“They thought he was family.” That’s the tagline for Johannes Roberts’ latest blood-soaked experiment in survival horror, and if the new trailer for Paramount’s “Primate” is any indication, audiences are in for something as wild as it is weirdly emotional. Co-written with Ernest Riera, the film reteams Roberts with the claustrophobic terror and tactile filmmaking that defined “47 Meters Down” and “The Strangers: Prey at Night,” but this time his monster isn’t a shark or a masked killer — it’s a chimpanzee named Ben.
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In “Primate,” a group of friends’ tropical vacation erupts into chaos when their beloved pet turns feral, unleashing a primal streak of horror that quickly turns their island escape into a bloodbath. The setup sounds ludicrous, but Roberts leans into the absurdity, fusing pulp terror with sharp genre self-awareness. “It was a huge concern… are our audiences going to turn against us? Are they going to feel sorry for Ben?” the director told Bloody Disgusting, acknowledging the film’s uneasy tonal tightrope. Like “Cujo,” one of its clearest inspirations, the movie weaponizes empathy — forcing viewers to fear and pity its creature in equal measure.
According to Roberts, the production relied on practical effects and physical performance rather than CGI, blending costumes, animatronics, and puppetry to give Ben a disturbingly real presence. “It wears its influences on its sleeve,” he said, noting that the combination of old-school mechanics and modern tension made the shoot both challenging and exhilarating. A key set piece centers on a swimming pool — a fitting metaphor, given the hydrophobia linked to the rabies-like infection at the story’s core — that turns paradise into a death trap.
Despite the gruesome premise, Roberts insists there’s a strain of dark comedy running through “Primate.” “The preposterousness of the whole scenario… brings in humor and the madness of it all,” he said. That tonal whiplash is part of the appeal: a killer-chimp horror movie that plays it straight until it doesn’t, where empathy and absurdity bleed together until you can’t tell which is scarier.
The film stars Johnny Sequoyah, Jessica Alexander, Troy Kotsur, Victoria Wyant, Gia Hunter, Benjamin Cheng, Charlie Mann, and Tienne Simon. Produced by Walter Hamada, John Hodges, and Bradley Pilz, and executive produced by Vicki Dee Rock, Nathan Samdahl, Johannes Roberts, Pete Chiappetta, Anthony Tittanegro, and Andrew Lary, “Primate” swings into theaters on January 9, 2026. Watch the trailer below.
