Neon has released the trailer for Exit 8, the psychological horror adaptation of Kotake Create’s viral video game that turned infinite subway corridors into nightmare fuel.
The premise is deceptively simple: a man becomes trapped in an endless sterile subway passage searching for Exit 8. His escape depends on following the rules. Do not overlook anything out of the ordinary. If you discover an anomaly, turn back immediately. If you don’t find one, keep moving forward. Then leave from Exit 8. A single oversight resets everything, sending him back to the beginning.
Genki Kawamura (producer of Your Name) directs from a screenplay he co-wrote with Kentaro Hirase. Kazunari Ninomiya (Letters from Iwo Jima) stars alongside Yamato Kôchi, Naru Asanuma, Kotone Hanase, and Nana Komatsu (Silence).
The film world-premiered in the Midnight section of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival to an eight-minute standing ovation before playing Toronto International Film Festival, Sitges, and Busan. It became a major hit in Japan, earning over $27 million domestically, and currently sits at 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. Not too shabby for a video game adaptation! I think all those mid 2000s ones (Resident Evil, House of the Dead, Silent Hill, etc.) set a rough precedent. But we are living in a post Five Nights at Freddy‘s world.
Exit 8 the game became a phenomenon by tapping into liminal space dread, the unsettling feeling of being stuck in transitional spaces that should be temporary. The walking simulator sold over two million copies worldwide, spawning countless Let’s Play videos and streaming sessions as players obsessively cataloged anomalies.
Translating that mechanic to film is the gamble. Video games thrive on repetition and player agency. Movies require narrative momentum. But Kawamura’s festival reception suggests he found the balance between the game’s methodical tension and cinematic pacing.
I guess i’ll have to see for myself.
Exit 8 arrives in theaters April 10, 2026 via Neon.
