If you have ever experienced sleep paralysis, the new found-footage horror movie Night Terror may hit a little too close to home.
Terror Films Releasing has picked up Night Terror, a new psychological found-footage horror film from Joshua Brucker and Hunter Nino, with a worldwide digital release set for September 4, 2026. The movie centers on a young woman whose lifelong struggles with sleep paralysis begin to look increasingly supernatural.
That premise alone is enough to make this one worth watching.
Sleep Paralysis Is Already Terrifying
Night Terror follows Shelly, played by Marleigh Arnold, a woman living alone while dealing with increasingly severe episodes of sleep paralysis and night terrors. As the episodes begin affecting her mental state, two college students take an interest in her story and begin documenting what she is experiencing.
Things eventually get bad enough that Shelly turns to paranormal investigators for help, raising the central question of the movie: is she experiencing a terrifying sleep disorder, or is something else actually happening to her?
That is a pretty effective setup because sleep paralysis does not really need much help becoming scary. The experience can leave someone awake and aware while temporarily unable to move or speak, and hallucinations or a feeling that someone else is in the room can sometimes be part of the episode. Turning that into the basis for a found-footage movie feels almost too natural.
Found Footage Makes the Premise Even Better
Found footage can be hit or miss, but it works especially well when the story gives the characters an actual reason to keep recording.
That appears to be the case with Night Terror. Shelly initially becomes the subject of a documentary, which allows the movie to use cameras as part of the story rather than simply expecting viewers to accept that everyone would continue filming while something horrible is happening.
The documentary angle also gives the movie room to blur reality. If Shelly believes something supernatural is happening while the people filming her are initially looking for a more rational explanation, there is plenty of opportunity to make the audience question what they are actually seeing.
For this kind of movie, that uncertainty may be more effective than showing the threat too early.
Who Is Behind Night Terror?
Night Terror was written and directed by Joshua Brucker and Hunter Nino. The cast includes Marleigh Arnold, Hunter Nino, Madelynn Wierda, Berkeley Slightom, Samuel J. Howard, Otis B. Dreds, Nicole McKavis, Evan M. Braun and Matthew Van Bodegraven.
The film comes from Horror Dadz Productions and has now partnered with Terror Films Releasing for worldwide distribution. Terror Films announced the deal on August 13, confirming that the movie will begin reaching streaming audiences on September 4.
Reported platforms include Tubi, The Roku Channel, Chilling and Fandango at Home, along with additional digital services.
The Horror Feed Take
This is the kind of smaller horror movie that can get our attention with a premise alone.
Sleep paralysis is scary because the person experiencing it can feel completely awake while being unable to move, and stories about shadowy figures or a presence in the room have surrounded the phenomenon for years. You do not need a complicated monster or huge franchise mythology to make that frightening.
Add found footage, an isolated main character and paranormal investigators trying to figure out what is happening, and
Night Terror has a pretty strong foundation.
The big question will be whether the movie can keep that uncertainty alive. If it makes us wonder whether Shelly is dealing with something psychological, supernatural or both, this could be a fun surprise when it arrives next month.
Night Terror begins streaming worldwide September 4, 2026.
If you have ever experienced sleep paralysis, would you actually want to watch a horror movie built around it?
