Horror film fans, A24 devotees, and Mia Goth lovers, rejoice! The independent film company has finally shared the official trailer of Maxxxine, the third and last movie of Ti West’s trilogy tracing the blood-soaked, death-filled lives of fame-hungry characters Maxine and Pearl. For the last chapter of his series, on theatres July 4th, Goth will be surrounded by other acclaimed actors like Elizabeth Debicki, Moses Sumney, Kevin Bacon, Halsey, Giancarlo Esposito, Michelle Monaghan, and Lily Collins.
In the official release, A24 sums up MaXXXine’s plot as: “In 1980s Hollywood, adult film star and aspiring actress Maxine Minx finally gets her big break. But as a mysterious killer stalks the starlets of Hollywood, a trail of blood threatens to reveal her sinister past.” That past, of course, relates back to the first film of the trilogy, X, where Maxine is lucky enough to escape a blood bath in a lost ranch in Texas where Pearl (the main character from the second film of the series, which served as a prequel to X) and her husband, Howard, kill the entire amateur film crew who dared to film an adult movie without their consent.
Now, already in 1985, Ti West keeps developing Maxine’s story, whose insatiable thirst for fame has taken her to extreme lengths. Right off the bat, we see the character in a casting process when she’s asked: “So Maxine, your agent tells us you’re quite a popular name in adult film and entertainment. Is that correct? I’m curious, did you always wanna be in that line of work?” To what she replies, “I always wanted to be famous.” But as she gets her big break and does become indeed famous, serial killer The Night Stalker, which was actually a real killer in 1984-85 whose real name was Richard Ramirez, threatens her newly-acquired popularity.
Watch the just-released trailer now and get excited for a special appearance of infamous Bates motel, 1980s vibes with Laura Branigan’s Self Control hit, and Universal Studios backdrops.