'Longlegs' Director Osgood Perkins Brings Stephen King’s Classic Creepy Toy Monkey Short to Life in "The Monkey," Starring Theo James - Watch New Red Band Trailer!

Theo James Faces a Cursed Toy Monkey in Longlegs Director Oz Perkins's Upcoming Film Adaptation of Stephen King's Classic Horror Story

Are you afraid of spiders? Maybe. Afraid of rats? Perhaps. Afraid of clowns? Definitely. Well, why not toss toy monkeys onto your list of things you’ll likely be afraid of—because this new horror movie from Oz Perkins will have you thinking that anything related to monkeys, toys or otherwise, is nothing but bad news.

Here, check out the full red band trailer for Perkins's latest horror offering, The Monkey. Once you finish watching this new preview, we suspect you’ll probably find yourself rummaging through your old box of childhood toys, just to make sure there isn't a toy monkey hiding in the collection. Because that's what we'll be doing for the next few hours or so.

Filmmaker Osgood Perkins had a tremendous 2024. After spending several years building his career as a horror director known for creating a dense atmosphere of dread and anxiety (see: 2015's The Blackcoat's Daughter and 2016's I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House), Perkins, who transitioned from acting in his early career (he's the Will Ferrell-looking kid in Legally Blonde) and stepped out of the shadow of his late, great father, actor Anthony Perkins (of Psycho fame), finally hit it big with the box-office smash Longlegs. The film, which featured one of the most bat-shit crazy performances from Nicolas Cage (a guy already known for bat-shit crazy performances), became one of the biggest horror movies of last year, earning comparisons to serial killer films like Seven and Silence of the Lambs.

Now, if you picked up on a little dark humor in Perkins's Longlegs, you'll be pleased to know that the writer-director is leaning even more into his twisted humor with his newest supernatural thriller. Perkins is also adapting the classic short story The Monkey by horror master Stephen King. The story was featured in a collection of King's now-classic shorts published in 1985 in the book called Skeleton Crew. It famously had the cover of a toy monkey with cymbals in his hands.

Among the stories also featured in Skeleton Crew collection were The Mist, The Raft, The Jaunt, Survivor Type, Gramma, and Word Processor of the Gods, all of which had been adapted into films or television episodes.

The Monkey tells a chilling story of a cursed toy monkey that brings death and destruction to anyone unlucky enough to possess it.

Theo James, from The White Lotus: Season 2 and Guy Ritchie's Netflix series The Gentlemen, stars as a man desperate to avoid becoming the monkey’s next victim. James also plays twins, Hal and Bill, two brothers who have been haunted by this cursed toy monkey since discovering it in their father's attic years ago.

James is joined by a solid supporting cast that includes Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black, She-Hulk), Elijah Wood (The Lord of the Rings), Colin O'Brien (Wonka), Rohan Campbell (Halloween Ends), and Sarah Levy (Schitt's Creek) with Christian Convery (Sweet Tooth) playing the kid versions of Theo James's twin characters Hal and Bill.

Fellow horror filmmaker James Wan, the mastermind behind The Conjuring universe and the Saw and Insidious franchises who also helmed the DC blockbuster Aquaman and its sequel, is on board as an executive producer, working under his Atomic Monster production label. So, you don't get one horror heavyweight, but three: Perkins, King, and Wan! What else do you want or need?

The Monkey opens in theaters on Feb. 21.