Presence (2024 film)

Film by Steven Soderbergh

Presence

Theatrical release poster

Directed by| Steven Soderbergh
Written by| David Koepp
Produced by|

* Julie M. Anderson
* Ken Meyer

Starring|

* Lucy Liu
* Chris Sullivan
* Callina Liang
* Eddy Maday
* West Mulholland
* Julia Fox

Cinematography| Peter Andrews
Edited by| Mary Ann Bernard
Music by| Zack Ryan[1]

Production
companies

* Sugar23
* Extension 765

Distributed by| Neon

Release dates

* January 19, 2024 (2024-01-19) (Sundance)
* January 24, 2025 (2025-01-24) (United States)

Running time

| 85 minutes[2]
Country| United States
Language| English
Budget| $2 million[3]
Box office| $10.5 million[4][5]

Presence is a 2024 American supernatural thriller drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by David Koepp. It stars Lucy Liu, Chris Sullivan, Callina Liang, Eddy Maday, West Mulholland, and Julia Fox.

Presence premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 19, 2024. It was released in U.S. theaters by Neon on January 24, 2025. The film has grossed $10.5 million on a $2 million production budget, and received positive reviews from critics.

## Plot

[edit]

An unseen Presence roams through a dark, empty suburban house.[a] A realtor, Cece, shows the house to the Payne family: Rebekah, her husband Chris, and their children, Tyler and Chloe. Rebekah and Chris discuss the move and its implications for Tyler, who will flourish on the new school's swim team, and Chloe, who is emotionally vulnerable after a traumatic event. Chloe explores the house as the Presence follows her.

A work crew renovate the house, and some of the crew's members seem to sense the Presence. After the Paynes move in, Rebekah has a phone conversation implying she may be involved in white-collar crime. She later shares this with Tyler, justifying her actions. Chloe is crying in her room when she senses the Presence and calls out "Nadia?".

Chris and Rebekah argue about Chloe's recently deceased friend, Nadia. Chris expresses concern, while Rebekah remains distant. Tyler's new friend Ryan comes over, and Tyler introduces him to Chloe. Ryan, who steals and abuses drugs from his pharmacist father, and Tyler talk about obtaining drugs for a party. The Presence closes Chloe’s door, shielding her from the interaction. Tension grows in the family as Rebekah continues showing favoritism to Tyler over Chloe, upsetting Chris. He consults a lawyer friend about whether legal separation would shield someone from liability if their spouse committed a crime.

Chloe and Ryan grow closer. They use drugs and talk in her room. Chloe opens up about the deaths of Nadia and another girl she knew, and her grief, while Ryan shares his lifelong struggle with control. They begin to kiss, but the Presence interrupts by knocking down a shelf. At dinner, Chloe reveals that she has been sensing the Presence. Tyler mocks her, leading to a heated argument. Tyler tries to manipulate Chris by claiming he always takes Chloe’s side and questioning her grip on reality, but Chris defends her.

Tyler casually recounts to Rebekah how he and his friends catfished a female classmate to obtain a nude photo. Rebekah laughs this off until Chloe angrily interrupts, showing them the photo on her phone and accusing Tyler of leaking it online. The Presence wrecks Tyler’s room as the whole family looks on.

The family retreat outside. Chloe insists the poltergeist is Nadia and means no harm, but Tyler lashes out at her. Chris defends Chloe. He contacts Cece, who reassures him that no one has died in the house, which she would be legally obligated to mention. She refers him to her sister-in-law, Lisa, a psychic medium. Lisa visits and explains that the Presence seems confused and is possibly experiencing time non-linearly but means no harm. Rebekah and Tyler react with fear and skepticism.

Chloe and Ryan have sex, and he secretly spikes her drink afterward. Before Chloe can drink it, the Presence spills it.

Chris tells Chloe he believes her about the Presence and will always support her. Lisa returns and warns Chris that she believes the Presence is there to prevent a future event.

The Presence’s physical influence wanes. Chris confides in Rebekah that he considered divorce, and they reconcile. The two leave on a business trip. Tyler drinks and listens to music in the living room. The Presence approaches, and he appears to sense it, but gets distracted by Ryan's arrival. Ryan drugs Tyler's drink, leaving him unconscious in the living room, and brings another spiked drink to Chloe.

Chloe refuses to have sex, but Ryan pressures her into drinking, incapacitating her. He begins suffocating Chloe using plastic wrap, bragging that he killed Nadia and the other girl the same way and staged both as overdoses. The Presence is unable to intervene. It moves downstairs and wakes Tyler. He rushes upstairs and tackles Ryan, causing both to crash through Chloe’s bedroom window and fall to their deaths.

