Neon’s supernatural body-horror feature Together, starring real-life spouses Dave Franco and Alison Brie, arrived in U.S. theatres on July 30 after igniting interest in Sundance’s midnight slate in January. Australian writer-director Michael Shanks’ 102-minute debut became the festival’s first major sale when Neon paid an estimated $17 million for world rights.
Shot in Melbourne and across rural Victoria, the production used dense forests to heighten its isolated atmosphere, support later touted by state agency VicScreen. The script follows musicians Tim and Millie, whose fragile partnership takes a grotesque turn after a cave accident literally binds their bodies together, mixing practical effects with a study of codependency.
Entertainment Weekly reported that hours spent in conjoined prosthetics left the pair “aching in places we didn’t know existed,” underscoring the film’s physical demands. Early response is strong: Rotten Tomatoes lists a 91 percent score, with critics praising the couple’s committed performances and Shanks’ tactile approach.
Commercial signals are promising for a horror title released outside Halloween season. ScreenRant notes that Together crossed the $10 million global mark by Saturday morning, driven by late-night screenings and social-media chatter about its climactic body melt.
Box-office forecaster Todd M. Thatcher projects a domestic finish near $20 million, a figure that would comfortably recoup marketing costs for the modestly budgeted picture. Vulture has already placed the film atop its weekend-watch list, suggesting wider crossover appeal beyond genre enthusiasts.
Franco and Brie have amplified the rollout with playful press appearances that revisit their 2017 wedding, telling Yahoo Entertainment that guests departed with weed pens and stacks of Pizzeria Mozza slices—a tale repeated across talk shows and trending clips. Franco told People that pairing on screen works because each “catches the other’s blind spots,” while both still pursue solo work, including Brie’s role in Masters of the Universe and Franco’s Now You See Me sequel.
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With festival pedigree, a distinctive marketing hook, and word of mouth building, Together appears poised to hold screens well into late summer.
