# Terrified (film)
**Terrified** (Spanish: *Aterrados*) is a 2017 Argentine supernatural horror film written and directed by [Demián Rugna](https://www.edgepedia.org/demian-rugna), in which paranormal researchers investigate strange events affecting three neighboring houses in a Buenos Aires suburb[1](https://cinenacional.com/pelicula/aterrados) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/terrified_2017). It stars Maximiliano Ghione, Norberto Gonzalo, and Elvira Onetto, runs 87 minutes, and opened in Argentine theaters on 3 May 2018 before reaching a wider audience through Netflix[1](https://cinenacional.com/pelicula/aterrados) • [3](https://hacerselacritica.com/necesitamos-que-el-publico-argentino-no-solo-vaya-a-ver-las-peliculas-de-darin-entrevista-a-demian-rugna-por-gerardo-martinez-y-romina-quevedo/). The film made Rugna's reputation internationally and led to both an English-language remake and a planned sequel[4](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/noah-hawley-terrified-remake-warner-bros/).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original title | *Aterrados* (Argentina), released in English as *Terrified*[1](https://cinenacional.com/pelicula/aterrados) |
| Director and writer | Demián Rugna, also known for *When Evil Lurks* (2023)[1](https://cinenacional.com/pelicula/aterrados) • [4](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/noah-hawley-terrified-remake-warner-bros/) |
| Cast | Maximiliano Ghione (Comisario Funes), Norberto Gonzalo (Jano), Elvira Onetto (Mora Albreck), Demián Salomón, Natalia Señorales[1](https://cinenacional.com/pelicula/aterrados) |
| Runtime and release | 87 minutes; Argentine premiere 3 May 2018[1](https://cinenacional.com/pelicula/aterrados) |
| Critical scores | 82% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer (11 reviews); 68% audience score from 250+ ratings; 7.3/10 Metacritic user score[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/terrified_2017) • [5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/terrified/user-reviews/) |
| Remake | In development at Warner Bros. with Noah Hawley directing and producing, working with Rugna[4](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/noah-hawley-terrified-remake-warner-bros/) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
In a neighborhood of [Greater Buenos Aires](https://www.edgepedia.org/greater-buenos-aires), Clara hears voices emerging from her kitchen pipes that seem to be planning her death; her husband Juan dismisses her fears as paranoia. Inexplicable phenomena then begin to manifest simultaneously in three neighboring houses. A police commissioner on the verge of retirement, a specialist in paranormal phenomena, and a former forensic examiner arrive to investigate what supernatural force connects the disturbances[1](https://cinenacional.com/pelicula/aterrados).
The film's scares center on domestic spaces: contorted bodies, jerky movement, elongated human-like figures, and the anticipation of what hides under the bed or in the closet[6](https://www.knockouthorror.com/horror-movies/terrified-2017-horror-movie-review/). Critics noted that it offers a barrage of scares and set pieces rather than a fully resolved plot with concrete answers[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/terrified_2017).
## Production
The project grew out of a short film Rugna made in 2002, shot on a VHS camera and called *Tienen miedo* ("They Are Afraid"); the feature was originally to carry the same title before it was changed. Rugna combined the short's premise with his own experience of being woken daily by hammering from a neighbor's renovation[7](https://espectadorweb.com.ar/entrevista-demian-rugna-qllegue-a-pensar-que-aterrados-no-se-iba-a-poder-hacer-y-no-le-gustaba-a-nadieq/). The title *Aterrados* was taken from a song by the Argentine heavy metal band Logos, of which Rugna is a fan[8](https://madhouse.com.ar/2024/01/26/con-demian-rugnacon-el-cine-y-la-musica-busco-ser-fiel-a-mi-mismo/).
For years the script went unproduced; Rugna described it as a project he kept stored because he could not find a producer willing to back it[9](https://www.infobae.com/cultura/2025/07/07/demian-rugna-expandio-el-universo-de-aterrados-con-una-novela-que-sangra-en-cada-pagina-el-libro-es-mas-fuerte-que-la-pelicula/?outputType=amp-type). The film was eventually made on a low budget with funding from a Blood Window prize awarded through Argentina's film institute INCAA[10](https://adfcine.org/aterrados-la-luz-al-servicio-del-horror/). Cinematographer Mariano Suárez, who joined the project in mid-2016, said Rugna for the first time did not operate the camera himself and devoted his attention to the actors' performances. The production centered on a single block in Ciudad Jardín, a western Buenos Aires area Rugna knew well, using two adjacent houses and one across the street linked through the characters' actions and what they see through their windows[10](https://adfcine.org/aterrados-la-luz-al-servicio-del-horror/).
## Release and reception
*Aterrados* premiered in Argentina on 3 May 2018[1](https://cinenacional.com/pelicula/aterrados). Rugna said the release drew about 20,000 viewers and spread by word of mouth, but the film ran out of screens as it grew in popularity; months later Netflix picked it up, which gave it an international audience[3](https://hacerselacritica.com/necesitamos-que-el-publico-argentino-no-solo-vaya-a-ver-las-peliculas-de-darin-entrevista-a-demian-rugna-por-gerardo-martinez-y-romina-quevedo/).
