A young striver discovers his mature new lover’s Gothic beach mansion is home to secrets—and potentially sinister forces—in this darkly comic horror screenplay.
A restless dreamer named Lionel escapes his dead-end life for a sun-soaked resort, chasing glamour and a place among the elites. When he becomes entangled with Ian, a wealthy, enigmatic older man, the promise of luxury deepens into something more intoxicating—and unsettling.
As Lionel follows Ian to his imposing, anachronistic estate in a mysterious island enclave, he’s beset by strange dreams, whispered rumors, sinister neighbors, and a disconcerting sense that he’s stepping into someone else’s life. The deeper he immerses himself in Ian’s privileged world, the more he senses that something beneath the surface is watching, waiting—and shaping him into something new. What begins as a quest for security and belonging turns into a chilling confrontation with identity, power, and the cost of becoming exactly what you wished to be.
Inspired by Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, Nathaniel reimagines the classic Gothic novel’s haunting themes and iconic story engine in a contemporary setting, then veers into darker, more provocative, and wholly unexpected territory.