Karen Gillan and Josh Hutcherson Horror Thriller 'Blasphemous' Sets New York Shoot for Summer 2026

New York City crew should start paying attention to Blasphemous, an upcoming supernatural horror thriller that is moving through pre-production with a loaded cast and a high-profile producing team behind it. The film stars Karen Gillan and Josh Hutcherson alongside Clive Owen in a story centered on a rookie exorcist and her mentor who are tasked with transporting a possessed body, only for the demon to break loose along the way. With a cameras-up date set for August 1, 2026, and the production already assembling its team, this is a project worth tracking closely if you are based in or willing to work in New York.

Behind the camera is Luke Piotrowski, a director whose work in the horror genre has drawn attention since his 2018 feature Super Dark Times, a slow-burn psychological thriller that earned him genuine critical credibility in the genre space and signaled a filmmaker with a strong visual instinct and a preference for grounded, character-driven tension over pure spectacle. Blasphemous fits squarely in that wheelhouse. The premise, a contained-location horror thriller with demonic possession at its center, is the kind of high-concept genre setup that tends to attract genre-savvy directors who can work efficiently and build atmosphere on a controlled budget. Piotrowski appears to be the right fit for exactly that kind of filmmaking challenge.

The cast assembled here is genuinely impressive. Karen Gillan, best known globally for her role as Nebula across the Marvel Cinematic Universe and her breakout work in Guardians of the Galaxy, has been increasingly selective in her non-franchise choices, and her presence here as both a lead and a producer signals real creative investment in the material. Josh Hutcherson, who became a household name as Peeta Mellark in The Hunger Games franchise and has more recently demonstrated serious dramatic range in the hit horror series Five Nights at Freddy's, brings both commercial appeal and credibility with genre audiences. Clive Owen, a decades-long film veteran with credits ranging from Gosford Park and Closer to Children of Men, rounds out the principal cast and gives the film an additional layer of prestige. The combination of these three in a contained genre thriller is a compelling package.

On the producing side, Seven Bucks Productions is the company co-founded by Dwayne Johnson and Dany Garcia, the prolific producing team behind a wide range of studio projects including the Jumanji franchise reboots, Red One, and Black Adam. Seven Bucks has established itself as a serious player in mainstream Hollywood with an aggressive development slate and strong studio relationships, and their involvement here suggests this is not a low-budget indie but a well-financed genre feature with real distribution ambitions. Hiram Garcia, who serves as President of Production at Seven Bucks and has been a steady producing presence across their slate, is also attached. Basil Iwanyk, the veteran producer behind the John Wick franchise, the Sicario films, and dozens of other high-profile genre and action titles, brings additional muscle to the project. His track record specifically in action-tinged thriller filmmaking is directly relevant to a project like this. Badlands is listed as a co-producing company alongside Seven Bucks, and Scott Strauss, Erica Lee, and Jess Biddle round out the producing team.

The production is set to film in New York City, and for local crew, that is the headline. New York remains one of the most robust production hubs in North America, with deep union crew rosters, world-class stage facilities, and a thriving infrastructure for both location and stage-based shooting. New York State's film and television tax credit program, which offers up to 25 to 30 percent in transferable credits for qualifying productions, is almost certainly a driving factor in the location choice and makes the city financially competitive with Atlanta and Los Angeles for mid-to-large budget features. With an August 2026 start date, the production is still well over a year out, but a project of this caliber with this many producers attached will begin staffing heads of department significantly in advance. If you are a production designer, director of photography, costume designer, or locations manager based in New York, this is the kind of listing you want on your radar now, not when they are already in scouts.

The genre and logline point to a production that will require thoughtful department contributions across the board. A possession and exorcism story set largely around a transport scenario implies contained, high-pressure environments, which puts demands on the production design and art department to create claustrophobic and atmospherically charged spaces. Practical effects work and potentially some VFX integration are likely given the supernatural premise. The action element of a demon breaking loose en route suggests stunt coordination and action choreography will be meaningful components of the shoot. And shooting in New York City, with its logistical complexity, means a strong locations department and an experienced UPM will be essential from early days.

For the full crew list, production office contacts, and scheduling updates as they are confirmed, the complete Blasphemous listing is available now on ProductionList.com. With August 2026 still far enough out that key department hires have not yet been locked, this is exactly the window when a well-timed inquiry can make a difference. Check the listing, bookmark it, and follow along as this one develops.

Click here for production info or to contact producers