Win Tickets to Our Early Screening of the Sci-Fi Thriller ‘Descendent’ and Q&A

It’s always fun to watch as an actor makes the bold step behind the camera. Excitingly, later this year, TheResolution and The Endless star Peter Cilella is making that exact jump, and in the sci-fi genre no less. What’s more, Collider is offering you the chance to check out Cilella’s next step early, as we team up with RLJE Films to bring you a night of thrills and spills as you watch Descendenteleven days before its nationwide release, which will be followed by an exclusive Q&A conversation with writer-director Cilella and producers David Lawson, Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead (Loki, Daredevil: Born Again). To find out more about this exciting free opportunity, check out all the details below.

Through their production company, Rustic Films, Cilella is reteaming with the trio of Benson,Moorhead, and Lawson, to bring this mind-bending trip through existential trauma to life. “Set in present-day Los Angeles, Descendent follows Sean Bruner, a school security guard who is haunted by childhood trauma while preparing for the birth of his first child with his wife, Andrea,” the official synopsis begins. But this is no simple tale of seeking to rid oneself of past demons, with this blend of horror and sci-fi bringing a refreshing new take on the ‘Trauma Horror’ movement made popular by TheBabadook and Hereditary. “After a beam of light appears in the sky during a late-night shift, Sean wakes up in the hospital with an inexplicable talent for vivid, unsettling drawings of extraterrestrials and desert landscapes,” the synopsis continues, before quickly turning into a race against the clock. “As his visions blur the line between dreams and reality, Sean’s grip on sanity unravels. With time running out, he must confront his fears to escape his family’s tragic legacy.”

“Cilella’s debut is confident and composed, prying open wounds that are sustained through everyday existence,” Collider’s Matthew Donato wrote in his review of Descendent when it first premiered at SXSW 2025. The movie stars The Walking Dead‘s Ross Marquand and Stormbreaker‘s Sarah Bolger as Sean and Andrea Bruner, with the ensemble including the likes of Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey‘s Charlene Amoia, Brandon Scott of This is Us fame, The District‘s Alexandea Barreto, and more, as well as boasting the cinematography talents of Alexander Chinnici​​​​​​.

‘Descendent’ Screening Details

So, fancy coming along? You’ll be joining us on Monday, August 4, at the Landmark Sunset theater on 8000 W Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, with the screening starting at 7 p.m. You’ll get free soda and popcorn for the event, as well as the chance to stay for an exclusive Q&A with Cilella,Lawson,Benson, and Moorhead, moderated by Collider’s very own Steve Weintraub.

How to Get ‘Descendent’ Tickets

For your chance to win tickets to this early screening and Q&A, click this link to provide us with your email address. Be sure to let us know if you’d like to bring a guest with you, and RSVP as soon as possible to secure your spot. For one of the most exciting directorial debuts yet to come in 2025, you definitely won’t want to miss this. We’ll be contacting the winners in the days leading up to August 4th, so keep your eyes peeled.

Descendent officially opens in a limited capacity on August 8, with an expansion to nationwide theaters and VOD on August 15. Stay tuned to Collider for more special event screenings.