At the Sundance Film Festival, Neon has secured worldwide distribution rights to Alex Ullom's upcoming horror feature '4 x 4: The Event' in a preemptive deal ahead of production. The film, Ullom's sophomore project, involves contestants in a deadly livestream challenge. This acquisition follows Neon's recent success with Ullom's debut.
Alex Ullom’s second horror film, 4 x 4: The Event, will not screen at the Sundance Film Festival, but the distributor Neon announced a major global deal for the project during the event on January 25, 2026. Sources describe the agreement as aggressive, allowing Neon to acquire rights preemptively before production starts later in the year.
The story centers on eight contestants who enter an illegal sensory-assault livestream, forced to kill or be killed using only items ordered online. Production is handled by Spooky Pictures and Image Nation through their multi-title partnership, with Divide/Conquer as co-producers. Key producers include Roy Lee and Steven Schneider for Spooky Pictures, Adam Hendricks and Greg Gilreath for Divide/Conquer, along with Haley Johnson and Evan Barber. Executive producers are Ben Ross for Image Nation and Jakob Pollack for Spooky Pictures.
The deal was negotiated by Kate Gondwe for Neon with UTA Independent Film Group representing the filmmakers. Ullom, recognized as one of Filmmaker Magazine’s 25 New Faces of Independent Film in 2024, previously directed It Ends, which competed at SXSW last month. Neon acquired global rights to that debut, starring Mitchell Cole, Akira Jackson, Noah Toth, and Phinehas Yoon, and plans a theatrical release.
Ullom is represented by UTA, Entertainment 360, and McKuin Frankel Whitehead. Neon is also partnering with Spooky Pictures and Image Nation on Damian McCarthy’s supernatural horror Hokum, starring Adam Scott, set for theaters later this year. This comes after Neon earned 18 Oscar nominations for the 98th Academy Awards, the second-highest total among studios.
