HOPE: Sci-Fi Thriller From THE WAILING Director Sets Summer 2026 Release Window

Hope, the upcoming sci-fi thriller from The Wailing director Na Hong-Jin, is set to release next summer, with Variety  revealing more details about the pic today.

Starring a stacked cast of Hwang Jung-min (The Wailing), Zo In-sung (Moving), Jung Ho-yeon (Squid Game), Michael Fassbender (Prometheus, The Killer), Alicia Vikander (Ex Machina, The Green Knight), Taylor Russell (Bones and All) and Cameron Britton (Mindhunter), Hope is set in the remote village of Hope Harbor, near the heavily fortified Demilitarized Zone (DMZ):

When a tiger is suspected to have appeared and local police chief Bum-seok is alerted, it throws the community into chaos. But what begins as a local emergency soon spirals into a deeper, more terrifying mystery, one that forces the town’s residents to confront the unknown.

Hwang reunites with Na to play Bum-seok, while Zo co-stars as Sung-ki, a headstrong local who tracks a dangerous creature into the forest. Making her feature film debut, Hoyeon plays Sung-ae, a principled rookie officer navigating a crisis beyond her training. Meanwhile, Fassbender, Vikander, Russell and Britton appear as extraterrestrials whose arrival in Hope Harbor accelerates the town’s unraveling and deepens the mystery.

Per Na, whose other internationally acclaimed features include The Yellow Sea and The Chaser, as well as co-writing and producing 2021 Thai horror mockumentary The Medium, had this to say of Hope‘s all-star cast:

“I’m deeply grateful to the actors for taking on these roles and delivering such dedicated performances […] They conveyed everything this film set out to capture with remarkable talent and focus. I have felt this every time, but their collective presence is truly extraordinary.”

Anyone who's seen Na's terrifying 2016 religious horror The Wailing will surely already have Hope, which is now in post-production, at the top of their watchlist. Stay tuned for updates.