The Deliverance is an upcoming horror movie directed by Lee Daniels from a screenplay he co-wrote along with Elijah Bynum (Magazine Dreams) and David Coggeshall (Orphan: First Kill). Daniels made his directorial debut in 2005 with Shadowboxer, quickly followed by his Academy Award-winning film Precious. Most recently, Daniels produced and directed the 2021 biographical drama, The United States vs. Billie Holiday.
The movie went on to receive multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe for Andra Day for “Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama,” and a Grammy for “Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media.” The film also received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role for Day.
Now, Lee Daniels has been busy working on his latest movie, delving into the realm of horror. This article will tell you everything you need to know about The Deliverance.
Editor's Note: This piece was updated on July 16, 2024.
The Deliverance (2024)
Horror
Thriller
- Release Date
- August 30, 2024
- Director
- Lee Daniels
- Cast
- Andra Day , Glenn Close , Caleb McLaughlin , Demi Singleton , Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor , Tasha Smith , Omar Epps , Christina Wren
- Main Genre
- Horror
- Writers
- Elijah Bynum , David Coggeshall , Lee Daniels
6 When and Where Can You Watch ‘The Deliverance’?
The Deliverance is set to release in select theaters on August 16 before arriving on Netflix on August 30. The supernatural flick isn't the first Netflix movie to receive a limited theatrical release prior to its streaming launch. Just this past year, Richard Linklater and Glen Powell's crime-comedy Hit Man received a similar release strategy. Typically, when Netflix gives one of their movies a limited big-screen release, it means that they plan on campaigning for the movie at the Academy Awards. However, the prestigious awards show is usually dismissive of horror, so we'll have to wait and see their plans for the flick.
The Deliverance will be the final movie in Netflix's impressive summer movie slate, which also includes the aforementioned Hit Man, as well as Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F, Atlas, Unfrosted, A Family Affair, and The Union.
The movie will be released exclusively on the streaming platform and will not be available to watch anywhere else after its limited theatrical window ends.
5 Is There a Trailer for ‘The Deliverance’?
Netflix released the official trailer for The Deliverance on July 16, 2024, exactly a month before the movie's limited theatrical release.
The trailer runs a little over a minute long and begins with Aunjanue Ellis' Reverand James prepping Andra Day's Ebony for an exorcism on her child, telling her "Whatever it says to you, do not listen to it. It'll be on your heart, it'll be on your mind." As the possessed child begins to growl, James warns Ebony to stand back. The rest of the trailer is a montage intercutting the exorcism, children exhibiting abnormal behavior, and a preacher's sermon, before ending with the line "You shall be saved."
4 Who Stars in ‘The Deliverance’?
Academy Award nominee Andra Day, who previously worked with Lee Daniels as the titular character in The United States vs. Billie Holiday, will play the lead role in The Deliverance. The singer and actress will be playing Ebony, the mother of the children who purportedly became possessed during the haunting events in their home.
Academy Award winner Mo’Nique (Precious) will take the role of Cynthia Henry, a social worker who tries to help the family and takes part in several exorcism attempts with them. Octavia Spencer (Ma) was originally cast as this character but had to bow out due to scheduling conflicts with her Apple TV+ series, Truth Be Told. Mo’Nique only stepped in as Spencer’s replacement after she and director Lee Daniels ended their 13-year feud over her treatment by him while working together on Precious.
Academy Award-nominated actress Glenn Close (The Wife) joined the cast in February 2022, shortly after Netflix won the distribution rights for The Deliverance in a brief auction in January. Close will be playing a character named Alberta, but further details about her involvement with the family have yet to be revealed.
Academy Award nominee Anjanue Ellis (King Richard) will play the role of Reverand James, who performs the exorcism on Ebony's child. Playing Ebony's three children are Stranger Things’ Caleb McLaughlin as Nate, Florida Man's Anthony B. Jenkins as Andre, and Demi Singleton as Shante. Singleton and Ellis previously worked together as mother and daughter in King Richard.
Filling out the ensemble for The Deliverance are Tasha Smith (Empire), Omar Epps (House), Miss Lawrence (Bros), and Rob Morgan (Don't Look Up). Details about their characters are currently under wraps.
