Movies - Cold Storage: Where High-Stakes Science Fiction Meets Outrageous Horror Comedy Underground

By Mulder, 06 august 2025

The freshly unveiled trailer for Cold Storage—directed by Jonny Campbell and adapted by David Koepp from his 2019 bestselling thriller novel—teases a delirious blend of apocalyptic horror, razor-edged dark humor, and ticking-clock suspense. Produced by Gavin Polone (Zombieland) and David Koepp himself, and shot with chilling precision by cinematographer Tony Slater Ling, the film has already ignited serious buzz thanks to its chaotic, satirical tone and unforgettable ensemble of eccentric characters. Starring Georgina Campbell, Joe Keery, Sosie Bacon, Vanessa Redgrave, Lesley Manville, and Liam Neeson, Cold Storage looks set to deliver a nerve-wracking and wildly entertaining genre cocktail when it arrives in U.S. theaters in 2026 via Samuel Goldwyn Films, with StudioCanal handling French distribution.

Set largely within a decaying U.S. military compound repurposed as a self-storage facility, the story’s origins stretch back decades. In the aftermath of a disastrous top-secret mission, a highly contagious, constantly mutating parasitic fungus—brought back from space—was locked away in the coldest, deepest sublevel of the base. But climate change, human negligence, and rising temperatures have compromised its containment. Now, the world’s most dangerous organism is stirring. The trailer opens with creeping dread: flashbacks to Liam Neeson’s grizzled bioterror operative Robert Quinn and Lesley Manville’s equally battle-hardened Trinny Romano investigating a crashed spacecraft in the Australian outback, sirens blaring, the air thick with menace. Then—smash cut to the present—dusty boxes, flickering fluorescents, and the false calm of a storage facility hiding an extinction-level threat beneath its floors. Enter Joe Keery as “Teacake,” a motormouthed, recently paroled night shift worker, and Georgina Campbell as Naomi, a blunt, no-nonsense newcomer with her own reasons for keeping her guard up. Their reluctant partnership soon spirals into an outrageous, claustrophobic, and grotesquely funny fight for survival.

David Koepp, whose credits include Jurassic Park, Mission: Impossible, and Spider-Man, folds his trademark tightrope tension into a premise that is, disturbingly, grounded in real science. The film’s central menace is inspired by the real-world cordyceps fungus—the infamous “zombie parasite” that hijacks insect brains and forces them into fatal behavior. In Cold Storage, that concept is magnified, mutated, and given an extraterrestrial twist. As Koepp puts it, this is a story “where science fights entropy, and humanity finds hope in unlikely places.” The screenplay’s tone—by turns suspenseful, grotesque, and laugh-out-loud absurd—allows the cast to shine. Liam Neeson brings weary gravitas (and surprising dry wit) as Quinn, while Sosie Bacon’s Dr. Hero Martins, a NASA consultant, offers both scientific expertise and fearless determination. And then there’s the scene-stealing supporting lineup: Vanessa Redgrave as a memory-fogged retired military liaison holding vital information, and Lesley Manville delivering deadpan brilliance—calmly sipping tea in a gas mask as chaos erupts around her: “It’s just Tuesday,” she shrugs.

Filmed across Morocco’s arid landscapes (doubling for the Australian outback) and the atmospheric tunnels of an abandoned WWII-era nuclear bunker outside Rome, Cold Storage leans heavily on practical effects and oppressive, tactile set design. Production designer Elena Albanese built a fully realized, decimated village in the Moroccan desert and transformed Tiburtina Studios into a convincingly decrepit Kansas storage facility. Director Jonny Campbell, known for Dracula, Doctor Who, and Westworld, emphasized a retro creature-feature vibe, complemented by Billy Sneddon’s kinetic editing and Mathieu Lamboley’s menacing score. The fungus isn’t just a monster—it’s a shape-shifting character in its own right. Practical makeup and animatronic wizardry from Oscar-winning FX artists Dave and Louise Elsey bring to life grotesque transformations: from infected animals (including a hilariously horrifying mutated cat named Mr. Scroggins) to the film’s show-stopping “rat king” sequence. Campbell even deploys “Macro-Vision” shots, plunging the audience inside infected bodies to witness the organism’s grotesque internal takeover.

Beneath its splatter and satire, Cold Storage is anchored by the dynamic between Teacake and Naomi—a mismatched duo whose “weirdest first date ever” forces them to drop their defenses. As Joe Keery puts it, “At its heart, this is about two regular people trying to make their lives a little better—while dealing with insane chaos.” Their growing trust, mutual respect, and comedic bickering provide emotional ballast amid the absurdity. The film also satirizes institutional incompetence and bureaucratic negligence, with the military’s decision to sell off a contaminated facility serving as a biting commentary on misplaced priorities. The absurdity is sharpened by the fact that, as Koepp notes, Cold Storage’s premise is “only one small mutation away from being possible.”

With StudioCanal and Samuel Goldwyn Films pushing the theatrical release, Cold Storage is designed for the communal thrill of a crowded cinema—laughter, gasps, and groans shared in real time. It’s an unapologetic popcorn movie, one that invites audiences to scream, laugh, and lean forward in their seats. As Campbell describes it: The Goonies for grown-ups, if The Goonies featured fungal brain control, exploding rib cages, and a romance born under biohazard conditions. The trailer closes with a perfect encapsulation of the film’s tone: Quinn’s grim warning—“If it breathes, it spreads”—followed by Teacake’s rapid-fire, “Great. So… we’re screwed.” With its whip-smart script, killer cast chemistry, and a tonal blend of Outbreak and Shaun of the Dead, Cold Storage could easily become one of 2026’s standout genre hits. Just don’t watch it in a basement.

Synopsis :
Decades ago, a highly infectious and constantly mutating microorganism capable of causing extinction-level destruction was contained in a military facility. Today, the military has sealed off the lowest basement of the facility and sold the remaining space to a self-storage company. As temperatures rise underground, the microorganism finds a way to escape. If left to spread, it will soon multiply uncontrollably across the globe. The fate of humanity now rests on a retired bioterrorism agent and two unlikely heroes employed at the facility—who are caught in a race against time to destroy the organism and save humanity.

Cold Storage
Directed by Jonny Campbell
Written by David Koepp
Based on Cold Storage by David Koepp
Produced by Gavin Polone, David Koepp
Starring Georgina Campbell, Joe Keery, Sosie Bacon, Vanessa Redgrave, Lesley Manville, Liam Neeson
Cinematography : Tony Slater Ling
Edited by Billy Sneddon
Music by Mathieu Lamboley
Production companies : StudioCanal, Pariah
Distributed by Samuel Goldwyn Films (United States), StudioCanal (France)
Release date : 2026