Much later, the grieving family is moving out of the house. Before leaving, Rebekah senses the Presence and follows it to an antique mirror in the living room. In the reflection, she sees Tyler and breaks down in grief. As the rest of the family gathers around her, the Presence leaves the house and ascends into the sky.

## Cast

[edit]

* Lucy Liu as Rebekah Payne
* Chris Sullivan as Chris Payne, the father of Chloe and Tyler
* Callina Liang as Chloe Payne, Rebekah and Chris's daughter and Tyler's younger sister. She is upset and grieving the death of her friend Nadia prior to the move.
* Eddy Maday as Tyler Payne, Rebekah and Chris's son and Chloe's older brother. He is a competitive swimmer, and Rebekah wanted to move to support his performance.
* West Mulholland as Ryan Caldwell, Tyler's new friend
* Julia Fox as Cece, the realtor
* Natalie Woolams-Torres as Lisa, the medium
* Lucas Papaelias as Carl, Lisa's husband

## Production

[edit]

### Development

[edit]

The film, written by David Koepp and directed by Steven Soderbergh, was not announced publicly until December 2023 when it was revealed to be part of the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.[6]

The concept originated with Soderbergh, who was inspired by his own beliefs of living with a presence in his house, which he and his wife called "Mimi": "It got me thinking about how Mimi would feel about us being in her house. Is Mimi pissed at us living here?".[7] Soderbergh remains personally skeptical of the existence of ghosts, despite his mother being a parapsychologist.[7] He wrote 10 pages of a script before handing it off to Koepp, who then fleshed out the plot and added the movie's final twist.[7][8]

### Filming

[edit]

Principal photography took place over 11 days in September 2023 with an interim SAG-AFTRA agreement from the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike.[9] The film is shot entirely in the first-person perspective,[10] and was filmed in a house in Cranford, New Jersey.[9][11] Speaking of the film's low budget and quick production time, Soderbergh said "The beauty of projects at this scale is I can just do them without having to talk to anybody."[12]

Soderbergh did his own cinematography and most of the filming, under his pseudonym, Peter Andrews.[13] The film was shot on a Sony mirrorless camera with a DJI Ronin stabilizer, with Soderbergh wearing nylon and rubber slippers to reduce noise from his own footsteps.[7] Much of the film consists of non-traditional cinematography[13] and long shots, which Soderbergh describes as "mini plays".[7] Describing the conceit, Soderbergh said: "It might be the simplest idea I've ever had … The camera’s the ghost".[7] The several shots in which Soderbergh had to go up and down stairs while filming were a particular challenge, since Soderbergh had to look at his feet while walking. He rehearsed aiming the camera at these moments by feel alone, but still spoiled several long takes partway through.[8]

## Release

[edit]

The film premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival on January 19, 2024.[14] Shortly after, Neon acquired distribution rights to the film for $5 million.[15]

The film premiered in New York City on January 16, 2025.[16] It was released in theaters in the United States on January 24, 2025.[17]

## Reception

[edit]

### Box office

[edit]

Presence grossed $6.9 million in the United States and Canada, and $3.6 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $10.5 million.[4][5]

In the United States and Canada, Presence was released alongside Flight Risk and Brave the Dark and was projected to gross $2–3 million from 1,750 theaters in its opening weekend.[18] It made $1.4 million on its first day, including an estimated $385,000 from Thursday night previews.[19] It went on to debut to $3.3 million, finishing in sixth.[20]

### Critical response

[edit]

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 88% of 231 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.1/10. The website's consensus reads: "A slow-burning spectral thriller, Presence reaffirms that Soderbergh plays with form as deftly as he flits between genres."[21] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 77 out of 100, based on 53 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[22] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "C+" on an A+ to F scale, while those surveyed by PostTrak gave it a 58% overall positive score, with 33% saying they would "definitely recommend" it.[18]

Critics particularly praised the film for its cinematography and lean, single-location structure. David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter described it as "a nail-biting ghost story" with an "expertly honed screenplay".[23] Devan Coggan of Entertainment Weekly praised it as "a taut character drama, a single-location nightmare that chronicles the Payne family’s unraveling".[24] Saying that Presence "might be the best thing Soderbergh has done in ages," Bilge Ebiri of New York Magazine wrote that the film "isn’t afraid to be narratively predictable, because it’s out there visually. It’s an art film that also works as a spellbinding horror film".[25] Stephanie Zacharek of Time described it as "a film that builds dread but also has some poetry in its heart".[26]

