Killer Chimp Horror Movie ‘Primate’ Unleashes Rabid Suspense and Jaw-Dropping Practical Effects [Trailer]

Meet Ben, the family pet turned rabid killer in the new trailer for Paramount’s Primate from director Johannes Roberts (47 Meters Down, The Strangers: Prey at Night, Welcome to Raccoon City).

First, you’ll fall in love with him. Then he’ll tear your heart right out of your chest.

Here’s the plot synopsis for Primate: “Home from college, Lucy reunites with family, including pet chimp Ben. Ben contracts rabies during a pool party and turns aggressive. Lucy and friends barricade in the pool, devising ways to survive the vicious chimp.”

Primate releases in theaters January 9, 2026.

Johannes Roberts co-wrote the screenplay for Primate with Ernest Riera. The horror movie stars Johnny Sequoyah and Oscar®-winning Troy Kotsur (CODA) in his first horror role. Walter Hamada is producing Primate, part of a new horror pact with Paramount.

I wrote in my Fantastic Fest review, “Roberts’ latest is a lean, mean horror throwback, wearing its influences on its sleeves while managing to inject enough freshness into the familiar concept through slick technical precision and a constant mounting of dread and death. It’s also not without humor. Primate may take its crazed beast with utmost seriousness, but it’s not afraid to get playful with its concept either.”

Watch the new trailer now, which sets the stage for the white-knuckle suspense and jaw-dropping practical effects that bring this killer chimp to life on screen.

Ben is practical, courtesy of Millennium FX, and played by movement specialist Miguel Torres Umba. The chimp’s transformation from sweet pet to terrifying monster is the film’s strongest asset, enhanced by Roberts’ suspense precision.