{{Short description|2023 horror film directed by Allisyn Snyder}} {{no plot|date=October 2025}} {{Infobox film | image = | caption = | director = Allisyn Snyder | writer = Matthew Scott Montgomery | producer = {{Plainlist| * Allisyn Snyder * Charles M. Barsamian * Matthew Scott Montgomery }} | starring = {{Plainlist| * Matthew Scott Montgomery * Grant Jordan * Debby Ryan * Sterling Sulieman}} | cinematography = Dylan Riley Snyder | editing = Bryan Morrison | music = Steve Arm | studio = {{Plainlist| * Watch the Footage Productions * Exit Strategy Productions * Traction Pictures}} | distributor = | released = {{Film date|2023|07|02|Soho Horror Film Festival|2023|10|11|Screamfest Horror Film Festival}} | runtime = 80 minutes | country = United States | language = English }}
'''''Howdy, Neighbor!''''' is a 2023 American screenlife horror film directed by Allisyn Snyder. It stars Matthew Scott Montgomery, Grant Jordan, Debby Ryan, and Sterling Sulieman.
== Premise == Benjamin Caldwell (Matthew Scott Montgomery) is a former child actor turned queer millennial adult living in Los Angeles. Despite his attempts to distance himself from it, he agrees to attend an online reunion show for ''Howdy, Neighbor!'', the sitcom that made him a child star in the role of Bucky the farm boy. When he meets his new neighbour Chase Mitchell (Grant Jordan), Chase reveals himself to be Bucky's number one fan. As he struggles with the blurred line between friendship and fandom, Benjamin and his best friend Harley Walker (Debby Ryan) begin investigating Chase. They soon find out that not everything is as it seems, and Benjamin's life gets turned upside down.<ref name="Chapman2022">{{cite magazine |last=Chapman |first=Wilson |date=July 7, 2022 |title=Disney Channel Stars Debby Ryan, Alyson Stoner, Matthew Scott Montgomery and More to Star in LGBTQ Horror Film (EXCLUSIVE) |url=https://variety.com/2022/film/news/disney-debby-ryan-alyson-stoner-1235311033/ |magazine=Variety |location= |publisher= |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref><ref name="Goodfellow2025">{{cite magazine |last=Goodfellow |first=Melanie |date=March 4, 2025 |title=Timur Bekmambetov Launches The Black List-Style Platform Screenlifer With 'Howdy, Neighbor!' & 'CRTL' |url=https://deadline.com/2025/03/timur-bekmambetov-the-black-list-style-platform-screenlifer-howdy-neighbor-crtl-1236310329/ |magazine=Deadline Hollywood |location= |publisher= |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref>
== Cast == * Matthew Scott Montgomery as Benjamin Caldwell * Grant Jordan as Chase Mitchell * Debby Ryan as Harley Walker * Sterling Sulieman as Marcus Lockamy * Alyson Stoner as Amber * Kimmy Shields as Katie * Tim Bagley as Vell Cantrell * Greer Grammer as Diamond Hopkins * Kevin Chamberlin as Vinnie Mason * Adam Faison as Jack Flash * Nina Millin as Chelsea Kennedy * Peter James Smith as Stefan * Shayne Topp as Officer Crowley * Damien Haas as Officer Jackson * Misha Reeves as Harley's Mom
== Production ==
Matthew Scott Montgomery and Allisyn Snyder originally met as children while working on the Disney Channel original show ''So Random!'' During their tenure, both experienced incidents of stalking, cyberstalking, and harassment.<ref name="Hermanns2023">{{cite magazine |last=Hermanns |first=Grant |date=October 14, 2023 |title=Howdy, Neighbor! Director On Reuniting With Disney Co-Stars For Screenlife Horror Feature |url=https://screenrant.com/howdy-neighbor-movie-director-allisyn-snyder-interview/ |magazine=Screen Rant |location= |publisher= |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref><ref name="TalkHouse2022">{{cite magazine |last=Snyder |first=Allisyn |date=July 28, 2023 |title=Disney Stalker Support Group: Child actor turned writer-director Allisyn Snyder on the real-life inspiration for her debut feature, the horror movie Howdy Neighbor! |url=https://www.talkhouse.com/disney-stalker-support-group/ |magazine=Talkhouse |location= |publisher= |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref><ref name="NoFilm2023">{{cite web |last=Snyder |first=Allisyn |date=July 4, 2023 |title=How This Former Child Actor Turned Director Brings Her Own Horrors to the Screenlife Genre |url=https://nofilmschool.com/director-allisyn-snyder-breaks-down-howdy-neighbor |website=No Film School |location= |publisher= |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref> Montgomery drew heavily from these experiences when writing the screenplay for ''Howdy, Neighbor!'',<ref name="Goodfellow2025" /> and used the screenlife format to explore the nuances and dangers of parasocial interaction.<ref name="TalkHouse2022" /><ref name="Hermanns2023" /> He later pitched the idea to Snyder,<ref name="NoFilm2023" /> who agreed to both direct the film and finance it through she and her husband's production company Watch the Footage Productions.<ref name="Chapman2022" /> Later Bob Morrison and Charles Barsamian of Exit Strategy Productions and Jason Tamasco of Traction Pictures were brought on to produce the film.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Vecchiarelli |first=Samantha |date=n.d. |title=Holr Chats: Allisyn Snyder Talks Filmmaking Career and Horror Film "Howdy, Neighbor!" |url=https://holrmagazine.com/holr-chats-allisyn-snyder-talks-filmmaking-career-and-horror-film-howdy-neighbor/ |magazine=HOLR Magazine |location= |publisher= |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref>
