Korean Horror Anthology ‘Ghost Train’ Drops Chilling New Trailer

Now, who said that late-winter horror films were nothing more than studio refuse? Well, nobody’s liable to say that this year, what with “Primate,” “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple,” and “Scream 7” to see and look forward to. But there’s another worthwhile-looking horror flick coming this February: “Ghost Train.” This film came out in July of 2025 in its native South Korea, but it’s getting its first American release (such as it is) on Digital next month. About a month ago, this fright flick got its first English-language trailer.

A Trailer That Wants You Afraid to Watch the Movie

Now, most of us can probably name horror movies that kept us frightened long after we’d turned them off, whether by virtue of some especially haunting character or via a particularly effective exploration of some universal human phobia. But “Ghost Train” may be the first horror movie with a trailer that seems intent on making you afraid of even turning it on. “Do you believe the rumors?” it asks via onscreen text, “Think twice before pressing Play.”

The latest “Ghost Train” trailer, which dropped on YouTube on December 16 (courtesy of Well Go USA Entertainment, the distributor that’s bringing it to America), is English-language in the sense that it provides such interjecting text, as well as English subtitles for its Korean dialogue. (It’s hard for dubbing not to come across as phony and forced). The aforementioned warning comes late in the one-minute-29-second advertisement, the rest of which does a pretty commendable job trying to summon the kind of utter eeriness that would make it worthy of such trepidation.

True to its title, “Ghost Train” will take place in a very spooky subway station. (An aboveground train station could have been unsettling enough, but if you can go underground for your horror movie, by all means take that opportunity). It’s called the “Gwanglim Station,” and it’s famous for being the site of a suicide. “And the rumors about strange happenings,” asks Da-kyung (Joo Hyun-young), “Is that all true?” The trailer will spend the rest of its runtime compelling us to accept that it is – “No one comes back from this station,” another piece of onscreen text proclaims.

The Demon Is… Viral Videos?

Da-kyung, however, is a young YouTuber who sees this onscreen ghost story as an opportunity to draw the clicks that her channel desperately needs. “The horror queen is back,” her friend Woo-jin (Choi Bo-min) says proudly. They decide to head down to the ghost train station for some investigating.

The theme of ambitious entertainment entrepreneurs driven by a lust for success is an obvious one; more interesting is how “Ghost Train”‘s trailer cryptically hints at the notion that dark internet virality is intrinsic to the station’s supernatural lore. Early on, we see a terrifying encounter between two other characters: one of them aims his smartphone with a petrified expression, and it seems to exert a malevolent telekinetic influence over the other. “You need to take down all your videos,” somebody tells Da-kyung later on. This suggests that she and Woo-jin will get what they seek – but they may not live to enjoy their success.

And their ends may be horrible indeed: the trailer showcases such chilling “Ghost Train” menaces as a Sadako-like figure (her hair obscures her face, as is the case with the antagonist of the “Ring” series) who advances upon Woo-jin on a subway, and a giggling evildoer with a bandage-covered face and a scalding-hot beverage in her hand who chases Da-kyung throughout the station. Her desperate call to the police leads to her discovery that even the phone lines appear to be haunted.

An Effectively Disconcerting Advertisement

Another admirable aspect of the “Ghost Train” trailer is how disorientingly it portrays the cursed station. All of its scariest scenes are quickly cut, and as you can imagine, they frequently employ sinister darkness to render some of their visuals indistinct. The evil haunting the subway tunnels appears surreal, which is appropriate both to its spookiness and to the filtered quality of the online viral content at which “Ghost Train” is taking thematic aim.

All in all, “Ghost Train” seems to have the makings of a very solid psychological horror flick, one that explores a familiar theme in a way more chilling than we’ve often seen it before. American horror fans must wait until February 17 for its release onto Digital.