Common Sense Media Review
By Jeffrey M. Anderson
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Ultra-gory, ultra-strange movie about football and cults.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 17+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Him
What's the Story?
In HIM, Cameron "Cam" Cade (Tyriq Withers) is an up-and-coming football star whose promising career is suddenly derailed when he's attacked and left with a troubling head wound. Even so, he's invited to the compound of legendary quarterback Isaiah White (Marlon Wayans)—whom Cam grew up watching on TV and idolizing—for a week of training. Things start out promisingly but quickly get really strange, as practices turn into torture, drugs are given freely, and Cam starts to see unexpected things all around him. Is something sinister afoot, or is Cam just imagining it?
Is It Any Good?
This headache-inducing mishmash of jarring, gory images is purportedly about toxic masculinity and the backstabbing commerce of football, but it adds up to nothing. Him begins with a flashback to young Cam watching Isaiah breaking a leg on television but still winning the game. Cam's father tells him, "That's what real men do! Sacrifice!" If the movie had stuck with this idea—or offered some kind of coherent theme about masculine messaging—it might have gone somewhere, but it quickly starts to collapse under its onslaught of strangeness.
When Cam is attacked, it's by a giant figure with a horned head that's wielding some kind of spiky hammer. Is it a hallucination or a nightmare? Nope. Apparently it really happened. And at the compound, Isaiah seems to have a different message for each moment of the day. One minute it's about how football is everything. Another, it's about being a killer! Sometimes he's presented like a cult leader, and others, almost like a father figure. But none of this ever comes together or makes any sense. Director Justin Tipping crafts many striking compositions using enclosures, shapes, and symmetrical patterns, but they just march by in a blur, like a string of surreal music videos watched under water. As Him comes to its gruesome end, it's less of a shock than it is a bafflement: What is happening, and why?
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about Him's violence. How did it make you feel? Was it exciting? Shocking? What did the movie show or not show to achieve this effect? Why is that important?
Is the movie scary? What's the appeal of horror movies? Why do people sometimes enjoy being scared?
How does the movie portray the dangers of toxic masculinity? What positive takeaways, if any, are there?
How are drinking and drug use depicted? Are they glamorized? Are there consequences? Why does that matter?
How does the movie depict celebrities and influencers? Does it equate them with cult leaders? Do you agree with this take? Why, or why not?
Movie Details
- In theaters : September 19, 2025
- On DVD or streaming : October 7, 2025
- Cast : Marlon Wayans , Tyriq Withers , Julia Fox
- Director : Justin Tipping
- Inclusion Information : Asian Movie Director(s) , Filipino Movie Director(s) , Multiracial Movie Director(s) , Black Movie Actor(s) , Multiracial Movie Actor(s) , Female Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Universal Pictures
- Genre : Horror
- Topics : Competition , Sports ( Football )
- Run time : 96 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : strong bloody violence, language throughout, sexual material, nudity and some drug use
- Award : NAACP Image Award - NAACP Image Award Nominee
- Last updated : January 22, 2026
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