‘I made it kind of like a roller coaster ride, so you got to buckle up and hang on because it goes fast,’ said Michael Coffey, writer, director and producer
LAWRENCE, Kan. —
A brand new horror movie is out in select AMC Theaters today, and it was filmed here in the Metro — in Lawrence, Kansas.
“One Eye Open” brings a Midwest October scare to the big screen, even carving in some KU and Kansas references.
“I made it kind of like a roller coaster ride, so (you’ve got to) buckle up and hang on because it goes fast,” said Michael Coffey, writer, producer and director.
Coffey describes it as a somewhat family-friendly horror film without the gore.
“That’s what kind of attracted me to it, was that we were trying to make something that was fun and thrilling without being super gross,” said Patrick Rea, the film’s editor.
Coffey tells KMBC 9 that a majority of the movie was filmed inside an 1860s mansion on Tennessee Street in Lawrence two years ago. Film production took about 14 days. He wrote the script for the film back in 2017 and 2018, with the idea of using this mansion as a backdrop.
“I think the characters run up and down the staircase at least ten times during the course of the movie,” Rea said.
Coffey tells KMBC 9 he enjoys filming in his home state and would like to work on more film projects here, but that the state should consider tax credits to make the Midwest a more desirable film location.
Both Coffey, the film’s writer, producer and director, and Rea, the film’s editor, are proud Jayhawks.
“I was born and raised in Kansas, so I wanted to pay homage to my home state,” Coffey said.
Coffey also tapped into his home state connections to get his independent film on the big screen.
“I reached out to AMC because their headquarters is in Leawood, Kansas, and sent them a proposal, and then they liked the movie, and that’s how that happened,” Coffey said.
Nearly every actor in the movie, with the exception of three or four, is from the KC Metro.
“I think it shows people you don’t need to go to LA or Hollywood to make really great movies and find really great actors … There’s talent outside of the big cities,” said Hadley Norris, an actor in the movie.
Hadley is a Kansas City seventh-grade student.
Coffey explains the only challenges during production were that the mansion’s owner’s dogs ate their pizza prop a few times, and that the film crew had to make a garage look like a basement.
The film has already racked up 11 National and International Awards, too, including Best Paranormal Film at the 2026 World Film Festival in Cannes.
“It’s super rewarding that this film is (getting) the attention that it’s getting. Getting to see it at the AMC Theaters is awesome, and it’s one of those things where this is a goal that every filmmaker has,” Rea said.
The film is 81 minutes long.
“It’s an independent film and normally independent films don’t get on the big screen like this, so I think it’s pretty cool, and you should definitely see it,” Norris said.
The film is in select AMC Theaters until Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026. If it does well at the box office, it could stay another two weeks. Coffey tells KMBC 9 it’ll be on streaming platforms after its theatrical release.