David Sims, writing for The Atlantic, was less positive about the movie's leanness, describing it as "less an entrée than a charming apéritif, albeit with a couple of smart twists worth ruminating on".[27] In a mixed review, Mark Hanson of Slant said of the film that "The unoriginality of the story eventually calls out the POV conceit as a one-note gimmick", comparing it unfavorably with H.P. Mendoza's I Am a Ghost and Oz Perkins' I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House.[28] In one of the few negative reviews, Rex Reed of the New York Observer called it "a lifeless, cliché-ridden ghost story that delivers neither scares nor suspense" that is ultimately a "worthless" film.[29]

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ Depicted in first-person, from the viewer's point of view

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Zach Ryan Scoring Steven Soderbergh's 'Presence'". Film Music Reporter. December 7, 2023. Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
2. ^ "Presence (15)". BBFC. January 14, 2025. Archived from the original on December 13, 2024. Retrieved January 15, 2025.
3. ^ Rashotte, Vivian (January 22, 2025). "Lucy Liu on Presence, working with Steven Soderbergh and the rising crescendo of her career". CBC.ca. Archived from the original on January 22, 2025. Retrieved February 9, 2025.
4. ^ a b "Presence". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Archived from the original on February 24, 2025. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
5. ^ a b "Presence (2025) - Financial Information". The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Retrieved March 23, 2025.
6. ^ Perez, Rodrigo (December 6, 2023). "Steven Soderbergh's Secret New Sundance Film 'Presence' Starring Lucy Liu, Julia Fox & More". The Playlist. Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
7. ^ a b c d e f Zemler, Emily (January 15, 2025). "Steven Soderbergh decided to make a ghost story. He also wanted to play the ghost". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 11, 2025.
8. ^ a b Taubin, Amy (January 24, 2025). ""14 Inches From a Very Personal Form of Murder": Steven Soderbergh on Camera as Character and His Sundance Horror Film, Presence - Filmmaker Magazine". Filmmaker Magazine. Retrieved May 26, 2025.
9. ^ a b Kuperinsky, Amy (January 23, 2025). "Do you feel a 'Presence'? Inside Steven Soderbergh's reverse ghost story, filmed in N.J." NJ.com. Archived from the original on January 24, 2025. Retrieved January 28, 2025.
10. ^ Rizov, Vadim (January 21, 2024). "Sundance 2024: Presence, A Real Pain". Filmmaker. Archived from the original on January 23, 2024. Retrieved April 15, 2024.
11. ^ "Projects Filmed in NJ Set to Appear at Sundance Film Festival". New Jersey Economic Development Authority (Press release). January 18, 2024. Archived from the original on March 1, 2024. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
12. ^ Coyle, Jake (January 22, 2025). "Steven Soderbergh: 'I'm the cockroach of this industry. I can survive any version of it'". AP News. Retrieved June 11, 2025.
13. ^ a b Brody, Richard (January 17, 2025). "The Ghost's-Eye View of Steven Soderbergh's "Presence"". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved May 26, 2025.
14. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony; Patten, Dominic (December 6, 2023). "Sundance Unveils Packed 2024 Lineup That Includes A.I., Pedro Pascal, Kristen Stewart, Satan, Devo & Steven Yeun". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on December 6, 2023. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
15. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (January 23, 2024). "Sundance Stalwart Steven Soderbergh's New Thriller 'Presence' Selling To Neon; Lucy Liu Stars In David Koepp-Scripted Pic After Park City Premiere". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 24, 2024. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
16. ^ Agostini, Evan (January 16, 2025). "CORRECTION NY Premiere of "Presence"". The Batesville Daily Guard. Archived from the original on January 26, 2025. Retrieved January 17, 2025.
17. ^ Murphy, J. Kim (October 31, 2024). "'Presence' Trailer: A Ghost Is the Camera's POV and Haunts a Family in Steven Soderbergh's Eerie Horror Movie". Variety. Archived from the original on November 7, 2024. Retrieved December 22, 2024 – via YouTube.
18. ^ a b D'Alessandro, Anthony (January 26, 2025). "'Flight Risk' Lifts Lionsgate To Second No. 1 Opening Of 2025 With $12M+ – Sunday Box Office Update". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 24, 2025. Retrieved January 26, 2025.
19. ^ "Domestic Box Office For Jan 24, 2025". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved January 30, 2025.
20. ^ "Domestic 2025 Weekend 4". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on February 2, 2025. Retrieved January 30, 2025.
21. ^ "Presence". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved April 15, 2025.
22. ^ "Presence". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved February 17, 2025.
23. ^ Rooney, David (January 20, 2024). "'Presence' Review: Steven Soderbergh Spins a Nail-Biting Ghost Story, Working Magic in a Single Setting". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved June 11, 2025.
24. ^ Coggan, Devan (January 1, 2024). "Steven Soderbergh spooks Sundance with ghost story 'Presence'". EW.com. Retrieved June 11, 2025.
25. ^ Ebiri, Bilge (January 16, 2025). "Presence Is the Best Thing Steven Soderbergh's Done in Ages". Vulture. Retrieved June 11, 2025.
26. ^ Zacharek, Stephanie (January 24, 2025). "Review: Presence Is Low-Key Horror with a Big Impact". TIME. Retrieved June 11, 2025.
27. ^ Sims, David (January 22, 2025). "In This Horror Movie, You Can Look, but Not Touch". The Atlantic. Retrieved June 11, 2025.
28. ^ Hanson, Mark (September 9, 2024). "'Presence' Review: Haunted by the Familiar". Slant Magazine. Retrieved June 11, 2025.
29. ^ Reed, Rex (February 10, 2025). "If 'Presence' Proves Anything, It's That Not Every Film Needs to Exist". Observer. Retrieved June 11, 2025.

