Chris Colfer Stars in Queer Horror Comedy The Restoration at Grayson Manor Premiering at Fantastic Fest

Chris Colfer takes on Gothic horror and killer-hand chaos in The Restoration at Grayson Manor.

Queer Horror Comedy The Restoration at Grayson Manor Premieres at Fantastic Fest

Uneasy expectations shake the foundations of Grayson Manor in Glenn McQuaid’s Gothic queer horror comedy The Restoration at Grayson Manor, premiering at Fantastic Fest 2025.

Boyd Grayson (Chris Colfer) and his domineering mother Jacqueline (Alice Krige) share a sprawling estate that feels more like a prison than a home. When a freak accident leaves Boyd handless, Jacqueline spares no expense, transforming part of the manor into a state-of-the-art recovery ward. But her generosity comes with one condition: Boyd must carry on the Grayson legacy. Boyd, however, has other plans.

Now the first patient to test radical prosthetics controlled by the subconscious, Boyd soon discovers his new hands reflect impulses far darker than his mother—or anyone else—could have anticipated. As the mansion decays under the weight of secrets, family power struggles, and a cast of equally despicable hangers-on, Boyd indulges in sex, drugs, and chaos, while his new hands lash out with his most primal desires.

Directed by Glenn McQuaid and co-written with Clay McLeod Chapman, The Restoration at Grayson Manor revels in Gothic melodrama, soap-operatic theatrics, and killer-hand horror traditions. With Krige delivering icy gravitas and Colfer leaning into unrestrained excess, the film promises a wickedly subversive family nightmare.

Fantastic Fest Screenings

• Sunday, September 21 – 5 PM CT (TBC)

• Tuesday, September 23 – 11 PM CT (TBC)

Directed by:

Glenn McQuaid (I Sell the Dead)

Written by:

Clay McLeod Chapman (Ghost Eaters: A Novel)

Glenn McQuaid

Starring:

Chris Colfer (Glee, Struck by Lightning)

Alice Krige (Thor: The Dark World, Star Trek: First Contact)

Daniel Adegboyega (Skyfall, 6 Underground)

Declan Reynolds (Sunphlowers, Puffball: The Devil's Eyeball)

Gabriela Garcia Vargas (Pagan Peak, Barcelona Crime)

Matthew McMahon (The Rainmaker, Redemption)