This New Horror Film Is Now Streaming, and It Could Strengthen or Shatter Your Romantic Bond.

Consider this a challenge for those in enduring partnerships who appreciate scary movies: Sit down with your partner and watch Together. The independent film success of 2025 recently had its online premiere via Hulu. At first glance, it may seem like standard body horror, but within Together resides a profound meditation about the ways we decide to love our partners.

A Directorial Debut Investigating Relationship Dynamics

Together marks the first full-length movie for director Michael Shanks. It showcases actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Millie and Tim, an unmarried couple that have stayed together for over ten years. Married in real life in 2017, the actors infuse a special spark to their portrayals, skillfully embodying both the good and bad of a committed partnership.

The story commences when the couple transition from the big city to the countryside for Millie’s job. A commonly used narrative setup, admittedly, but that’s mostly where the conventions cease. Together becomes as much a deep dive into the psyche of the partnership as it is a movie featuring biological frights.

A Supernatural Catalyst

While trekking near their rural residence, a storm hits, and Millie and Tim fall into an hole in the earth. After a night spent there and managing to escape, a strange force takes hold of the duo. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes exceeding emotional intimacy.

The complete narrative is a methodically building horror experience, weaving in moments of fever-dream horrors, gross (but never too gross) physical transformations, and surprisingly comedic exchanges (sometimes amidst something grotesque). Michael Shanks weaves these elements together expertly and delivers them in a consistently growing atmosphere of fear.

Layered Performances

A significant portion of Together is solely Brie and Franco, and they masterfully render countless layers to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Her self-assurance and emotional bond is suffering due to a lack of intimacy. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his unwillingness to chase only his struggling artistic pursuits slowly bubbles to the surface.

In contrast, Tim's character senses confinement and cut off by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve relocated rural and distant from his network of friends. He is terrified of the idea of utterly sacrificing his individual identity in Millie. This fear is amplified by the circumstance he lacks a driver's license and relies on Millie for getting around.

The director's cleverest decision in Together avoids making one partner or the other the definite antagonist.

Both characters face the type of challenges that come with any relationship a decade in. At their core, they still love one another. They find humor with each other, offer support, and are vulnerable at times. But beneath it all, there’s an unavoidable current of uncertainty about their bond.

Allegory and Meaning

While the supernatural forces in Together act as a metaphor for these concerns of unhealthy attachment and giving oneself over to a partner, the allegory avoids being clumsy or heavy-handed. Instead, these visceral horror elements offer a ideal counterpart to the relationship narrative. Both the supernatural and the personal work together symbiotically.

A Divisive Ending

Together’s ending, which is best experienced firsthand, has sparked debate on the movie's final takeaway about codependent relationships. Reports indicate that unattached audience members have interpreted the film as a powerful case for avoiding commitment. Meanwhile, certain partners who were in conflict found that the film actually helped them resolve their issues.

Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own response could function as a great barometer of how you perceive partnership. Will the finale inspire feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you recognize your own traits in Tim or Millie and scream at your TV, or simply turn to your partner and utter, “We could get through that together”?

Whatever the case may be, Together is an test you can undertake today.

Together is streaming on the streaming service Hulu now.