Vampire Carnival, originally titled Crave, is heading to select US cinemas on October 7, 2026, followed by a digital/home release on October 30 - the gothic supernatural horror and dark fantasy romance is directed by David Charbonier and Justin Douglas Powell, with Nell Verlaque, Jason Isaacs, Kieron Moore and Paulina Chávez leading the cast.
The plot follows Gemma, a grieving young woman who becomes interested in a mysterious travelling carnival that suddenly arrives in her small town, which turns into something much darker when Gemma discovers that the carnival is connected to a hidden world where vampires feed on human despair rather than blood.
Gemma is played by Nell Verlaque, with Kieron Moore playing Eric and Paulina Chávez playing Olivia. Jason Isaacs plays Toussaint, while the supporting cast includes Eoin Macken as Michael, Alicia Sanz as Isabelle, Cedrick Cooper as Dan Hart, Corrado Martini as Ryan, Alvise Rigo as Sebastian and Elizabeth Sanjuán as Angela.
David Charbonier and Justin Powell Return to Horror
David Charbonier and Justin Douglas Powell are directing the film together after previously working on The Djinn and The Boy Behind the Door, and they also directed Push, continuing a run of horror and thriller projects before moving into the larger fantasy world of Vampire Carnival.
The Boy Behind the Door was their 2020 horror about two young boys attempting to escape after being kidnapped, while The Djinn followed a mute boy who turns to a supernatural ritual in the hope of getting what he wants - both films were much smaller-scale horror productions than Vampire Carnival, which adds a travelling carnival and a larger supernatural mythology to their latest film.
The screenplay comes from Jason Filardi and Peter Filardi. Jason Filardi's previous writing credits include 17 Again and Chapelwaite, while Peter Filardi wrote the original Flatliners and The Craft and also worked on Chapelwaite.
The producers are Roger Corbi, David Hillary, Christian Mercuri and Dominic Rustam, with Jason Filardi, Peter Filardi, Andrés Sánchez and Roman Viaris-de-Lesegno among the executive producers. José Luis Bernal is the cinematographer and Stephen Boyer is credited as editor.
Aura Entertainment is releasing Vampire Carnival in select US cinemas on October 7, 2026.
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