John Cho Can’t Trust His AI Device in Blumhouse’s ‘Afraid’ Trailer

John Cho begins to regret using an AI device to keep his loved ones safe in the first trailer for the thriller feature Afraid .

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Sony released the trailer Wednesday for writer-director Chris Weitz’s film that hits theaters Aug. 30 and was formerly known by the title They Listen . Hailing from Columbia Pictures and Blumhouse Productions, Afraid centers on Curtis (Cho), whose household is selected to test a groundbreaking digital family assistant called AIA. However, the family soon realizes that AIA might have become a bit too attached to them.

“I’m not crazy about having them everywhere,” Curtis’ wife (Katherine Waterston) says in the trailer about all the cameras and sensors being set up in their home.

Later, Cho warns, “There is something very wrong with AIA.” He adds, “Get out of the house, now.”

Havana Rose Liu, David Dastmalchian, Lukita Maxwell, Keith Carradine and Riki Lindhome round out the cast of Afraid . Weitz, Jason Blum and Andrew Miano serve as producers. Beatriz Sequeira, Paul O. Davis, Dan Balgoyen and Britta Rowings are executive producers.

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Weitz’s previous features as director include About a Boy (2002), The Golden Compass (2007), The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009) and the Oscar Isaac-starring Operation Finale (2018).

Cho’s recent movie credits include Don’t Make Me Go (2022), The Grudge (2020) and Searching (2018), while he has appeared on such television series as The Sympathizer and Cowboy Bebop .

Blumhouse previously explored the fears surrounding AI with the 2022 hit M3GAN , which has a sequel set for release in June 2025 and a spinoff SOULM8TE in the works.

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