Why Jessica Chastain's 'Other Mommy' trailer is the year's most unsettling preview | WATCH

The first trailer for ‘Other Mommy’ has done something few film previews manage to achieve, it has become a talking point in its own right. Instead of simply teasing an upcoming horror release, the trailer has reportedly left audiences unsettled after screening before Christopher Nolan's ‘The Odyssey’, with social media quickly filling up with reactions from viewers who said they were caught off guard by its disturbing imagery. 

The supernatural thriller stars Oscar winner Jessica Chastain in dual roles as a loving mother and her sinister supernatural double, an entity known as "Other Mommy". Directed by Rob Savage, the filmmaker behind ‘Hos’t and ‘The Boogeyman’, the film is scheduled to arrive in cinemas worldwide on October 9.

The 2-minute, 15-second trailer has already sparked debate online, with some horror fans praising its unsettling atmosphere while others believe it is among the most disturbing trailers shown in theatres this year.

A family story that quickly becomes a nightmare

Based on Josh Malerman's bestselling 2024 novel ‘Incidents Around the House’, ‘Other Mommy’ centres on eight-year-old Bela, played by Arabella Olivia Clark, whose already troubled home life becomes even more frightening when a mysterious presence begins appearing in the form of her own mother.

The trailer initially presents an ordinary domestic moment. Ursula, played by Chastain, prepares Bela's favourite pasta while chatting warmly with her daughter. The conversation gradually shifts into something deeply unsettling.

She asks Bela, "Do you want to know something silly? Sometimes I think about when you and I were one person. Do you remember that?"

Watch the trailer here:

When the child recalls being in her mother's womb, Ursula responds, "You were in my heart."

Moments later comes the line that has become the trailer's defining moment.

"Can I go into your heart?"

As the pasta burns unattended on the stove, the atmosphere transforms from comforting to deeply unnerving. The sequence marks the beginning of a psychological nightmare in which Bela can no longer tell whether she is speaking to her real mother or the sinister entity imitating her.

Why audiences say the trailer is so disturbing

Unlike trailers that rely heavily on loud jump scares, Other Mommy builds tension through familiar family settings that slowly become threatening.

One of the trailer's most talked-about moments shows Bela's father rushing into a smoke-filled kitchen after the unattended meal begins burning. As he searches the room, a distorted version of Chastain suddenly appears beneath the dining table, a brief shot that many viewers described as the trailer's biggest shock.

Throughout the preview, the horror comes from uncertainty rather than gore. The child repeatedly questions whether the woman standing before her is really her mother or the creature hiding behind the familiar face.

That blurring of trust, combined with the supernatural idea of a maternal doppelganger, has become one of the trailer's most unsettling themes.

Jessica Chastain returns to horror

Although Chastain has built much of her recent career around dramatic performances, ‘Other Mommy’ marks another return to the horror genre.

The Academy Award-winning actor previously appeared in ‘Shelter’, ‘Mama’, ‘Crimson Peak’ and ‘It: Chapter Two’, making the new film her latest collaboration with supernatural storytelling.

In ‘Other Mommy’, she takes on the challenge of portraying both the protective mother Ursula and the terrifying entity that imitates her, forcing the audience to question which version is real.

From bestselling novel to big-screen nightmare

The film adapts Josh Malerman's novel ‘Incidents Around the House’, which quickly developed a reputation among horror readers for its unsettling atmosphere.

Director Rob Savage has said he was searching for a horror project that felt fresh after completing ‘The Boogeyman’ and spending time away from filmmaking during the Hollywood strikes. He felt audiences were ready for horror that challenged expectations rather than repeating familiar formulas.

Producer James Wan believes the central concept is frightening because it twists something universally comforting into something terrifying.

"It tries to be something that you're familiar with, that you're comfortable with, someone that you know that you look up to, to protect you," Wan said in an interview with ‘Empire’.

Riding Hollywood's horror wave

‘Other Mommy’ arrives at a time when horror continues to dominate cinemas. Big-budget releases and independent productions alike have found enthusiastic audiences throughout 2026, with films such as ‘The Mummy’, ‘Evil Dead: Burn’, ‘Obsession’ and ‘Backrooms’ helping fuel renewed interest in the genre.

The cast also includes Jay Duplass, Dichen Lachman, Arian Moayed and Karen Allen.

Produced by James Wan's Atomic Monster and Blumhouse, the film will be released in cinemas on October 9.