The Empty Man

"The first night you hear him. The second night you see him. The third night he finds you."

2020 2h 17m EN

😐

6.2

MID

★6.2TMDB · 1,127

HorrorMysteryThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

On the trail of a missing girl, an ex-cop comes across a secretive group attempting to summon a terrifying supernatural entity.

“The first night you hear him. The second night you see him. The third night he finds you.”

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Cast

James Badge Dale
James Lasombra
Marin Ireland
Nora Quail
Sasha Frolova
Amanda Quail
Samantha Logan
Davara Walsh
Evan Jonigkeit
Greg
Virginia Kull
Ruthie
Robert Aramayo
Garrett
Ron Canada
Detective Villiers

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: David Prior
Writers: David Prior, David Prior
Languages: English
Countries: South Africa, United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 30% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 6 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: South Africa, United States of America.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by David Prior, shot by Anastas N. Michos. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Christopher Young. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Andrew Buckland shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

James Badge Dale and Marin Ireland and Sasha Frolova carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The first night you hear him. The second night you see him. The third night he finds you.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

David Prior directs. Anastas N. Michos behind the camera. Christopher Young scores. Andrew Buckland cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in South Africa, United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 30% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
2Released 6 years ago.
3International production across 2 countries: South Africa, United States of America.
4Directed by David Prior, shot by Anastas N. Michos. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Christopher Young. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Andrew Buckland shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7James Badge Dale and Marin Ireland and Sasha Frolova carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "The first night you hear him. The second night you see him. The third night he finds you.".
9IMDB entry: tt5867314 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 19 themes, including "experiment", "detective", "cave", "missouri".

The technical file

Cinematography: Anastas N. Michos
Original score: Christopher Young
Editing: Andrew Buckland
Production design: Craig Lathrop
Makeup / hair: Mike Elizalde
VFX supervisor: Dennis Berardi
Sound: David Giammarco
Runtime: 137 min · 2h 17m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $16,000,000
Box office: $4,796,993
Return: 30% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: The Empty Man (2020)

Also by

David Prior

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Dean2026-03-18
★ 9/10
The Empty Man is an ambitious and deeply unsettling film that defies the typical boundaries of the horror genre. What begins as a seemingly standard urban legend mystery quickly spirals into a massive, multi-layered descent into cosmic dread and nihilistic occultism. The film’s structure is masterfully unconventional, starting with a gripping prologue in Bhutan that establishes an ancient, untouchable evil before shifting into a gritty, neo-noir investigation in the American Midwest. The atmosphere is the film's greatest achievement—it is thick, heavy, and relentlessly grim. The world-building around the Pontifex Institute and the concept of "tulpas" is intellectually stimulating, moving far beyond simple scares to explore deep philosophical questions about identity and a "great binding nothingness." The sound design is equally legendary, featuring a haunting collaboration with dark ambient pioneer Lustmord, whose industrial soundscapes make the silence feel as threatening as the visuals themselves. James Badge Dale delivers a powerhouse performance as the weary ex-cop James Lasombra, bringing a grounded reality to a story that eventually shatters the concept of reality itself. While its long runtime and dense mythology might be a lot to digest in one sitting, The Empty Man is a standout for those who crave complex, high-stakes horror that lingers in the mind like a fever dream. It is a bold, uncompromising work of art that rewards those looking for something much deeper than a surface-level thriller.
Gordon2026-07-19
★ 3/10
This movie starts off strong but, turns BLAH really quick. It could have been much more than it was and it saddens me that such an original idea doesn't live up to it's potential.