2025 was a spicy year for horror flicks, from video game-inspired slashers Until Dawn and Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 to blockbuster spectacles with Sinners and Weapons. 2026 kicks things off with Primate, a film the director Johannes Roberts (Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City, 47 Meters Down) described as “Stephen King’s Cujo, but with a chimpanzee.” The practical effects and shot compositions used in this film really elevated the horror aspects.
The story of Primate begins when Lucy’s tropical island homecoming in Hawaii turns deadly when her family’s clever chimpanzee, Ben, becomes rabid. With her father away and no help coming, paradise becomes a prison as Lucy and her friends fight for survival against a pet they once trusted.
Right off the bat, the setting of Lucy’s family home was futuristic, stylish, and fascinating to watch. It flabbergasted me to learn, after watching this chimpanzee bloodbath, that this whole movie was shot on sound stages in London—designed by Simon Bowles (The Descent, A Quiet Place: Day One). While I thought the cliffside house felt surreal, I also thought it was a real house—similar to how Tony Stark’s house in the Iron Man franchise was inspired by a real hillside home that came off overly extravagant.
The plot of Primate was simple enough, and did not overcomplicate why Lucy’s family owned a pet chimpanzee. To the film’s chagrin, a monkey-turned-killer should never be overexplained—unless it is a Planet of the Apes film. Certain parts of the movie were exceptionally shot, with some experimental camera work. I found Ben’s introduction when Lucy returned home to be both terrifying and endearing. The way his hand was in frame, and his body was revealed slowly—built up some bone-chilling tension.
While the suspense, build-up, and kills were spectacular, Primate lacked any form of human connectivity. The main characters’ backstories were explained through newspaper articles during the title sequence, as well as in the first act. Some side characters were okay to die without knowing much of their story, just used as killing fodder for Ben.
But the supporting cast needed to provide a bit more backstory to allow audiences to connect with them. It was not a main factor to fully detract from watching the film unfold, but one example was how we never really learn why Lucy hated Hannah. This issue became worse when Hannah yelled at the others, “Oh my god! What the hell is that thing? Is there a gun to shoot that thing?”
“All of the final parts were what I expected from the entire film, but unfortunately did not get it.”
Hannah seems to essentially be the voice of the audience, as she knows it is not normal for people to own pet chimpanzees. However, if she were friends with Kate, who is Lucy’s best friend, it would seem obvious that Ben would have been mentioned. Also, the montage of text exposition at the beginning of the film implied this family was all over the news for raising Ben as part of their family. Ultimately, Hannah’s reactions made no sense before Ben turned rabid.
Overall, the first act of Primate was cringeworthy with its dialogue, yet somewhat believable. There will always be some kind of male jerks trying to get into the pants of some teenage girls or young adult women. The movie opened with a scene that came later in the movie, most likely used for extreme shock value. This has been a common horror trope, especially more recently in slashers like Heart Eyes or Thanksgiving. This movie’s opening set the tone for a gruesome horror flick.
With every scramble, fight, and kill in Primate, I grew to like this movie more and more. The second act became more entertaining, as the small set expanded a bit more. The writing of the main conflict for the main characters was fine, and I was glad that they quickly figured out what was wrong with Ben. Sometimes in these horror movies, they take so long to believe the impossible. Lucy’s younger sister Erin was one of the non-believers, and I thoroughly appreciated that there were consequences for that.
For the better part of the movie, the third act became my favourite part of the film because of how chaotic every story thread came together. All of the final parts were what I expected from the entire film, but unfortunately did not get it. Thank goodness the ending landed with all the action set pieces; however, I still did not care enough for those who lived and died. Ben genuinely stole the humanity of this flick from the human actors.
The most consistent, intelligent writing throughout Primate was how they depicted Troy Katsur’s character as Lucy’s dad, Adam. Like Kotsur, Adam was also a deaf character—having to sign to his daughters. Even though Kotsur was only in parts of the movie, his screen presence was the best. The sound editor(s) deserve some credit here because they would cut the sound of everything to simulate Adam’s perspective. You can already imagine how scary that could be with a killer chimpanzee running around.
Primate was a major step up from Roberts’ last film, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City. Roberts understands practical efforts so well, but continues to struggle with writing a clean script with great dialogue. The 47 Meters Down franchise director made an enticing animal horror flick that just barely made this a recommended watch for 2026. Horror fans of this specific genre will certainly be smiling.
