Ready or Not 2: Here I Come (SXSW) Delivers More of the Same Crowd-pleasing Action Horror We Expect from Radio Silence
Title: Ready or Not 2: Here I Come
First Non-Festival Release: March 19, 2026 (Theatrical Release)
Director: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett
Writer: Guy Busick, R. Christopher Murphy, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett
Runtime: 108 Minutes
Starring: Samara Weaving, Kathryn Newton, Elijah Wood, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Shawn Hatosy
Where to Watch: Check out where to find it here
This film’s review was written after its screening at the South by Southwest Film Festival in 2026.
Hardly having a moment to rest after watching her in-laws explode for failing to kill her after the most diabolical game of hide-and-seek, Grace (Samara Weaving) is brought to the hospital under suspicion of murdering the entire family. Unaware that she still has her estranged sister Faith (Kathryn Newton) as her emergency contact, she shows up at the hospital just in time to be abducted with Grace. The pair wake up in an unfamiliar place surrounded by strangers who inform them that the games have only just begun.
High-octane action horror with a boisterous sense of humor, Ready or Not 2: Here I Come raises the stakes yet delivers more of the same.
Another searing takedown of extreme wealth, Ready or Not 2: Here I Come explores how deep the problem of power consolidation lies. Depicting such hoarding as demonic or devil-inspired, it’s clear that the series has no love for the hapless hunters who choose to sacrifice others for their own personal gain. Casual reminders of their lethality are scattered throughout the film. Police? Owned. Phone company? Theirs. The hordes of malleable service workers eager to snap someone’s neck for a few bands? Check.
Each time one inadvertently causes their own, or someone else’s demise or is otherwise overpowered by someone more resourceful than them, Ready or Not 2: Here I Come takes extreme joy in making them suffer. Featuring some of the gnarliest gore in the Radio Silence filmography, this sequel takes the cartoonish violence to new levels. The truth is that it’s cathartic. With all the abuses directed at real, working-class people isn’t a little power fantasy wrapped up in an industrial washer or rocket launcher okay as a treat?
While the criticism of extreme wealth is baked into the DNA of Ready or Not thanks to its first film, the sequel takes things further by deconstructing what family means. To the wealthy, family is often considered an obligation rather than a cooperative unit. To everyone else, family means something deeper. Demonstrating the power of family ties, the only people who have the best interests for someone other than themselves are Grace and Faith. Conversely, the only wealthy people willing to help the sisters are able to look outside their own self-preservation to pitch scenarios where the most people can come out of this alive.
This is a perfect reflection of a world where the rich and powerful could step up to fix the problems that they created. Instead, as evident by Ready or Not 2: Here I Come, they never will. Without force.
While that’s all sweet and fun, Ready or Not 2: Here I Come does struggle with reinvention. Sure, the stakes have been raised, and the introduction of Kathryn Newton’s Faith gives it more wiggle room but it’s hard to ignore how safe it feels compared to the first. Its over-reliance on the successful formula becomes its biggest obstacle to overcome, along with Radio Silence’s for future projects.
The ensemble cast does a great job of keeping the terror alive without blending together in a sea of interchangeable evil rich people. Sarah Michelle Gellar and Shawn Hatosy delight as the main antagonists of the sisters. Their mismatched, distrustful energy works perfectly to foil the initially reluctant teamwork of Grace and Faith. Adding more comedic flavor to the project, Maia Jar gives a delightfully unhinged performance as a scorned would-be bride, Nestor Carbonell plays ineffective gun enthusiast with flair, Elijah Wood largely plays cool and straight against the cast as the matter-of-fact Lawyer running the games, and Varun Saranga provides plenty of laughs as a feckless party boy.
Samara Weaving and Kathryn Newton play off each other excellently, supplying the chemistry to make it easier to brush off the familiarity. Weaving still stuns with her impressive physicality and that raw, guttural scream she has perfected over the ages. Grace, of course, is more than this. Her sarcasm, determination, and embodiment of good translates onscreen thanks to Weaving’s commitment. Newton takes on these same qualities in a different font. Her argumentative and, at times, bratty demeanor makes Faith a stronger character and the sister’s relationship more authentic.
Matching the success of any film as a sequel is difficult and even though Ready or Not 2: Here I Come falls short of its original premise, it’s still a great time. Fun characters, its charismatic cast, the gnarly gore, and its commitment to lampooning the wealthy all add up to the same winning formula from the first film. Of course, it’s this replication that makes Ready or Not 2: Here I Come feel just a bit too repetitive despite its raised stakes. Regardless, if crowd-pleasing action horror aligns with your tastes, Radio Silence’s latest should be winning for you.
Overall Score? 7/10
