Tremors

Tremors (2025): The Graboids Return in a Smart, Scary, and Surprisingly Relevant Sequel

After more than three decades since the original 1990 classic, the Tremors franchise roars back to life in Tremors (2025)—a thrilling reboot-quel that honors the series’ campy roots while delivering modern tension, sharper humor, and cutting-edge creature effects. Directed by genre veteran Fede Álvarez (Don’t Breathe, Evil Dead), the film reintroduces the subterranean terror of Graboids to a new generation—this time, with a global twist.

The story picks up in the dusty ghost town of Perfection, Nevada—now abandoned and classified as a restricted “biosafety zone” after decades of undocumented “incidents.” When a multinational clean-energy corporation begins geothermal drilling in the nearby Mojave Desert, a series of mysterious tremors and disappearances raises alarm bells.

Enter Alex Gummer (played by Glen Powell), the grandson of legendary survivalist Burt Gummer, who vanished during a previous Graboid outbreak. Alex, a cynical podcast host and former soldier turned desert tour guide, reluctantly returns to Perfection to investigate, joined by Dr. Sienna Ruiz (Stephanie Beatriz), a seismologist and environmental scientist who suspects the creatures were never truly eradicated—just hibernating.

It doesn’t take long before the nightmare begins. New evolutionary variants of the Graboids—larger, smarter, and faster—emerge from deep underground, forcing the mismatched pair and a group of stranded workers to fight for survival with limited supplies, old-school tactics, and improvised weapons. What follows is a tense, often hilarious blend of creature mayhem and character-driven suspense.

Tremors (2025) succeeds because it understands what made the original special: the perfect mix of practical effects, clever writing, and small-town charm. Álvarez updates the tone with darker, modern horror elements, but still maintains the cheeky, self-aware humor fans expect. The film is filled with callbacks, including a rusted-out graboid skull, archived Gummer survival tapes, and even a voice cameo from Michael Gross himself.

Glen Powell brings rugged charm and emotional depth to Alex, portraying a man torn between legacy and skepticism. Stephanie Beatriz shines as Sienna, combining scientific credibility with action-hero grit. Their chemistry is electric, giving the film more emotional resonance than previous entries.

The Graboids themselves are spectacularly realized. While some are enhanced with CGI for scale, the film relies heavily on practical creature effects, staying true to the franchise’s roots. The new variants include a burrowing Graboid that can mimic seismic frequencies and a terrifying “alpha screecher” that uses soundwaves to disorient prey—adding new layers of strategy to the survival game.

Composer Bear McCreary provides a pulsing, percussive score that blends Western motifs with sci-fi tension, elevating the mood during chase sequences and claustrophobic tunnel scenes.

Ultimately, Tremors (2025) is more than a creature feature—it's a timely parable about ecological interference and the consequences of underestimating nature. At just under two hours, it’s tight, thrilling, and completely satisfying for both longtime fans and newcomers alike.

Verdict: A triumphant return to form, Tremors (2025) proves the ground is still fertile for smart monster horror—making it one of the most entertaining genre films of the year.