# Wounds (film)
**Wounds** is a 2019 psychological horror film written and directed by Babak Anvari, adapted from Nathan Ballingrud's novella *The Visible Filth*. It follows Will, a New Orleans bartender whose life unravels after he keeps a cell phone left behind in his bar.[1](https://www.annapurna.com/film/wounds) [Armie Hammer](https://www.edgepedia.org/armie-hammer) stars as Will, with [Dakota Johnson](https://www.edgepedia.org/dakota-johnson) as his live-in girlfriend Carrie and [Zazie Beetz](https://www.edgepedia.org/zazie-beetz) as Alicia, a bar regular.[2](https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/wounds/umc.cmc.294ps2ghkh0zi6kegt96t8hue)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Director and writer | Babak Anvari, his follow-up to *Under the Shadow* (2016)[1](https://www.annapurna.com/film/wounds) • [3](https://nofspodcast.com/exclusive-interview-wounds-director-babak-anvari) |
| Source | The novella *The Visible Filth* by Nathan Ballingrud[1](https://www.annapurna.com/film/wounds) |
| Lead cast | Armie Hammer (Will), Dakota Johnson (Carrie), Zazie Beetz (Alicia)[2](https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/wounds/umc.cmc.294ps2ghkh0zi6kegt96t8hue) |
| Premiere | Sundance Film Festival, 26 January 2019[4](https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/netflix-original-horror-wounds-netflix-release-date-plot-cast-trailer/) |
| Release | 18 October 2019, on Hulu in the United States and on Netflix in other territories[4](https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/netflix-original-horror-wounds-netflix-release-date-plot-cast-trailer/) |
| Runtime and rating | 94 minutes; rated R for disturbing violent content, language throughout, drug/alcohol use, and brief nudity[5](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Wounds-%28UK%29) |
| Reception | 46% on Rotten Tomatoes from 61 reviews; 51 on Metacritic; 4.1/10 on IMDb[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/wounds_2019) • [7](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/wounds/) • [8](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5913798/ratings) |
## Spoilers
### Premise
Will is a bartender at a New Orleans dive bar who picks up a cell phone left behind by patrons. Disturbing and inexplicable events begin to unravel his life, and he is pulled into poisoned interactions with Carrie, his live-in girlfriend, and Alicia, a regular at the bar, as his rage escalates and the warping reality of his existence turns him toward a terrifying portal.[2](https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/wounds/umc.cmc.294ps2ghkh0zi6kegt96t8hue) The plot's supernatural element centers on an ancient book about using wounds as portals to other dimensions, which local teenagers had experimented with before Will finds the phone.[9](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/wounds-movie-review-2019)
Anvari said he wanted to take the shape of a relationship drama and twist it into what he called a "Cronenbergian-Lovecraftian story." He read *The Visible Filth* at the suggestion of producer Christopher Kopp and found the novella's core so clear to him that he committed to the adaptation immediately; he described the film as pretty faithful to the original, with changes required only by the change of medium.[3](https://nofspodcast.com/exclusive-interview-wounds-director-babak-anvari)
## Production
[Principal photography](https://www.edgepedia.org/principal-photography) ran from 3 April to 17 May 2018 in New Orleans, where the story is set.[4](https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/netflix-original-horror-wounds-netflix-release-date-plot-cast-trailer/) The film was shot digitally on the ARRI ALEXA Mini with Leitz Summilux-C lenses, with Kit Fraser as cinematographer and Chris Barwell as editor.[10](https://shotonwhat.com/wounds-2019)
Anvari produced alongside Christopher Kopp and Lucan Toh, with [Megan Ellison](https://www.edgepedia.org/megan-ellison), Andrew Harvey, Jillian Longnecker, and Brian Pitt serving as executive producers.[11](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5913798/fullcredits/) Production and financing came from [Annapurna Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/annapurna-pictures) and Two & Two Pictures, with the film a United Kingdom and United States co-production.[5](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Wounds-%28UK%29)
## Release
Wounds was completed on 24 January 2019 and debuted two days later at the [Sundance Film Festival](https://www.edgepedia.org/sundance-film-festival).[4](https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/netflix-original-horror-wounds-netflix-release-date-plot-cast-trailer/) It later screened at Cannes, where a Total Film review described it as a "Lovecraftian body horror" inspired by [David Cronenberg](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-cronenberg), David Lynch, and Hideo Nakata's *Ringu*.[12](https://www.gamesradar.com/wounds-is-a-lovecraftian-body-horror-inspired-by-the-likes-of-david-cronenberg-david-lynch-and-hideo-nakatas-ringu/)
