RLJE Films is set to drop Descendent, the hauntingly cerebral debut feature from Peter Cilella, in select theaters on August 8, with a nationwide expansion and VOD release following on August 15. Equal parts psychological descent and extraterrestrial paranoia, Cilella’s first outing as writer-director arrives with a slow-burn intensity that burrows deep beneath the skin. Equal parts psychological descent and extraterrestrial paranoia, Cilella’s first film as writer-director signals the arrival of a distinctive new voice in genre storytelling.
At the center of the story is Sean Bruner Ross Marquand (“The Walking Dead,” Invincible), a school security guard quietly unraveling under the weight of impending fatherhood and a past that refuses to stay buried. One night, during a lonely graveyard shift, a searing beam of light slices through the sky above the elementary school grounds, triggering a chain of disorienting visions and strange visitations. As spectral apparitions and arid desert landscapes bleed into his reality, Sean is forced to question not just what he sees — but who he really is.
Marquand is joined by a stellar supporting cast including Sarah Bolger (A Good Woman Is Hard to Find, “Mayans M.C.”), Charlene Amoia (“How I Met Your Mother”), Brandon Scott (“Dead to Me”), and Alexandra Barreto (“Mayans M.C.”) .
Ahead of the film’s release, CinemaChords’ Ashley Northey caught up with Marquand to explore the emotional terrain Descendent so unflinchingly navigates — new fatherhood, generational trauma, and the blurred line between internal and external hauntings. So, we’ll leave you to enjoy the conversation below, that’s as quietly unsettling — and revealing — as the story it surrounds.