Critical response was largely positive. On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an 82% Tomatometer from 11 reviews and a 68% audience score[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/terrified_2017); Metacritic users give it 7.3 out of 10, with 71% of user reviews positive[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/terrified/user-reviews/). Meagan Navarro of Bloody Disgusting rated it 4/5, comparing it to a haunted house attraction, while Walter Chaw of Film Freak Central gave 3.5/4 and called Rugna's images primal. More negative reviews, such as David Nusair's 2/4 in Reel Film Reviews, found the human characters underdeveloped[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/terrified_2017). On the IMDb-linked aggregate at iCheckMovies the film carries a 6.5 rating from more than 32,000 votes[11](https://www.icheckmovies.com/movies/3307758-aterrados/).
## Remake, sequel, and related works
An English-language remake was first announced in 2018, with [Guillermo del Toro](https://www.edgepedia.org/guillermo-del-toro) producing for Fox Searchlight, Rugna attached to direct, and [Sacha Gervasi](https://www.edgepedia.org/sacha-gervasi) writing; nothing came of it, and Rugna later said the pandemic ended that version of the project[12](https://filmstories.co.uk/news/noah-hawley-set-to-direct-a-remake-of-argentine-horror-movie-terrified/) • [13](https://www.litoralpress.cl/SimbiuPDF/2024/02/18/4844202.pdf). In April 2026, Warner Bros. announced a new remake to be written, directed, and produced by [Noah Hawley](https://www.edgepedia.org/noah-hawley), the Emmy-winning creator of *Fargo* and *Alien: Earth*, working in close collaboration with Rugna and producing through his 26 Keys banner[4](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/noah-hawley-terrified-remake-warner-bros/) • [14](https://www.avclub.com/noah-hawley-terrified-remake).
Rugna has also worked in the same fictional universe. He said his 2023 film *When Evil Lurks* was conceived partly as a response to *Aterrados*, moving from the claustrophobic suburban setting to a rural road-movie structure[15](https://es.rollingstone.com/arg-demian-rugna-cuando-acecha-la-maldad-slash/). In interviews he has said a direct sequel is written and awaiting funding to begin filming[16](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7549892/news/). In 2025 he published *Aterrados* as a novel through the publisher Minotauro, expanding the film's universe in prose[9](https://www.infobae.com/cultura/2025/07/07/demian-rugna-expandio-el-universo-de-aterrados-con-una-novela-que-sangra-en-cada-pagina-el-libro-es-mas-fuerte-que-la-pelicula/?outputType=amp-type).
## References
1. [Aterrados (2017), cinenacional.com](https://cinenacional.com/pelicula/aterrados)
2. [Terrified (2017), Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/terrified_2017)
3. [Entrevista a Demián Rugna, Hacerse la crítica](https://hacerselacritica.com/necesitamos-que-el-publico-argentino-no-solo-vaya-a-ver-las-peliculas-de-darin-entrevista-a-demian-rugna-por-gerardo-martinez-y-romina-quevedo/)
4. [Noah Hawley to Remake Argentinian Horror Movie 'Terrified' at Warner Bros., TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/noah-hawley-terrified-remake-warner-bros/)
5. [Terrified user reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/terrified/user-reviews/)
6. [Terrified (2017) review, Knockout Horror](https://www.knockouthorror.com/horror-movies/terrified-2017-horror-movie-review/)
7. [Entrevista: Demian Rugna, Espectador Web](https://espectadorweb.com.ar/entrevista-demian-rugna-qllegue-a-pensar-que-aterrados-no-se-iba-a-poder-hacer-y-no-le-gustaba-a-nadieq/)
8. [Con Demián Rugna, Madhouse](https://madhouse.com.ar/2024/01/26/con-demian-rugnacon-el-cine-y-la-musica-busco-ser-fiel-a-mi-mismo/)
9. [Demian Rugna expandió el universo de Aterrados con una novela, Infobae](https://www.infobae.com/cultura/2025/07/07/demian-rugna-expandio-el-universo-de-aterrados-con-una-novela-que-sangra-en-cada-pagina-el-libro-es-mas-fuerte-que-la-pelicula/?outputType=amp-type)
10. [Aterrados: la luz al servicio del horror, ADF](https://adfcine.org/aterrados-la-luz-al-servicio-del-horror/)
11. [Aterrados (2017), iCheckMovies](https://www.icheckmovies.com/movies/3307758-aterrados/)
12. [Noah Hawley set to direct a remake of Argentine horror movie Terrified, Film Stories](https://filmstories.co.uk/news/noah-hawley-set-to-direct-a-remake-of-argentine-horror-movie-terrified/)
13. [Litoralpress interview with Demián Rugna (PDF)](https://www.litoralpress.cl/SimbiuPDF/2024/02/18/4844202.pdf)
14. [Noah Hawley is taking another crack at movies with a remake of 2017's Terrified, The A.V. Club](https://www.avclub.com/noah-hawley-terrified-remake)
15. [Demián Rugna entrevista, Rolling Stone en Español](https://es.rollingstone.com/arg-demian-rugna-cuando-acecha-la-maldad-slash/)
16. [Terrified (2017) news, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7549892/news/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Horror films (individual works) › Supernatural horror films › 2010s supernatural horror films*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license