Daniel Isn't Real 2019

As Luke navigates the traumatic aftermath of a mass shooting at a local coffee shop as a child, he forms an unlikely bond with another young boy, Daniel (coolly confident and charismatic), who materializes to him despite being invisible to adults like Luke’s mother, Claire. Their friendship serves as a coping mechanism for Luke’s parents’ divorce, but it’s short-lived, as Daniel convinces Luke to mix his mother’s medication into a smoothie, resulting in a near-fatal poisoning. The incident prompts Claire to banish Daniel by locking him away in her childhood dollhouse.

Years later, college-aged Luke struggles with anxiety over his future, social life, and responsibility towards his mother, who battles paranoid delusions and self-loathing. He confides in his therapist, Dr. Cornelius Braun, about his fears of succumbing to his mother’s demons. One fateful night, while sleeping at his childhood home, Luke unlocks the dollhouse, releasing Daniel as an adult. Initially, Daniel’s influence seems benign, helping Luke overcome personal struggles and find romance with artist Cassie. However, he soon exhibits aggressive behavior, becoming enraged when Luke defies him.

When Luke refuses to acquiesce to Daniel’s demands on a date with psychology student Sophie, Daniel takes over his body, forcing himself on Sophie and attacking Luke’s roommate. This incident leads to Luke being banned from campus and questioning his own sanity, fearing he may have developed schizophrenia. Despite his attempts to exorcise Daniel back to the dollhouse, he fails, and his grip on reality begins to slip.

As Luke becomes increasingly unstable, convinced that Daniel is slowly taking over his body while he sleeps, he seeks answers by visiting the father of John Thigpen, the shooter whose actions set the story in motion. He discovers that John too had an invisible friend named Daniel, leading Luke to realize that this entity is not just a product of his imagination.

Dr. Braun makes a desperate late-night visit to try and separate Luke from Daniel, but only manages to allow Daniel to take over Luke’s body and banish his consciousness back to the dollhouse. With Dr. Braun out of the way, Daniel sets his sights on Cassie as his next target.

As the truth begins to unravel, Daniel’s enigmatic nature is finally laid bare before Cassie, who learns that this “traveler” has been wandering the earth for centuries, intervening in the lives of others with an air of superiority. Seized by a sudden urge, Daniel pursues Cassie to the rooftop of her apartment building, his footsteps echoing through the night as he closes in on her. Desperate to escape the clutches of this malevolent force, Cassie implores Luke to snap out of his trance-like state and rejoin reality. Unseen by Daniel, Luke summons the strength to break free from the dollhouse’s confines, driven by Cassie’s pleas.

As the tension reaches a boiling point, Daniel confronts Luke in a final, brutal encounter. With a tone dripping with disdain, he claims to have spent centuries helping those in need, only to be met with scorn and disillusionment. Luke retaliates, branding Daniel a “parasite” who feeds on the suffering of others. The realization dawns on Luke that he and Daniel are forever bound together by an otherworldly connection. With Cassie’s safety ensured, Luke makes a poignant decision, sacrificing his own life to escape the clutches of this monstrous presence.

As the darkness closes in, Cassie lies down beside Luke’s body, her grief and despair palpable. Meanwhile, Daniel reverts back to his true form, surrounded by an unsettling aura of malevolence that seems to draw the very light out of the air. The implication is clear: a new host awaits, and Daniel will soon be on the hunt once more, forever doomed to roam the earth in search of his next victim.