Sony Acquires ‘MOUTHWASHING’ Movie Rights With Karyn Kusama Set to Direct
UPDATE: Sony Acquires ‘MOUTHWASHING’ Rights With Karyn Kusama Set to Direct
The MOUTHWASHING movie is officially moving forward at Sony Pictures, and the psychological horror game’s trip to the big screen has landed some significant genre talent.
Following earlier reports that a feature adaptation was being developed through Sony’s Screen Gems, Sony Pictures has now acquired the feature film rights to MOUTHWASHING from developer Wrong Organ and publisher Critical Reflex. Karyn Kusama (The Invitation, Jennifer’s Body, Destroyer) is attached to direct, with frequent collaborators Matt Manfredi and Phil Hay adapting the game for the screen.
Scott Derrickson (Sinister, The Black Phone), C. Robert Cargill and Vince Cheng will produce through Crooked Highway, which has a deal with Sony’s Screen Gems.
The development provides considerably more clarity than the initial reports surrounding the project, which emerged earlier this month without an officially attached filmmaker or screenwriting team.
Released in 2024, MOUTHWASHING follows five crew members trapped aboard the space freighter Tulpar. With supplies dwindling and isolation taking its toll, paranoia and existing fractures between the survivors begin pushing the situation toward increasingly disturbing territory.
Rather than approaching its horror as a straightforward monster-in-space story, the first-person game uses a nonlinear structure and surreal imagery to explore responsibility, denial, abuse of power and the psychological deterioration of its characters.
Exactly how closely Sony’s movie will follow the game’s narrative remains unknown, with plot details for the feature currently being kept under wraps.
Kusama’s involvement immediately makes the adaptation an intriguing proposition for horror fans. Her previous genre work includes Jennifer’s Body and the slow-burn psychological thriller The Invitation, while her television credits include directing and executive producing Yellowjackets. She also directed the Nicole Kidman-led crime thriller Destroyer.
The project will reunite Kusama with Manfredi and Hay, who have collaborated with the filmmaker multiple times. The screenwriting duo previously wrote both The Invitation and Destroyer, giving the team an established history with character-driven stories built around fractured relationships and psychological tension.
Adding Derrickson and Cargill to the producing side gives MOUTHWASHING another substantial horror pedigree. The longtime collaborators are behind films including Sinister and The Black Phone, with Derrickson directing both.
The timing also comes as MOUTHWASHING continues expanding well beyond its original PC audience. The game is available across PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and Xbox on PC, with Game Pass availability on console and PC.
Since its 2024 debut, the title has developed a sizable following and earned recognition for its narrative. It won Best Narrative and Players’ Choice at the Horror Game Awards and received Best Hidden Gem at the New York Game Awards. The game’s online footprint has also exploded, with content surrounding MOUTHWASHING generating tens of millions of YouTube views and approaching a billion views on TikTok.
For an independent horror game built around five people trapped aboard a deteriorating space freighter, that’s a substantial leap.
Wrong Organ, the Stockholm-based independent studio behind MOUTHWASHING, is meanwhile developing its next game, Carcass Clad. The co-op tank horror title puts players into the roles of Commander, Driver and Gunner as they attempt to escape a war-torn city.
There is currently no announced cast, production start date or release date for Sony’s MOUTHWASHING adaptation.
Still, the project has quickly progressed from an intriguing report to a considerably more tangible adaptation. With Kusama directing, Manfredi and Hay handling the screenplay and Derrickson’s Crooked Highway producing, Sony has assembled a creative team with extensive experience in psychological and genre filmmaking.
The bigger question now is how that team translates the deeply uncomfortable, nonlinear experience of MOUTHWASHING into a feature film without losing what made the game so unsettling in the first place.
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