"Winners come first" in Bone Lake, an erotic horror thriller that's hitting theaters sooner than planned.
The independent film, released last year, stars Maddie Hasson and Marco Pigossi as a couple who book a beautiful, isolated mansion on Bone Lake. However, they soon discover that the property has been double-booked by an alluring and mysterious couple, Will (Alex Roe) and Cin (Andra Nechita). As tensions rise, marked by both sexual undercurrents and impending danger, the vacation transforms into a web of deception, desire, and dark secrets that should have remained buried. Ultimately, both couples find themselves questioning whether someone intended for them to be together. The recently released trailer promises a mix of sex, gore, and mystery—a perfect blend of Temptation Island and Bodies, Bodies, Bodies.
Brian Tallerico, a top critic at RogerEbert.com, says Bone Lake is "a film that feels like a European relationship drama for about an hour before exploding in remarkably bloody chaos." The consensus so far is that Bone Lake can be more "funny" than "scary," but that doesn't limit the gore and downright chaos that is unleashed in an hour and a half. The movie had its world premiere at Fantastic Fest in September 2024, and in May 2025, Bleecker Street acquired the U.S. distribution rights. Mercedes Bryce Morgan directs from a screenplay by Joshua Friedlander (Holly Slept Over). Jason Blumenfeld (Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire) is also producing. Bone Lake is one of many latest collaborations between Bleecker Street and LD Entertainment. One of their upcoming releases includes Spinal Tap II: The End Continues, directed by Rob Reiner.
Morgan previously directed Fixation and Spoonful of Sugar in 2022. The latter is a Shudder original that follows Millicent, a college student participating in a treatment program that microdoses LSD. At the same time, she is hired to care for Johnny, a sick and nonverbal child who must wear a special suit to protect him from deadly pathogens and allergies. Realizing that Johnny has a terrible home life, Millicent gives him a drop of LSD, which leads to horrifying consequences. Nick Matthews (Saw X) serves as the director of photography. He has cited A Clockwork Orange, Evil Dead II, and Funny Games as the main sources of inspiration.
Bone Lake has been rated “R” for strong bloody violence, grisly images, sexual content, graphic nudity, language throughout, and some drug use. It has been pushed up from an October 10 to an October 3 release date.