Small-Town Secrets Surface in ‘Alma and the Wolf’
- Horror News
Emily Bennett- 0
- 4 minutes read
Psychological horror Alma and the Wolf is set to arrive in select cinemas and on digital platforms from 20 June, courtesy of Paramount. Directed by Michael Patrick Jann and written by Abigail Miller, the film unfolds in a fictional Oregon community destabilised by a violent animal attack and a string of inexplicable events. Ethan Embry stars as a small-town deputy whose personal loss drives him to uncover a threat that may not be fully grounded in reality.
The film had its world premiere at the Boston Underground Film Festival in March and was shot on location in Pacific City, Oregon. It marks Jann’s return to feature directing following 2023’s Organ Trail, and continues his gradual shift from comedy and satire into darker, more atmospheric material. Republic Pictures holds distribution rights.
Set in the isolated town of Spiral Creek, Alma and the Wolf opens with the discovery of a local man wandering bloodied through backroads, seemingly traumatised by a violent encounter. With sightings of a wolf in the nearby woods and heightened anxiety among residents, Deputy Ren Accord (Embry) is tasked with assessing whether there’s cause for concern. When his own son goes missing during the investigation, Ren’s belief that something beyond a lone predator is at work begins to harden into conviction.
The supporting cast includes Li Jun Li, Jeremie Harris, Lukas Jann, Beth Malone, Kevin Allison, Alexandra Doke and Mather Zickel. While the plot follows a familiar framework of a local authority figure uncovering buried secrets, the film’s tone favours ambiguity over action, building its tension around creeping uncertainty and psychological erosion.
Jann’s background in comedy with The State and past directing credits on series such as Flight of the Conchords and The Good Doctor inform the film’s tonal control, but Alma and the Wolf eschews satire for sustained dread.
Alma and the Wolf opens in select cinemas and will be available on digital from 20 June.
Alma and the Wolf trailer