## External links

[edit]

* Presence at IMDb

* v
* t
* e

Steven Soderbergh

* Filmography
* Bibliography
* Unrealized projects

Films|

| Directed|

* 9012Live (1985)
* Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989)
* Kafka (1991)
* King of the Hill (1993)
* The Underneath (1995)
* Schizopolis (1996)
* Gray's Anatomy (1996)
* Out of Sight (1998)
* The Limey (1999)
* Erin Brockovich (2000)
* Traffic (2000)
* Ocean's Eleven (2001)
* Full Frontal (2002)
* Solaris (2002)
* Eros (2004)
* Ocean's Twelve (2004)
* Bubble (2005)
* The Good German (2006)
* Ocean's Thirteen (2007)
* Che (2008)
* The Girlfriend Experience (2009)
* The Informant! (2009)
* And Everything Is Going Fine (2010)
* Contagion (2011)
* Haywire (2011)
* Magic Mike (2012)
* Side Effects (2013)
* Behind the Candelabra (2013)
* Logan Lucky (2017)
* Unsane (2018)
* High Flying Bird (2019)
* The Laundromat (2019)
* Let Them All Talk (2020)
* No Sudden Move (2021)
* Kimi (2022)
* Magic Mike's Last Dance (2023)
* Presence (2024)
* Black Bag (2025)
* The Christophers (2025)

|

Written|

* Nightwatch (1997)
* Criminal (2004)

Produced|

* The Daytrippers (1996)
* Pleasantville (1998)
* Welcome to Collinwood (2002)
* The Jacket (2005)
* Solitary Man (2009)
* Ocean's 8 (2018)
* The Report (2019)

Television series|

* K Street (2003)
* The Knick (2014–15)
* Mosaic (2018)
* Full Circle (2023)
* Command Z (2023)

Related articles|

* Section Eight Productions

* v
* t
* e

Works by David Koepp

Films directed|

* The Trigger Effect (1996)
* Stir of Echoes (1999)
* Secret Window (2004)
* Ghost Town (2008)
* Premium Rush (2012)
* Mortdecai (2015)
* You Should Have Left (2020)

Films written only|

* Apartment Zero (1988)
* Bad Influence (1990)
* Why Me? (1990)
* I Come in Peace (1990)
* Toy Soldiers (1991)
* Death Becomes Her (1992)
* Jurassic Park (1993)
* Carlito's Way (1993)
* The Paper (1994)
* The Shadow (1994)
* Mission: Impossible (1996)
* The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)
* Snake Eyes (1998)
* Panic Room (2002)
* Spider-Man (2002)
* War of the Worlds (2005)
* Zathura: A Space Adventure (2005)
* Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)
* Angels & Demons (2009)
* The Little Engine That Could (2011)
* Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014)
* Inferno (2016)
* The Mummy (2017)
* Kimi (2022)
* Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023)
* Presence (2024)
* Black Bag (2025)
* Jurassic World Rebirth (2025)
* Cold Storage (2025)
* Untitled Steven Spielberg film (2026)

TV series created|

* Hack (2002–2004)

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