In a rare turn of events, the story behind The Evil Within is far more intriguing than the film itself, as the film was in production for over 15 years, experienced lawsuits and casting changes, and the filmmaker, a troubled heir to the Getty oil fortune, died before the film was completed. As a result, his absolutely bonkers nightmare eventually found a VOD release in the spring of 2017 to a muted response, though the film's mind-melting ridiculousness has slowly began picking up steam as a midnight movie.