Moeka Hoshi in Japanese Ghost Story Thriller ‘Never After Dark’ Trailer​

“This spirit is… different.” Magnolia Pictures has unveiled the official trailer for a film titled Never After Dark, a mysterious ghost story thriller from Japan. Made by filmmaker Dave Boyle in Japan (he’s a regular over there), this premiered at the 2026 SXSW Film Festival earlier this year, and arrives to watch in theaters this September before the horror season. The chilling supernatural film stars Moeka Hoshi best known as Usami Fuji from the “Shogun” series. A wandering medium, Airi spends her life guiding restless spirits out of the world of the living. Summoned to an isolated country house, she comes face to face with a grotesque apparition with powers that defy Airi’s experience. As she digs deeper into the house’s past, a secret comes to light — and Airi finds herself hunted by a far more unpredictable force. For the first time, her greatest adversary is not the supernatural – but the living. The cast features Hoshi with Kurumi Inagaki, Kento Kaku, Mutsuo Yoshioka, Bokuzō Masana, and Tae Kimura. This film has mostly good reviews so far, which state that this: “bewitching J-Horror examination of mortality & monsters flickers with this addictive liveliness despite its deceased characters.” It’s definitely worth a look, even if you aren’t usually a horror fan.

Here’s the official trailer (+ poster) for Dave Boyle’s horror thriller Never After Dark, from YouTube:

A wandering medium, Airi (Moeka Hoshi), spends her life guiding restless spirits out of the world of the living accompanied by her constant companion: her dead sister Miku (Kurumi Inagaki). Summoned to exorcise a spirit from an isolated country house by the new owner, Teiko (Tae Kimura), she comes face to face with a grotesque apparition with powers that defy Airi’s experience. Faced with skepticism from Teiko’s son, Gunji (Kento Kako), she digs deeper into the house’s past until a secret comes to light — and Airi finds herself hunted by a far more unpredictable force. For the first time, her greatest adversary is not the supernatural, but the living. Director Dave Boyle spins a terrifying and hauntingly atmospheric ghost story. Never After Dark is written and directed by American filmmaker Dave Boyle, director of the films Big Dreams Little Tokyo, White on Rice, Surrogate Valentine, Daylight Savings, Man from Reno, and the recent “House of Ninjas” series previously. Produced by Kento Kaku, Dave Boyle, & Kosuke Tsutsumi. This initially premiered at the 2026 SXSW Film Festival earlier this year. Magnolia releases Boyle’s Never After Dark film in select US theaters starting on September 25th, 2026 coming up soon. Look any good?

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