The psychological horror-thriller Past Life, directed by Simeon Halligan (White Settlers, founding programmer of Manchester’s Grimmfest), will expand to UK digital platforms on Easter Monday, April 6, 2026, via Miracle Media — following a limited theatrical run.
The film follows Jason, a war reporter scarred by years covering conflict, whose wife convinces him to attend a late-night hypnosis show. The celebrity hypnotist, played by Jeremy Piven (Mr Selfridge, Entourage), claims to send participants into visions of their past lives. Jason’s session goes somewhere far darker — he finds himself experiencing a 1980s serial killer’s perspective, and the line between hypnotic episode and waking reality begins to fracture.
Aneurin Barnard (Peaky Blinders, Dunkirk, Time) leads the cast alongside Piven, with pop star turned actress Pixie Lott (Fred: The Movie), Nicholas Farrell (The Iron Lady, The Count of Monte Cristo), and Tim McInnerny (Game of Thrones, Blackadder, Gladiator II) rounding out the ensemble. Set and shot entirely in Manchester, the film wears its location with confidence.
Film Hounds awarded it four stars, calling it “a triumphant return for Simeon Halligan and Rachel Richardson Jones, successfully blending a smorgasbord of themes and ideas… a claustrophobic nightmare that pays homage to classic horror cinema… keeps the audience guessing at every turn.” For a film of this scale — intimate, UK-made, built on atmosphere rather than spectacle — that’s a genuinely strong endorsement.
Past Life is available on UK digital platforms now from April 6, 2026 (Miracle Media).
