HOKUM (2025): Adam Scott Enters a Haunting Irish Nightmare in This Supernatural Horror Film

HOKUM, the upcoming supernatural horror film written and directed by Damian McCarthy, arrives in theaters on May 1, and it’s shaping up to be one of the year’s most unsettling slow-burn horrors. Starring Adam Scott, the film blends grief, folklore, and psychological terror against the eerie isolation of rural Ireland.

At its core, Hokum isn’t about monsters jumping out of the dark — it’s about what happens when sorrow, guilt, and ancient legends begin to bleed into reality.

📅 HOKUM Release Date & Theatrical Details

• Title: HOKUM

• Release Date: May 1

• Format: Theatrical release

• Genre: Supernatural Horror | Psychological Horror

• Director & Writer: Damian McCarthy

• Starring: Adam Scott

With its theatrical release locked, Hokum is positioned as a cinema-first horror experience, designed for audiences who prefer tension, atmosphere, and lingering unease over fast-paced shock tactics.

📖 HOKUM Story Explained (Spoiler-Free)

Hokum follows Ohm Bauman, a reclusive novelist who travels to a remote part of Ireland to scatter the ashes of his deceased parents. Seeking solitude and closure, Ohm rents a room at a secluded Irish inn — unaware that the place carries a disturbing reputation.

According to the inn’s staff, one room — the honeymoon suite — is said to be haunted by an ancient witch, a figure rooted in local folklore and whispered warnings. What begins as unsettling stories soon takes on a far more personal weight as Ohm experiences:

• Disturbing visions

• A growing sense of paranoia

• A mysterious disappearance tied to the inn

As the nights pass, the line between folklore and psychological breakdown begins to dissolve, forcing Ohm into a confrontation not just with the supernatural — but with the darkest corners of his own past.

👤 Adam Scott as Ohm Bauman

Best known for his work in character-driven dramas and dark comedies, Adam Scott takes on a markedly different role in Hokum.

Ohm Bauman is:

• A withdrawn and emotionally guarded novelist

• A man weighed down by unresolved grief

• Increasingly unreliable as strange events escalate

Rather than playing a traditional horror protagonist, Scott’s character is defined by internal conflict, making him especially vulnerable to the inn’s disturbing influence. His performance anchors the film’s psychological tension, placing the audience inside a mind slowly losing its sense of safety and certainty.

🇮🇪 Why the Irish Setting Matters

Ireland’s rural landscapes have long been fertile ground for folklore-driven horror, and Hokum fully leans into that tradition.

The film’s remote inn setting emphasizes:

• Isolation and disconnection from the modern world

• A sense of timelessness where ancient beliefs still linger

• The unease of being a stranger in a place that remembers everything

By placing an outsider like Ohm in this environment, Hokum amplifies the fear of not belonging — a recurring theme in folk and supernatural horror.

🧙 The Witch Mythology in HOKUM

At the center of the film’s haunting is the legend of an ancient witch, said to inhabit the inn’s honeymoon suite. Rather than serving as a simple ghost story, the witch functions as a symbol — one that reflects:

• Suppressed guilt

• Unprocessed trauma

• The fear of inherited darkness

The staff’s stories blur the line between warning and manipulation, raising a crucial question that defines the film’s tension:

👉 Is the witch real… or is Ohm unraveling under the weight of grief?

🎭 Full Cast of HOKUM

Alongside Adam Scott, Hokum features a strong supporting cast:

• Adam Scott as Ohm Bauman

• Peter Coonan

• David Wilmot

• Florence Ordesh

• Will O’Connell

• Michael Patric

• Siox C

• Brendan Conroy

• Austin Amelio

• Ezra Carlisle

Each character contributes to the film’s sense of unease, existing in a world where answers are deliberately withheld.

🎬 Damian McCarthy’s Vision

Writer-director Damian McCarthy is known for crafting horror that prioritizes:

• Atmosphere over spectacle

• Psychological dread over explicit violence

• Slow, deliberate escalation

With Hokum, McCarthy appears to continue that approach, focusing on character psychology, folkloric unease, and the terror of isolation rather than conventional horror tropes.

This is horror designed to linger, not shock-and-forget.

🔍 What Sets HOKUM Apart From Typical Horror Films

While many modern horror releases lean heavily on jump scares or franchise mythology, Hokum distinguishes itself through:

• A grief-driven narrative foundation

• Folklore used as psychological pressure rather than exposition

• A single-location setting that tightens tension

• An emphasis on ambiguity instead of clear answers

It sits comfortably alongside films that value slow-burn dread, appealing to audiences who enjoy horror that creeps rather than screams.

🧠 Themes Explored in HOKUM

Without revealing plot developments, Hokum centers on several recurring ideas:

• The inheritance of trauma

• Grief as a destabilizing force

• The power of belief and suggestion

• The fear of confronting one’s own past

These themes elevate the story beyond surface-level scares, grounding the supernatural elements in emotional reality.

📌 HOKUM at a Glance

• Film: HOKUM

• Genre: Supernatural Horror

• Release Date: May 1

• Lead Actor: Adam Scott

• Setting: Remote Irish inn

• Core Focus: Grief, folklore, psychological terror

🔮 Why Horror Fans Are Watching HOKUM Closely

As audiences increasingly gravitate toward intelligent, atmospheric horror, Hokum fits squarely into that demand. Its combination of:

• A respected lead actor

• A folklore-based premise

• A secluded, dread-filled setting

makes it one of the more intriguing theatrical horror releases of the year.

For viewers who prefer horror that unsettles rather than overwhelms, Hokum is firmly one to watch.