Her Private Hell: A Dystopian Horror Film Starring Women

Her Private Hell is the first feature film in a decade from director Nicolas Winding Refn, marking his return to cinema after a focus on television series like Too Old to Die Young and Copenhagen Cowboy. This horror movie is scheduled for a theatrical release in the United States by Neon on July 24, 2026.

The film is a sci-fi horror thriller that follows a group of actresses gathering at a posh hotel to make a Barbarella-like movie. A mysterious mist engulfs a futuristic metropolis, unleashing a deadly and elusive entity known as the Leather Man, a mythical gimp-suited killer who traverses centuries in search of his lost daughter. The story also follows an American soldier, Private K , who attempts to rescue his daughter, whom he believes to have been trapped in hell by the Leather Man. The narrative is set partially in Japan, though Refn revealed he filmed the entire project on sets in Copenhagen, building the world from scratch.

The film stars Sophie Thatcher as Elle, Charles Melton as Private K, Kristine Froseth as Hunter, Havana Rose Liu as Dominique, and Diego Calva as Nico. The script was co-written by Refn and Esti Giordani, with cinematography by Magnus Nordenhof Jønck and music by veteran composer Pino Donaggio, known for his work with Dario Argento and Brian De Palma.

Refn has described the film as a new phase of his career and life, following an undisclosed health crisis in 2023 where he was dead for half an hour and brought back to life, leading him to rethink his creative path.

The film is produced by Refn's company byNWR and distributed by Neon in the United States, with Mubi handling releases in the UK, Ireland, Italy, Spain, and Latin America.

Extreme violence

Her Private Hell received an R rating for strong bloody violence, sexual content, and language. The extreme violence in the film is a central element of its narrative and style.

The film's violence is graphic and pervasive, driven by the actions of the primary antagonist, the Leather Man. This killer is described as going around ripping women's chest cavities open with his diamond-studded gloves. The victims are shown screaming "Daddy!" just before being slain, adding a disturbing psychological layer to the brutality.

Beyond the Leather Man's killings, the film features other exceptionally violent sequences. The character Private K engages in a series of gorgeously choreographed, exceptionally violent martial arts set pieces where he takes out a small army of Yakuza members. The film is described as a mean, nasty neo-giallo filled with buckets of gore and perforated eyeballs. One review notes that the film is full of obscene images and another describes it as a neon-soaked slasher. Winding Refn himself described the film as an original story fueled by glitter, sex and violence.

The gore is directly linked to the film's core narrative about fathers and daughters. The primary antagonist, the Leather Man, is a criminal who traverses centuries in search of his lost daughter, and his victims all scream "Daddy!" just before being slain. This creates a disturbing fusion of horror and eroticism that is meant to underscore the film's Oedipal themes. One analysis suggests that the Leather Man represents the father he wishes he was, and that the violence is a manifestation of a daughter's fantasy of an ideal father who would kill for her.

The film also uses gore to explore the psychological landscape of its protagonist, Elle. The violence is presented as part of a dreamlike world. The gore, therefore, is intended to function as a symbolic element within a larger nightmare logic, rather than as realistic violence.