In July 2022, Variety revealed the cast list, which was primarily composed of ex-Disney Channel child stars.<ref name="Chapman2022" /><ref>{{cite magazine |last=Olson |first=Samantha |date=July 8, 2022 |title=Everything We Know About The LGBTQ+ Horror Film, "Howdy, Neighbor!" |url=https://www.seventeen.com/celebrity/movies-tv/a40558124/howdy-neighbor-lgbtq-horror-movie/ |magazine=Seventeen |location= |publisher= |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref> Snyder later noted this was an intention choice, as she wanted to cast people who had similar personal experiences with stalkers.<ref name="TalkHouse2022" /> Production started in late July 2022<ref name="Chapman2022" /> and was filmed using the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera.<ref name="NoFilm2023" /> The entire project was filmed in 10 days and spent over a year in post-production.<ref name="Hermanns2023" />
== Release ==
The film premiered in the UK on July 2, 2023 at the SOHO Horror Film Festival as a part of its online SOHOme Horror Pride series.<ref>{{cite web |author=<!-- not stated --> |date=n.d. |title=Howdy, Neighbor! World Premier |url=https://www.sohohorrorfest.com/past-festivals-sohome-horror-pride-2023/howdy-neighbor |website=SOHO Horror Film Festival |location= |publisher= |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250518230142/https://www.sohohorrorfest.com/past-festivals-sohome-horror-pride-2023/howdy-neighbor |archive-date=May 18, 2025 |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=<!-- not stated --> |date=June 1, 2023 |title=SOHOme Horror Pride 2023 Announcement |url=https://www.sohohorrorfest.com/news/sohome-horror-pride-2023-announcement |website=SOHO Horror Film Festival |location= |publisher= |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240601131824/https://www.sohohorrorfest.com/news/sohome-horror-pride-2023-announcement |archive-date=June 1, 2024 |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref> It had its US premier at the Screamfest Horror Film Festival on October 11, 2023.<ref>{{cite web |author=<!-- not stated --> |date=n.d. |title=Howdy, Neighbor! |url=https://screamfestla.com/2023/film/howdy-neighbor |website=Screamfest Los Angeles |location= |publisher= |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240226135342/https://screamfestla.com/2023/film/howdy-neighbor |archive-date=February 26, 2024 |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last=Roumeliotis |first=Peter |date=October 10, 2023 |title=Screamfest 2023 Interview: Allisyn Snyder on Directing Stalker Horror Film 'Howdy, Neighbor!' |url=https://popternative.com/entertainment/screamfest-2023-interview-allisyn-snyder-on-directing-stalker-horror-film-howdy-neighbor/#google_vignette |magazine=Popternative |location= |publisher= |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last=Grobar |first=Matt |date=September 26, 2023 |title=Screamfest Horror Film Festival Unveils 2023 Lineup With Eddie Alcazar's 'Divinity' Set For Opening Night |url=https://deadline.com/2023/09/screamfest-2023-lineup-divinity-1235555403/ |magazine=Deadline Hollywood |location= |publisher= |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref>
''Howdy, Neighbor!'' primary received positive reviews with critic Fred Topel calling it as "a clever update on stalker fears"<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Topel |first=Fred |date=October 12, 2023 |title=Screamfest review: Fun 'Howdy, Neighbor!" Disney kids' greatest fear |url=https://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/Movies/2023/10/12/Howdy-Neighbor-Disney-kids-review/1791697093879/#google_vignette |magazine=United Press International |location= |publisher= |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref> and Steph Cannon of Horror Buzz calling it a "gripping, innovative take on the found footage genre with outstanding performances."<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Cannon |first=Steph |date=June 27, 2023 |title='Howdy, Neighbor!' A Stellar Take on the Dark Side of Fandom |url=https://horrorbuzz.com/howdy-neighbor-is-a-stellar-take-on-the-dark-side-of-fandom/ |magazine=Horror Buzz |location= |publisher=Gidney Creative LLC |access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref>
The film did not initially receive a broader distribution outside of film festivals. However, in 2025, Deadline reported that Timur Bekmambetov would be seeking a distributer for the film through his new company Screenlifer, which focuses on promoting films that use the screenlife format.<ref name="Goodfellow2025" />
== References == {{Reflist}}
== External links == * {{IMDb title|tt21974232}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Howdy, Neighbor!}} Category:2023 English-language films Category:2023 directorial debut films Category:2023 films Category:2023 horror films Category:2023 independent films Category:2023 LGBTQ-related films Category:American horror films Category:American LGBTQ-related films Category:Films about actors Category:Films about social media Category:Films about stalking Category:Films about the Internet Category:LGBTQ-related horror films Category:Mobile phone films Category:Screenlife films