be ringing.
Trying to get away from it all, the siblings head to Alpine Lake camp during a nasty winter storm. Instead of a reset, they uncover unsettling links between their family and the Grabber's history. So, yeah, the past is not done with them.
Early word (and a little expectation-setting)
First reactions are solid enough, but several critics are saying it does not quite top the original. Not shocking — sequels to breakout horror hits rarely do — but worth keeping in mind if you are managing hype.
The bottom line
Theaters October 17, 2025. Streaming likely on Peacock around January 16, 2026. If you want the Halloween crowd energy, go in October. If you would rather clutch a blanket on your couch, you probably will not wait much past New Year.