MOVIE NEWS – For Mason Thames, returning as Finney in Black Phone 2 after four years was a surreal experience. The young actor explained that his work on How to Train Your Dragon had made it difficult to readjust to the natural tone required for the horror sequel. Director Scott Derrickson often had to remind him to lower his pitch and slow his delivery.

“When we made the first film, I was 13 years old. By the time we shot the sequel, I was four years older, which is a huge difference at this age,” Thames told Entertainment Weekly. “I was excited to come back, but it was pretty wild stepping into Finney’s shoes again.”

Between the two movies, Thames starred as Hiccup in the big-budget adaptation of How to Train Your Dragon. That character’s high-pitched, rapid-fire dialogue became so natural to him that he struggled to shift back into Finney’s grounded voice. “Damn, I told myself,” he recalled. “It took me days to find Finney’s tone again. He’s not a cartoon hero anymore, and he’s definitely not the little kid we last saw.”

In Black Phone 2, the Grabber (Ethan Hawke) returns from beyond the grave, haunting his potential victims as a supernatural entity. Alongside Finney, Gwen (Madeleine McGraw) once again plays a central role, as her nightmares lead her to a remote mountain camp in the dead of winter. There, not only will she and her brother face the Grabber once more, but long-buried secrets tying their family to the killer will finally be revealed.

(Black Phone 2 – US release date: October 16, 2025)

Source: Entertainment Weekly