Alexandra Magistro, a Vice President of Creative at Mike Flanagan’s acclaimed Red Room Pictures, is stepping into the director's chair for her debut feature, Rot. This psychological thriller and body horror film has already secured an exciting cast, featuring Cooper Koch (Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story), Amber Midthunder (Prey), and Matthew Lillard (Scream franchise), both Midthunder and Lillard also appearing in Flanagan's upcoming Carrie TV series.

Flanagan himself is producing Rot under his Red Room banner, joined by Molly C. Quinn, Matthew M. Welty, and Elan Gale from QWGmire. Production for the film is slated to commence this November in Vancouver. QWGmire previously collaborated with Flanagan on his Neon film The Life of Chuck, and Gale has been a frequent partner on projects like The Fall of the House of Usher, The Midnight Club, and Midnight Mass.

Rot is based on a script by Geo Bradley, which earned a spot on the 2024 Black List. Bradley describes the film as "Repulsion by way of Cronenberg," hinting at a deeply unsettling experience. While an official logline remains under wraps, the Black List synopsis reveals a story centered on an antisocial man grappling with obsessive compulsions and haunted by his hoarder mother's death. He takes on trauma cleaner work, hoping to confront his past, only for the job to infest and unravel his mental state.

Magistro's eight-year tenure with Flanagan has seen her contribute significantly to his genre output. She recently served as an executive producer on Universal/Blumhouse's upcoming The Exorcist: Martyrs, due March 12, 2027, and as a writer and producer for the Amazon series adaptation of Stephen King's Carrie.

The film's cast brings a wealth of experience to the project. Cooper Koch recently garnered Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for his portrayal of Erik Menendez in Ryan Murphy’s Netflix drama Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story. He's also set to appear in Luca Guadagnino’s drama Artificial, premiering at the New York Film Festival.

Amber Midthunder, widely recognized for her leading role in Dan Trachtenberg’s Emmy-winning Prey, has also been seen in Apple’s Monarch: Legacy of Monsters and Paramount’s Novocaine. Her upcoming projects include the aforementioned Carrie and the action film Painter.

Veteran actor Matthew Lillard's recent credits span Daredevil: Born Again, Cross, Scream 7, and Five Nights at Freddy’s 2. Beyond Rot and Carrie, he also worked with Flanagan on The Life of Chuck, and has Superman follow-up Man of Tomorrow and Searchlight’s Behemoth! in his pipeline.

Red Room Pictures continues its prolific output, with Rot joining a slate that includes the Carrie series, the new Exorcist film, adaptations of Stephen King’s The Mist for Warner Bros., and the Warhammer video game for Amazon.