Death of a Unicorn (2025)
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2025-09 to 2026-08
A father and daughter's road trip takes a supernatural turn after they accidentally strike a unicorn with magical healing properties.
The story
Lawyer Elliot Kintner and his teenage daughter, Ridley, are traveling in the Canadian Rockies for a weekend at the estate of Elliot's boss, Odell Leopold. During their journey, Elliot accidentally strikes and injures a small unicorn. Upon touching its horn, Ridley experiences strange, cosmic visions. The pair arrives at the estate with the unicorn's body hidden in their car. When the unicorn's blood is discovered to have miraculous healing properties, the wealthy owners, the Leopolds, decide to experiment with the creature to monetize its abilities, ignoring Ridley's concerns about the ethical implications of exploiting the magical being.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After the Leopolds' scientists use the unicorn's horn to cure Odell's cancer, a larger adult unicorn appears and kills several people before fleeing. A hunting party is organized, where Elliot and others are ambushed and killed by the adult unicorns. It is revealed that the larger unicorns are the parents of the foal they initially found. Amidst the chaos, the remaining survivors are hunted by the parent unicorns. During a final confrontation, Elliot manages to lure one unicorn away so Ridley can escape, but he is eventually killed. The unicorns then magically revive Elliot and the foal before leaving. The surviving Kintners are arrested by police who believe they are suspects. In the final scene, as they are being transported by police, the unicorns reappear and ram the police car off a lakeside road. The film ends with a reveal of a tapestry showing the events of the film as a legendary tale.
- First release year
- 2025
- Runtime (minutes)
- 107
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Alex Scharfman
- Writers
- Alex Scharfman · writer
- Cast and characters
- Paul Rudd; Jenna Ortega; Will Poulter; Téa Leoni; Richard E. Grant
- Genres
- dark fantasy; comedy horror; black comedy; satirical
- Themes
- social class; resurrection; father-daughter relationships
- Tone and mood
- dark; satirical
- Premise and plot tags
- mythical creatures; road trip; medical ethics
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews from critics, with some praising the performances while others criticized the direction and visual effects.
- Production trivia
- The film was produced during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike.; The score was originally intended to be composed by John Carpenter, Cody Carpenter, and Daniel Davies.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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