Inherited Sixth Sense: Trailer of M. Night Shyamalan’s Daughter Ishana’s Debut Film ‘The Watchers’ Released
- An adaptation of A.M. Shine’s 2021 gothic horror novel of the same name, the thriller is scheduled to open on June 7.
Ishana Night Shyamalan, the middle daughter of filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan, seems to have inherited her father’s talent and acumen for suspense, scares and drama. The 22-year-old has released the trailer of her debut film “The Watchers,” starring Dakota Fanning, Georgina Campbell, Oliver Finnegan, and Olwen Fouere.
An adaptation of A.M. Shine’s 2021 gothic horror novel of the same name, “The Watchers” follows Mina (Fanning), a 28-year old artist who gets stranded in an expansive, untouched forest in western Ireland. When she finds shelter, she unknowingly becomes trapped alongside three strangers that are watched and stalked by mysterious creatures each night.
The film, which is scheduled for a June 7 release, is produced by her proud father through his Blinding Edge Pictures production company.
Ishana graduated from her father’s alma mater, New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. She also has worked on music videos and short films.
The father-daughter duo have worked together in the past. Ishana wrote or co-wrote 10 episodes and directed six episodes of M. Night’s Apple TV+ series “The Servant.” In a February 2022 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Shyamalan said it was one of Ishana’s short films that got her the directing gig on the series. “I’d seen Ishana’s short films, I’d seen her writing, and I saw this opportunity,” he said.
She also directed the second unit for her father’s recent films “Old” (2021) and “Knock at the Cabin” (2023), which both topped the box office during their respective opening weekends.
Shaymalan and his wife Bhavna have two other daughters — Saluki and Shivani. The family has lived in a 1937 Georgian revival house on a 125-acre estate called Ravenwood in Chester County, Pennsylvania, for nearly two decades.