3 What Is ‘The Deliverance’ About?
The official synopsis for The Deliverance, from Netflix, reads:
Ebony Jackson, a struggling single mother fighting her personal demons, moves her family into a new home for a fresh start. But when strange occurrences inside the home raise the suspicions of Child Protective Services and threaten to tear the family apart, Ebony soon finds herself locked in a battle for her life and the souls of her children. Inspired by a true story, THE DELIVERANCE is directed by Academy Award nominee Lee Daniels and stars Andra Day, Glenn Close, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, and Mo’Nique in a genre-defying take on darkness, possession, and finding a higher power.
Based on the accounts of an alleged haunting and demonic possession that occurred in Gary, Indiana in 2011, The Deliverance offers a deeper dive into the story of the Ammons Haunting. The story gained nationwide attention, with many of the occurrences being corroborated by child protective services, the Gary police department, and the local hospital staff. This film is set in Pennsylvania instead of Indiana and was filmed in Pittsburgh, but the story remains the same regardless of location.
After moving into a new home, Latoya Ammons, her mother, and her three children immediately begin to experience questionably supernatural occurrences, including black flies swarming the house, sounds of footsteps on the stairs while everybody is asleep, and shadowy figures lurking around the home. At one point in time, Latoya’s 12-year-old daughter supposedly levitated above her bed during a sleepover. Latoya’s mother, Rosa Campbell, also claims to have been choked by an unseen entity. Ammons’ young son allegedly had a seizure during which his eyes rolled back into his head and he growled “It’s time to die… I will kill you,” during the episode.
After these supernatural events escalate, Latoya and her family become convinced that their house is some kind of gateway, or portal, to the underworld. They reach out to others in the community, including physicians and psychics, but their claims are summarily dismissed. They then turn to a priest for help. The priest arrives and confirms the family’s belief that they are being tormented by evil spirits, but the Ammons family is still under heavy scrutiny from the police and the Department of Child Services.
The movie is notably shifting the story's location from Gary, Indiana to Pennsylvania.
2 Who Is Making 'The Deliverance'?
As previously mentioned, Lee Daniels is directing the horror film from a script he co-wrote with Elijah Bynum and David Coggeshall. Daniels is also producing the film alongside Todd Crites, Jackson Nguyen, Tucker Tooley (The United States vs. Billie Holiday), and Pamela Oas Williams (The Butler). Eli Arenson (Lamb) serves as the film's cinematographer with Stan Salfas (War for the Planet of the Apes) serving as the editor.
1 When and Where Did 'The Deliverance' Film?
Filming took place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania between February 2022 and September 2022.
What Can You Watch While You Wait?
There is no shortage of possession/exorcism films available to watch nowadays, but many fall through the cracks when there are so many options! One exceptional international movie stands out among the competition:
Veronica (2017) - Set in Madrid during the early 90s, the film features a 15-year-old girl who accidentally invites a malevolent spirit into her life after holding a séance with her two friends and an Ouija board. Her father recently passed away, and she now lives in the working district of Madrid with her mother and three younger siblings, which makes her seem like an easy target for an insidious demon. The film has a prequel that will be coming to Netflix on October 27 called Sister Death which follows a nun who is tormented by the same entity that appears in Veronica.
Eli (2019) - If you’re not a huge fan of having to read subtitles (unless you’re fluent in Spanish), another highly recommended option to watch would be the 2019 film Eli. Although not overtly advertised as a demonic possession movie, you’ll soon discover that not everything is always as it seems. Eli is about a young boy who suffers from severe allergic reactions to the outside world and his parents who are desperate to find a cure. They bring him to a specialized facility that claims to be able to treat him, but he isn’t so sure about some of the unorthodox methods they use. Starring Kelly Reilly (A Haunting In Venice), Lili Taylor (The Conjuring), Charlie Shotwell (John and the Hole), and Sadie Sink (Stranger Things), this movie will certainly keep you guessing, but the reveal in the end is worth the mind games.
Both of these films are currently available to stream on Netflix, just waiting to be joined by The Deliverance. Stay tuned here for updates on the official release date and trailer as The Deliverance is shaping up to be a horror movie you won't want to miss!
