Mother of Flies Unleashes Chilling Folk Horror on AMC+ and Shudder

Horror enthusiasts have plenty to look forward to as the independent scene continues to deliver standout films. After a year packed with underground hits like Bloody Axe Wound, Fréwaka, and The Ugly Stepsister, the genre is set to raise the bar again with the arrival of Mother of Flies, premiering January 23, 2026, on AMC+ and Shudder. Ahead of its highly anticipated release, an exclusive sneak peek reveals the film ’s unsettling and bizarre atmosphere, promising a wild ride for fans of the genre.

Mother of Flies is the latest creation from the Adams Family —Zelda Adams, John Adams, and Toby Poser—who have built a reputation for crafting haunting folk horror experiences. Their previous works, such as Hellbender, Hell Hole, and Where the Devil Roams, have set a high standard, and this new film looks to push boundaries even further. The exclusive clip opens with a close-up of tattooed hands, accompanied by agonized cries, before cutting to a man violently vomiting blood and what appears to be raw meat. The scene lingers, making viewers squirm as the suffering continues, only to shift again as the man locks eyes with a grotesque, decaying corpse staring back at him with chilling indifference. The brief but intense sequence sets the tone for what’s to come.

Dark Rituals and Unraveling Secrets

The story centers on Mickey, played by Zelda Adams, a young woman grappling with a life-threatening illness. She and her father, portrayed by John Adams, retreat into the woods in search of a cure through the dark arts practiced by a mysterious recluse named Solveig, brought to life by Toby Poser. Over the course of three days, Mickey is subjected to Solveig’s harrowing rituals, each one more extreme than the last. The film’s synopsis teases,

"Mother of Flies follows Mickey (Zelda Adams), a young woman facing a deadly diagnosis who heads into the woods with her father (John Adams) seeking dark magic at the hands of a mysterious recluse named Solveig (Toby Poser). For three days, Mickey endures Solveig's extreme rituals of death magic. But every cure has its cost, and every curse is another's gift. As buried secrets claw their way to the surface, the veil between the living and the dead begins to unravel, and Mickey finds herself facing dark truths that only the dead and the dying can know."

As the boundaries between life and death blur, Mickey is forced to confront hidden truths and the real cost of seeking forbidden power. The film’s relentless pace and disturbing visuals promise to keep viewers on edge from start to finish.

A Personal Journey Through Horror

Mother of Flies made its world premiere at the Fantasia International Film Festival, where it quickly earned a 97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes from early critics. Reviewers have praised it as both “a creepily fun watch” and a film “full of stunning imagery.” For the Adams Family, this project is deeply personal, serving as a way to process their own experiences with illness and mortality. In their own words,

"The human body has a habit of dying — too soon, too late, often painfully,"

they shared, adding,

"Horrors of the body, like cancer, are real; are human horror. As a family whose personal narratives serve as fuel for our imaginations, it was only a matter of time when we faced our stark history — pretty much every family’s history — with cancer. Mother of Flies offered us a creative avenue to reclaim these dark stories, these very personal, ugly truths, and to transform them into something viscerally new, resurgent, alive — and yet, inevitably, still brutal."

Knowing the film’s roots in real-life struggles adds another layer of depth to Mickey’s journey, making the viewing experience even more powerful for those who seek meaning beneath the surface of horror.

Cast, Release, and What to Expect

Mother of Flies is directed and written by John Adams, Zelda Adams, and Toby Poser. The cast features John Adams as Jake and Lulu Adams as Mickey, bringing the story’s emotional core to life. With a runtime of 92 minutes, the film promises a tightly woven narrative packed with suspense, gore, and haunting visuals. As the premiere date arrives, horror fans are encouraged to experience this unique blend of folk terror and personal storytelling on AMC+ and Shudder.