In the past few years, Blumhouse Pictures has established itself as a reliable brand of horror entertainment. The production house has transformed hits like Paranormal Activity, Insidious and The Purge into lucrative franchises capable of drawing in hordes of moviegoers. Now the company aims to do the same thing with Sinister.

That 2012 frightfest starred Ethan Hawke as a writer who discovers a box of home videos in his attic that poses a dangerous threat against his family. By the looks of it, the premise of Sinister 2 isn't too much of a stretch from that basic idea. Shannyn Sossamon stars as a young mother who moves to a new house with her twin sons, and before long, the demonic Bughuul begins to appear to the children.

Fans have already gotten a glimpse at the new film, but now we have our first red-band trailer for Sinister 2 (see above). The footage nicely plays off of the events of the first movie, as James Ransone's character returns to continue trying to solve the mystery behind the tragic string of family deaths. Moreover, this sequel - directed by Ciarán Foy (Citadel) and co-penned by Sinister scribes C. Robert Cargill and Scott Derrickson - looks like it may offer more than just a variation of its predecessor's plot

'Sinister 2'

While Sinister centered on the mystery at hand, the new film seems largely concerned with developing the mythology surrounding Bughuul and his methods. There's still every chance that Sinister 2 will simply deliver another by-the-numbers horror sequel, but this new trailer does give fans reason to be hopeful that the film will push the story forward in a meaningful way.

Subsequent entries in the Insidious and Paranormal Activity franchises have aimed to broaden the worlds surrounding their respective supernatural entities. So there are certainly precedents to indicate that the Sinister franchise might also begin taking this same approach with the second film. Whether or not that's a good thing, though, depends on how much (or how little) you care for sequels like Insidious: Chapter 2, Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones, and so forth.

UPDATE: Take part in the Sinister 2 Comic-Con sweepstakes. If you're in San Diego, be on the lookout for creepy short films that are connected to the movie that are projected around the city. If you see one, take a picture, post it to Twitter and you are entered to win a VIP trip to Fright Fest.

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Sinister 2 hits U.S. theaters on August 21st, 2015.

Source: Gramercy Pictures