Shudder has recently acquired Honey Bunch, which comes to us from Madeleine Sims-Fewer and Dusty Mancinelli. Honey Bunch had its world premiere at the 2025 Berlin International Film Festival before the North American debut at 2025’s Toronto International Film Festival, where Paste Magazine's Jim Vorel described it as a "70s throwback mystery thriller."
Honey Bunch features Grace Glowicki (Dead Lover), Jason Issacs (The White Lotus), Ben Petrie (Blackberry), Kate Dickie (The Witch), India Brown (Invasion) and Julian Richings (Beau is Afraid). Sims-Fewer and Mancinelli both wrote and directed the film, and the two also worked on Shudder’s Violation.
Honey Bunch is the story of Diana (Glowicki) and her husband (Petrie), who pursue experimental treatments after she comes to from a coma. Awakening with memory loss and confusion, Diana begins to distrust her husband and his motives.
Sims-Fewer and Mancinelli pronounced themselves as “thrilled to continue our collaboration with Shudder.” They said Honey Bunch “celebrates the terrifying, painful, yet intimately rewarding struggles of what it takes to sustain a relationship. It's a twisted love story. Not a fairytale. We can’t wait for viewers to experience our weird, macabre film in the way only Shudder can deliver."
SVP of Shudder Acquisitions and Production Emily Gotto says the film-makers are delivering “unforgettable storytelling” and promises that viewers will be treated to an emotional, entertaining film that includes standout acting performances.
Violation was a brutal, unrelenting film that included a grueling, realistic depiction of sexual assault and its equally catastrophic aftermath. While revenge is sought (successfully, more or less), it doesn’t turn out to be as cathartic as one would hope. Violation can be still be seen on Shudder, but do yourself a favor and don’t expect a lighthearted horror romp if you watch it; it’s heavy subject matter.
Interestingly, in Violation, Sims-Fewer played the lead role of Miriam, the woman who is sexually assaulted and ultimately gets her bloody revenge. Her performance is raw and painfully real, and after watching, I wondered how she made it through the shoot.
Early reviews of Honey Bunch seem to indicate that the film’s slow beginning pace is much like that of Violation, but it’s unclear if the level of brutality is the same as well. Shudder has not yet announced the date Honey Bunch will be available to stream, but it will be sometime in 2026, and you can bet that 1428 Elm will let you know as soon as we do!