Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin 2021

Margot and her friend, the cameraman Chris, set out to create a documentary exploring Margot’s troubled past. Abandoned as a baby outside a hospital by her mother, Sarah, the haunting security footage of that moment continues to trouble Margot. Driven by her desire for closure, she soon meets her blood relative, Samuel, who unearthed their connection through a genetics website. Alongside them is Dale, who joins the team as a soundman for the project. Samuel guides them to the secluded Amish community of Beiler Farm, where Margot’s mother originated.

Upon their arrival, the group is warmly welcomed by Jacob, the patriarch of the commune and Sarah’s father, and they settle into rustic accommodations. That night, Margot awakens to mysterious red lights flickering in the distance and learns from Samuel about a bear on the prowl, threatening livestock. During an exploration of the barn, Margot encounters a little girl who is brushing her doll’s hair. When she discovers that the doll shares her mother’s name, Sarah, the girl cryptically states that “Sarah is still there.” As night descends, unsettling noises echo from the attic, prompting Margot to investigate her mother’s old room. She captures a glimpse of what seems to be a ghost on camera; while Dale finds it horrifying, Chris brushes it off as a mere lens flare.

The following morning, they interview Jacob, who recounts the tale of Sarah—a spirited woman who was more devoted to her independence than to her family. Challenging the community’s customs, she fell for a boy outside the commune which led to an unwanted pregnancy. As societal expectations clashed with her will, Sarah made the heart-wrenching choice to abandon her baby at the hospital. Margot struggles to digest this revelation, empathizing with her mother’s plight in an oppressive society, and she clings to the hope that Sarah might still be alive.

As the team analyzes drone footage, they uncover a church situated about a mile from the farm, but discover it is locked with the ominous inscription “so weit nicht weiter,” which ominously translates to “this far, no further.” Before venturing inside, they’re cautioned by Jacob who warns them that the church is forbidden. Mystifying events unfold when they witness a strange ritual involving the sacrifice of a two-headed goat in the barn, further deepening the enigma surrounding Beiler Farm and piquing Margot’s curiosity.

While Samuel gives Dale a riding lesson, Margot and Chris covertly enter the church. Inside, they find bizarre murals depicting a demonic entity named Asmodeus alongside sacrificial scenes. During their exploration, Chris discovers a concealed compartment beneath the altar that leads to a dark moat. In a moment of bravery, Margot asks Chris to lower her into the pit, where she hears a disconcerting noise, prompting fear and panic.

The intrigue intensifies when Margot, while looking through Jacob’s documents, realizes he appears to know intricate details about her life. Disturbed by this revelation, she confides in Chris about leaving the farm. Later that night, a horrifying shadow assails Margot in her room, leaving her in shock and soaked in blood. Despite a doctor labeling her symptoms as merely an unusual menstrual episode, Chris and Dale suspect something darker is at play.

As Chris and Dale venture out in the snow to replace the vehicle’s battery, a local informs them that the inhabitants of Beiler Farm are not Amish, leading them to piecing together frightening folklore about the village of Beskytter and its connection to Asmodeus. They learn that the community may be engaged in sacrificial rites to trap the demon in the bloodline, with Sarah unwittingly caught in its grasp. Returning to find Margot missing, Chris bravely confronts Jacob inside the church, where he ultimately discovers Margot in the pit. Together, they narrowly escape from a skeletal creature pursuing them in the snowy wilderness, only to face further danger when it attacks Dale, leaving Chris and Margot to find refuge in the barn.

As chaos ensues, Margot recalls her mother’s name, Sarah, which briefly halts the creature’s rampage before it meets a grisly end. After encountering Dale’s lifeless body while searching for a vehicle key, Chris and Margot rush back only to find the farm engulfed in flames, indicative of the demon’s imminent release. In the aftermath, they manage a narrow escape as the wrathful community descends into madness. A police patrol arrives to evaluate the aftermath, discovering a child crying in the barn—revealing Samuel as a vessel for the demon’s dark influence. The chilling final frame captures him venturing into the woods, a harbinger of dread for Chris and Margot’s fate.