The Strangers: Chapter 2 is the 2025 sequel in the horror series that follows on from the story established in The Strangers: Chapter 1 (2024). The movie is directed by Renny Harlin, with Madelaine Petsch, Gabriel Basso, and Ema Horvath in the lead roles. It premiered in Hollywood on September 16, 2025, and Lionsgate Films released it into U.S. theaters on September 26, 2025. The film also played at Fantastic Fest on September 20, 2025, providing a preview of the next installment in the series.The Strangers: Chapter 2 was filmed primarily in Bratislava, Slovakia, with key scenes shot at the Elephant Diner and the abandoned military hospital Opustená vojenská nemocnica patrónka, along with other Slovak locations.Filming and production details of The Strangers: Chapter 2 exploredThe Strangers: Chapter 2 (Image Via Lionsgate Films)The Strangers: Chapter 2 was shot in Slovakia, with Bratislava being the hub location. A few of the major scenes were produced at the Elephant Diner (Púchovská 12, 831 06 Rača, Bratislava), which doubled as Carol's Diner, one of the principal settings for the movie. The second significant location that was used for filming was the old Bratislava military hospital, locally referred to as Opustená vojenská nemocnica patrónka, which served as the Venus County Hospital prominently used in the narrative.Besides these primary locations, wider areas of Bratislava were utilized as well to give the movie its unsettling small-town atmosphere. Production reached beyond other regions of Slovakia, too. Production for The Strangers: Chapter 2 started on August 29, 2022, and concluded on October 28, 2022. Principal production for the trilogy overall lasted 52 days within Bratislava, beginning in September 2022 and finishing in November 2022.Both The Strangers: Chapter 2 and The Strangers: Chapter 3 took an extra month of additional photography. A week was solely dedicated to Chapter 2, in which flashbacks were inserted for more depth to the backstories of the villains. Meanwhile, a subplot featuring an investigation by Joplin Sibtain was cut during these reshoots to tighten up the story.Read More: Karate Kid: Legends ending explained: Key moments & final fight explainedWhat is the plot of The Strangers: Chapter 2? View this post on Instagram Instagram PostThe Strangers: Chapter 2 begins in 2021 in Venus, Oregon, when Shelly, a Carol's Diner waitress, seduces a man named Frank Quintanno into the clutches of the masked murderers. Shelly, Dollface, and Scarecrow later kill him in the woods, bringing back the notorious strangers.The film then jumps to 2023, immediately after the encounter of Maya Lucas with the strangers in the original film. Recovering in the Venus County Hospital, Maya has a difficult time persuading the Sheriff and Deputy of her attackers' reality. While being chased by the masked trio, Maya gets trapped in the hospital, creating an intense sequence of confrontations, including a fatal chase through the morgue. Her struggle for survival carries over into the woods, the horse farm, and the deserted cabin, where she attempts to flee while fighting physical wounds and psychological trauma.Pin-Up Girl's history is fleshed out in flashbacks, revealing her childhood and the jealousy that defined her violent tendencies. Elsewhere, Maya's desperate flight to escape introduces new players like state policeman Billy Bufford, who is eventually murdered attempting to assist her. By the end of the film, Maya is once again confronting the strangers, killing Pin-Up Girl in a bloody series before being left alone to observe Dollface and Scarecrow lamenting their dead friend.Madelaine Petsch is Maya, the protagonist survivor of the story. Maya's character was previously introduced in The Strangers: Chapter 1, and she continues to bear the trauma of her previous experience as she attempts to flee from the returning killers.Gabriel Basso plays Gregory, one of the people of Venus who gets involved in Maya's survival battle. Ema Horvath serves double duty playing Shelly, the innocent-looking diner waitress who turns out to be one of the masked strangers and is called Pin-Up Girl.Also in the cast are Rachel Shenton as Debbie, Maya's sister. Read More: 7 best series to watch if you like Alice in BorderlandThe movie was released in theatres on September 26, 2025.