The film was released on 18 October 2019. In the United States it streamed on Hulu, while Netflix distributed it in all territories outside the United States.[4](https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/netflix-original-horror-wounds-netflix-release-date-plot-cast-trailer/) Rotten Tomatoes lists A24 as the distributor.[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/wounds_2019)
## Reception
Critical response was mixed to negative. On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds a 46% Tomatometer from 61 reviews, with a critics' consensus stating that its "creepy-crawly charms" and the efforts of a talented cast are "squished by a story that never quite gets completely under the skin." The audience Popcornmeter stood at 14%.[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/wounds_2019) Metacritic assigned a weighted score of 51 based on 12 critic reviews, labeled "Mixed or Average," while its user score was 3.8 out of 10.[7](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/wounds/) IMDb users rated it 4.1 out of 10.[8](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5913798/ratings)
Reviewers frequently singled out the same weaknesses. The Guardian found the performers, including Hammer, Johnson, and Beetz, stranded with thinly written roles.[7](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/wounds/) GamesRadar's Cannes review called the plot too thin to justify the runtime but praised the demented finale, which it said brings the film full circle in a satisfying and unexpected way.[12](https://www.gamesradar.com/wounds-is-a-lovecraftian-body-horror-inspired-by-the-likes-of-david-cronenberg-david-lynch-and-hideo-nakatas-ringu/) Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com gave it 2.5 out of 4, describing a film with two halves that often seem at odds with each other.[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/wounds_2019) Positive notices included Variety's assessment that Anvari had made a mood piece that succeeds in scaring the audience senseless.[7](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/wounds/)
## Anvari's career context
Wounds was Anvari's second feature narrative film after his debut *Under the Shadow* (2016), an Iranian horror that had made his reputation, and he had earlier directed the short *Two & Two* (2011).[3](https://nofspodcast.com/exclusive-interview-wounds-director-babak-anvari) • [4](https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/netflix-original-horror-wounds-netflix-release-date-plot-cast-trailer/) He went on to direct *[I Came By](https://www.edgepedia.org/i-came-by)* and the thriller *[Hallow Road](https://www.edgepedia.org/hallow-road)*, and his production company Two & Two Pictures later partnered with XYZ Films on further projects.[13](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5913798/news/)
A separate American horror film also titled *Wounds*, directed by Ron Krauss and starring [Jack Kilmer](https://www.edgepedia.org/jack-kilmer), Paris Jackson, and [Eric Roberts](https://www.edgepedia.org/eric-roberts), was scheduled for a world premiere at Screamfest in October 2026; it is unrelated to the Anvari film.[14](https://www.screamfest.com/2026/film/wounds)
## References
1. [Wounds, Annapurna Pictures](https://www.annapurna.com/film/wounds)
2. [Wounds, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/wounds/umc.cmc.294ps2ghkh0zi6kegt96t8hue)
3. [Exclusive Interview: WOUNDS Director Babak Anvari, Nightmare on Film Street](https://nofspodcast.com/exclusive-interview-wounds-director-babak-anvari)
4. [Netflix Original Horror 'Wounds': Release Date, Plot, Cast & Trailer, What's on Netflix](https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/netflix-original-horror-wounds-netflix-release-date-plot-cast-trailer/)
5. [Wounds (2019), The Numbers](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Wounds-%28UK%29)
6. [Wounds (2019), Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/wounds_2019)
7. [Wounds Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/wounds/)
8. [Wounds (2019) Ratings, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5913798/ratings)
9. [Wounds Movie Review, RogerEbert.com](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/wounds-movie-review-2019)
10. [Wounds (2019) Technical Specifications, ShotOnWhat?](https://shotonwhat.com/wounds-2019)
11. [Wounds (2019) Full Cast & Crew, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5913798/fullcredits/)
12. [Wounds is a "Lovecraftian body horror", GamesRadar+](https://www.gamesradar.com/wounds-is-a-lovecraftian-body-horror-inspired-by-the-likes-of-david-cronenberg-david-lynch-and-hideo-nakatas-ringu/)
13. [Wounds (2019) News, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5913798/news/)
14. [WOUNDS, Screamfest](https://www.screamfest.com/2026/film/wounds)
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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) › Psychological horror films › Psychological horror films, 2010s and later*
*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