Ready or Not

Ready or Not 2: Here I Come Review

Brighton Nelson

20 Mar 2026 — 7 min read

What an incredible double feature! I got to watch Project: Hail Mary, which I wasn't really excited for but ended up becoming one of my new favorite movies of all time, and this film, which I was super excited for as a big fan of the first film (even though I only watched it like a week ago... but, hey, at least it's very fresh on my mind!). This film has been widely reviewed as a sequel that is bigger and bolder than the first, even if it loses some of its magic and feels more derivative. However, I really believe in "if it ain't broke, don't fix it," so this was a great thing to hear as a fan of the first. Did Ready or Not 2 live up to my hopes for the film? That's what I'll be delving into today. Thanks so much for joining me today, and let's get into this!

‘Ready or Not 2: Here I Come’ official trailer — I don't usually love these floating head type posters, but there's so much captivating detail in this one and fun characters that this is actually one of my favorite posters in recent memory!

The only real things I could consider negatives here didn't change my opinion of the film; they are mostly just critical observations. Without the dramatic irony present for Samara Weaving's Grace, the intro and tension buildup in this film is a bit weaker, even if throwing her sister in did raise the tension. While I love the hide-and-seek game, I do think moving to a different game if we get a third film would be the right move to change up the formula—though I wouldn't change anything about this one, if that makes sense.

A couple of criticisms I didn't agree with come from the sister relationship, the new villains, and the new rules presented. I've seen a lot of my fellow critics dislike the sister relationship here because it slows the pace at times, and feels unrealistic that they would start arguing mid-game. While I get the criticism, I've got to say, some siblings I know would lowkey do this, especially if they were pissed at each other. Also, the film is a comedy full of exploding Satan worshippers; I can suspend my disbelief for sibling rivalry. So, I can't agree there! I found the new villains to be great, as well! While this movie's villains felt like the Glass Onion to the first film's (slightly) more sophisticated cast, I felt leaning into the goofiness even further was the right move. I thought every actor and actress here fell perfectly in line with what I expected from psychopathic cousins, and while a slight step down from the original cast for me, that film set an incredibly high bar.

Maybe I'm the only one in the world who was obsessed with seeing this graphic every time I saw this trailer, but I *love* the way they ended the trailer with this, it looked so hype.

The most prevalent criticism that I've heard from early reactions that I can't get behind is the people who have complained about all of the new rules introduced and how it feels unrealistic that she'd be put in another game after the first... yet, I can't help but remind them that we're dealing with Satan here, the frickin' ruler of hell. Of course he'd do something this twisted! Sure, this may not have been a planned-from-the-start sequel, but all the explanations and exposition here work for me, especially since they are delivered with excellence by Elijah Wood. And honestly, this situation is quite fair compared to the first one in many ways. Anyway, I didn't really mind any of the common criticisms of this film because I just wanted it to be more of what I loved. While the execution was weaker in some spots, it was also stronger in others, and it's a fantastic companion piece that I will likely be just as interested in rewatching as the first.

Now, for all the positives I want to talk about! While the first film executed the horror elements better, I thought this film was easily the funnier film. With more crazy gore, the hilarious ballroom sequence featuring an impeccable needle drop (which I will not spoil here), cornier characters, and a slambang finale, Ready or Not 2 succeeds better on the comedy side of this horror-comedy duology. Every couple of minutes, my theater was bursting out laughing over and over again: it was awesome! And I never failed to laugh at any of the film's jokes, which is rare in an era full of lots of jokes that don't land.

The action and set pieces here are just as great, if not better, than the first. Samara continues to be the model of the modern scream queen, and Kathryn Newton was not doing a bad job at all as the other half of the duo, given how high Samara always sets the bar! Not all of Newton's recent roles have been my favorite, but I think she knocked it out of the park here. The gore continues to be fantastic... there's just endless praise-worthy things in this powerful, faithful sequel. If the quality continues and the right script is formed, I'd love to see more from this series, as long as each entry from here on out can justify its existence, my butt will be seated in the theater opening night, if not earlier!

The READY OR NOT 2 Trailer is Here | — Another fantastic poster! Sorry, couldn't find a higher quality version of this one but xD

The Reel Ranker Verdict

Reel or Unreel? - Reel
The Reel Ranker Score: 86%
Letter Score: A+
Star Ranking: 4.5 out of 5

Ready or Not 2 delivers everything I loved about the first film, yet in a slightly different font. Funnier yet a little less tense, this sequel justifies its existence by how fun and confident it is throughout every second of its runtime. Some may call it reheated leftovers, yet some will remember that our favorite soup is just as good, if not better, the next day.

Interested in checking out my reviews for some other horror films? Check them out below! Sorry, still haven't written my Ready or Not 1 review, I will add that here asap!