Euphoria Star’s Controversial Remake Breaks A Huge Horror Taboo

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The upcoming 2026 remake of Faces of Death boasts cast members from popular shows like Euphoria and Stranger Things. However, the film is generating buzz not for its stars, but because it’s pushing boundaries in a way few horror movies do. Horror films have always been a way to explore what’s acceptable in media, and have historically been used to present controversial or risky material since the beginning of cinema.

Even in recent years, entertainment has continued to push boundaries with increasingly graphic violence. Movies like the Saw series and popular TV shows such as The Walking Dead feature levels of gore that would have been shocking just a short time ago. While Game of Thrones on HBO also had its share of shocking moments, The Walking Dead and American Horror Story were among the first to really explore this kind of intense content.

Given its origins, it’s no surprise that Shudder’s 2026 remake of the classic horror film Faces of Death is filled with disturbing and graphic content. The new movie is based on the original 1978 film, which was presented as a documentary and controversially claimed to show actual footage of deaths and disasters.

Faces of Death’s 2026 Remake Features Real Footage of Actual Deaths

The 2026 remake of Faces of Death isn’t a simple copy of the original film. In fact, this new indie horror movie doesn’t even use the fake documentary style of the 1978 Faces of Death. Instead, Shudder’s version is a complete reimagining of the concept.

The movie centers on Margot, played by Barbie Ferreira, who works as a content moderator. She’s shocked when she finds seemingly real videos of a serial killer’s crimes on the social media platform she monitors, a site similar to TikTok. As Margot gets more and more consumed with finding the person who made the videos, she begins to wonder what’s actually true online and what’s not.

The new movie Faces of Death stars Hunter Schafer (from Euphoria), Dacre Montgomery (known for Stranger Things), and singer Charli XCX. While it shares a name with a controversial older film, this version is a typical Hollywood horror movie. However, writer Isa Mazzei recently told Comicbook that the film does include actual, unedited footage of real deaths.

The screenwriter, known for the 2018 film Cam, explained that the new film includes actual footage of real deaths. They licensed this footage specifically for the movie. Similar to director Daniel Goldhaber’s previous work, How To Blow Up A Pipeline, this film tackles difficult ethical issues. However, it’s still reasonable to wonder if using real death footage was the appropriate choice.

Faces of Death’s Reboot Always Had To Tackle The Original Movie’s Ethical Problem

Most reviewers then and now have pointed out that much of the violence in the original 1978 film Faces of Death is faked. However, the film also includes genuine footage of real deaths, often showing the scenes following violent events, all presented as a form of entertainment.

Staying true to its roots, Shudder’s reboot of Faces of Death continues the franchise’s controversial practice of including actual footage of death alongside its fictional narrative. This isn’t unique to horror; the 1976 film Who Can Kill a Child? famously begins with a disturbing montage of real children affected by war.

Showing real footage of death or violence is thankfully uncommon, and for good reason. A notable, and controversial, example is the opening of the 2006 remake of The Hills Have Eyes, which used actual photos of babies born with defects caused by Agent Orange exposure during the Vietnam War. These defects were a result of attacks by American soldiers on civilians.

Films like Cannibal Holocaust, Wake in Fright, and the original Friday the 13th all showed real animal deaths, which sparked controversy. The remake of The Hills Have Eyes and Lars Von Trier’s 2018 film The House that Jack Built – which included footage of Holocaust atrocities – also received criticism for similar content.

The horror film Tales from the Hood famously included actual photos of lynching victims, a choice that felt appropriate given the movie’s strong political stance. Years later, Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman used a similar approach, also featuring real photographs of this kind.

Faces of Death’s Remake Fails To Justify Its Real-Life Death Footage

I’ve been thinking about movies like Tales from the Hood and comparing them to stuff like the The Hills Have Eyes remake from 2006. What really sets them apart, for me, is how much they actually deal with the issues they’re showing. It makes a difference whether the violence feels like it has a point, or if it’s just there for shock value. That’s probably why documentaries get a pass – they’re usually trying to show us something real, not just entertain us with it.

Michael Moore’s film, Roger & Me, showed police shooting a man struggling with mental illness, but this wasn’t widely criticized because the film was a sincere examination of police problems in Flint, Michigan. However, Faces of Death 2026 doesn’t offer a deep enough analysis of violence online and in the media to justify including actual footage of people dying.

The movie’s attempts at staged horror feel jarring when mixed with actual footage of real deaths. Though the filmmakers previously did good work exploring sensitive topics like sex work and environmentalism, this new version of Faces of Death makes the same mistake as the original: using genuine death footage simply to shock and entertain.

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2026-04-17 02:09