Black Phone 2 – Review and Summary

Black Phone 2 may not feel necessary, as it gives background on The Grabber, but through its lead performances, you may find yourself getting emotional.

ByAmari Allah Hours Posted on

Spoiler Alert: This summary and review contains spoilers.

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“Black Phone 2” Film Details

  • Runtime: 1 Hour(s) and 54 Minutes
  • Released On: In Theaters
  • Public Release Date: October 16, 2025
  • Director(s): Scott Derrickson
  • Writer(s): C. Robert Cargill, Scott Derrickson
  • Based On Work By: Joe Hill
  • Primary Language: English
  • Genre(s): Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Thriller, Young Adult, Historical (1980s)
  • Rating: Rated R
  • Distributor: Universal Pictures
  • Official Site Link

Movie Summary

It has been roughly 4 years since The Grabber met his end, and since then, Finn has operated on the best defense is an active offense, so he fights constantly. His little sister Gwen takes note of this and worries about him. But, with both having PTSD, trauma from their mom’s suicide, and dad’s drinking, you can see they are all trying the best they can.

Gwen, however, is being a bit more proactive regarding getting to a better place, and as a boy named Ernesto begins pursuing her romantically, unlike her father or brother, Gwen decides to face, even confront, her dreams, fears, and ultimately the man formerly known as Wild Bill, but often referred to as The Grabber. Who, even in death, haunts Gwen’s family, and with seeing her brother numb up like their dad does/did, just with weed instead of alcohol, she decides to drag him to a local camp where The Grabber’s spirit might be to help Finn get free alongside her.

Cast and Characters

Gwen (Madeleine McGraw)

  • Character Summary: Now a teenager, rumored to be a witch because of her interest in spirits, dreams, and things of that nature, like Finney, Gwen is a bit isolated. However, Ernesto taking an interest in her, being someone outside of Finney and her dad to talk to and be around, is part of what pushes her to firmly cut off The Grabber’s influence on her life.

Finney (Mason Thames)

  • Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
  • Character Summary: After escaping The Grabber and being part of what brought him to justice, via death, Finney has taken hold of that reputation and become a fighter. It’s his trauma response whenever someone brings up being a survivor, and due to him beating up anyone, whether you are a new kid who was curious or otherwise, he doesn’t really have friends, certainly no prospects regarding a girlfriend, and more often than not, he is either hanging around Gwen or smoking some cheap weed.

Ernesto (Miguel Mora)

  • Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
  • Character Summary: Ernesto is a boy Gwen’s age who isn’t turned off or frightened by the rumors. If anything, he embraces them, and he becomes one of the first people Gwen trusts with not only what she is going through, but also Finney as well, as they both uniquely find themselves drawn to The Grabber, despite his physical death. Also, his brother is Robin from the original movie, played by the same actor.

The Grabber, aka Wild Bill (Ethan Hawke)

  • Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
  • Character Summary: After making it sound like hell is a place where sinners become hardened, The Grabber returns to be amongst the living and sets his sights on revenge. But, as he draws Finney and Gwen to where he committed his first murder, they learn that there are deeper connections to the man formerly known as Wild Bill than they could have ever guessed.

What To Expect In “Black Phone 2” (Rated R) – Content Overview

  • Dialog:
    • Cursing: Throughout
    • Suicide Mentions: Yes
  • Violence:
    • Violence Against Children: Yes
    • Gore/ Blood/ Body Horror: Bleeding, Depiction of Open Wounds, Notable Disfigurement
    • Notable Violence: Torture, Intense Fight Scenes
  • Miscellaneous:
    • Drinking: Yes
    • Drug Use: Recreational
    • Smoking: Yes
    • Supernatural Themes: Yes

Review and Commentary

Highlight(s)

How Madeline McGraw Handles The Weight Of The Movie Being Put On Her [85/100]

While Mason Thames does return as Finney, it could be submitted that he takes a step back and goes from lead character to co-star of Madeline McGraw, if not a supporting role. For in Black Phone 2, she faces off more with The Grabber more than Finney does. It is her going through the trauma, facing it, finding strength, and while she doesn’t do any of this alone, you get that usual depiction of how the emotional strength of a female character can compensate for the physical strength usually portrayed by a male character.

But it isn’t just about the strength to fight, but also the journey she goes on. Gwen, whether it is her romance with Ernesto, the trauma from inheriting her mom’s ability to dream, mostly, horrific things that will or have happened, Gwen goes through it. Then, as we saw in Black Phone, the film isn’t purely focused on jump scares and thrills, but this is a franchise that wants to show the emotional complexity of the lead and let the actors explore that.

Truly, they put McGraw through it in ways where I found myself crying, especially towards the end of the movie, multiple times. In fact, I would even say, not like Megan 2.0, but Black Phone 2 does a bit of a genre shift as it tones down the horror and really focuses on the drama. So while The Grabber does pay homage to Freddy Krueger to a point, haunting Gwen in her dreams, it is in watching her turn what she sees as a curse into a blessing, a power, something that helps others, Finney especially, that may get you crying at the same time McGraw turns on the water works.

On The Fence

Black Phone 2 Didn’t Feel Necessary [74/100]

By no means is Black Phone 2 a bad movie, but it also doesn’t feel like a necessary one. The main thing it does with The Grabber is give his backstory, and honestly, it’s so thin that it doesn’t feel like it explains anything or reminds you of anything that needed further context from the first film. If anything, as much as it puts a spotlight on McGraw the same way it did Thames, it also takes away from Ethan Hawke in a similar way as it did from Thames.

You don’t get this scary, weird guy who just as much preys on the weak as he takes on those who could present a challenge. Despite the Freddy Krueger vibes, mainly due to how The Grabber operates in dreams, he isn’t as frightening. He isn’t the obstacle keeping Finney from getting home anymore – Gwen and Finney can avoid him almost completely, and will just have to deal with their PTSD flaring him up in dreams and random hallucinations.

On top of that, while he has strength in the dream world and some influence on the real world, it is established that there are ways to weaken him. You don’t have to take on this now demon, who has spent years building up his strength. Just take out his version of the Horcruxs, and not only is he closer to the strength of a mortal, but he might be worse.

Add in creating a sequel pushes the idea that this could become a proper franchise, it makes the idea that Finney or Gwen may die feel nil, and it really can feel like they took a perfectly good villain and decided to stretch them thin in hopes of making a buck, not because there was truly more story to tell.

Overall

Our Rating (79/100): Mixed (Divisive)

Black Phone 2 is not going to scratch that itch you may have for a quality horror film. It does contain moments that can scare you, but it is primarily driven by the trauma Gwen and Finney have because of The Grabber, their mom’s death, and how challenging life has been since the events of Black Phone. Yet, if you are able to set aside what the first movie was as a horror, and instead are willing to appreciate the storytelling and character development it brought, which felt very out of place for a horror movie, you should be able to enjoy Black Phone 2.

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Amari is the founder and head writer of Wherever-I-Look.com and has been reviewing media since 2010. He approaches each production with hope, rooting for every story to succeed, and believes criticism should come from unmet potential, while praise is reserved for work that meets or exceeds expectations.