'A Demonic Takeover of America': Dark Thriller 'Nefarious' Goes Where Faith Films Have Never Gone

As faith and family-friendly films continue to grow and develop, unique subgenres are emerging, with the new film “Nefarious” exemplifying one such evolution.

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The horror film is an R-rated thriller but with a spiritual aim: helping the viewer understand real-life evil exists — and that the battles described in Scripture are very real and palpable.

“On the day of his scheduled execution, a convicted serial killer gets a psychiatric evaluation during which he claims he is a demon, and further claims that before their time is over, the psychiatrist will commit three murders of his own,” the synopsis reads.

Author and radio host Steve Deace, whose books are the basis for the film and who executive produced the project, told CBN’s Faithwire he came up with the idea of novelizing stories of evil while in Washington, D.C., doing a publicity tour.

“Instead of just the temptation of individuals,” Deace said he found himself exploring a plotline about the “takedown of an entire culture.”

“I realized that I came to Washington, D.C., to get inspired to write a book about a demonic takeover of America, because, literally, where else in America is there a better place to get inspired about a demonic takeover of America than Washington, D.C.?” Deace quipped.

While “Nefarious” is a fictional story, Deace said it’s very much based on the real-life spiritual battles unfolding today and throughout human history. And considering the nation’s immoral trajectory, he said he wants to shed light on these issues.

“I married off my oldest daughter last fall,” he said. “My youngest daughter’s going to graduate from high school here in a couple of months. I’m gonna have grandkids [eventually].”

Deace continued, “Cultures that are in the tailspin that we’re in right now don’t have long-term futures. And so I’m worried about that.”

He said this worry was shared by everyone who worked on “Nefarious,” noting the film team included Protestants, Catholics, and believers of other stripes.

“We all have one thing in common,” he said. “America, right now, is at the lip of the mouth of madness and it’s about to belly flop into the pit, and that’s a jump that, when a culture makes, it doesn’t come back.”

Deace hopes “Nefarious” does something most Christian films haven’t ventured to try: create an exciting thriller the culture loves — but one that comes from a Christian worldview.

Find out more about “Nefarious,” which opens April 14 in theaters nationwide.

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