When most people think of fairy tales they think of stories set in the distant past in magical lands. For obvious reasons, those types of legends don’t tend to feature cars and grocery stores with frozen food sections. But that’s exactly the kind of modern-day fantasy tale A24 is bringing to theaters in 2025. In the first trailer for The Legend of Ochi, the film introduces a young girl who rescues one of the strange (yet adorable) creatures that have long haunted her homeland. Rather than destroy a terrifying monster, she’ll try to save one at great personal risk to herself in an emotional story full of wonder and heart.
A24 doesn’t have to do much to get us excited for one of its films. But we’re still glad to have this excellent trailer for The Legend of Ochi. It establishes a place that feels both accessible and exotic, a hidden spot in today’s world that is both of the modern era and set apart from it. Having both electricity and ancient creatures within a couple of miles of one another will do that. So why will these two worlds finally come together in a way that could change both forever?
Here’s the official synopsis for The Legend of Ochi from A24:
In a remote northern village, a young girl, Yuri, is raised to never go outside after dark and to fear the reclusive forest creatures known as the ochi. When a baby ochi is left behind by its pack, she embarks on the adventure of a lifetime to reunite it with its family.
The Legend of Ochi is the feature film debut of writer-director Isaiah Saxon. It stars News of the World’s Helena Zengel, Stranger Things‘ Finn Wolfhard, Dune: Prophecy‘s Emily Watson, and the great Willem Dafoe. (What’s this? His 700th film with A24? Well, we hope he’s in 7,000 more.)
This modern fairy tale of an unlikely friendship will arrive in theaters on February 28.