On the surface, The Black Phone is a story about a 13-year-old boy named Finney who is kidnapped by a serial killer known as the Grabber, but something more mysterious haunts him throughout this story. In the soundproof room where he and many others have been held before is a black rotary telephone that rings almost seemingly for no reason. Meanwhile, his sister has dreams that appear to be premonitions about the killer's victims, leaving detectives suspicious as to how she knows anything about the crime scenes at all.

Be warned, spoilers ahead!

The black phone does have a purpose - it’s a lifeline to Finney's freedom. Only Finney can hear when it rings. Only Finney can hear the voices on the other end - those of the boys who were kidnapped before him, trying to lead him to a better fate.

The Black Phone is a unique twist on a conventional serial killer thriller based on a short story by Joe Hill and was written by C. Robert Cargill and Scott Derrickson, who also directs. The film stars Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw, Ethan Hawke, and Jeremy Davies.

Here are 5 screenwriting takeaways from The Black Phone you can apply to your own screenplay.

1. Show, don’t tell

In the thriller-horror genre, silence is often a great way to heighten tension, whereas dialogue can get in the way of suspenseful moments.

As a visual medium, exposition isn’t always necessary. The first scene of the film has little dialogue and yet, the audience can ascertain that the lead character Finney (Thames) is a competent baseball pitcher. He sees a girl from school he likes who watches him, but when the batter hits a home run, she turns away and leaves with a friend. 

You can observe how to engage an audience without the use of exposition and how to develop your characters, even without dialogue. In The Black Phone's more suspenseful scenes, you can see how tension is built and apply that to your own scripts.

2. Two teams, same goal

Finney and his sister Gwen (McGraw) get along well. They both find themselves in the same boat at home, being raised by an emotionally and physically abusive father while coping with the death of their mother.

The Black Phone pits Finney and Gwen's characters on the same journey, but along different paths when Finney is kidnapped. Gwen must use the clues from her dreams to locate the Grabber and where he is hiding her brother.

Meanwhile, Finney must escape his captor. With the help of the black phone, he continues to gain confidence in his abilities to break out of his dungeon.

You can see the importance of having parallel stories run toward the same conclusion. In stories involving kidnappers or serial killers, there are generally two stories, if not more, coinciding with one another even if they don’t meet until the end.

3. Raise curiosity

One aspect of storytelling that The Black Phone pulls off well is making the audience curious. There are several questions the viewers ask themselves as the movie plays. By answering the viewer's questions subtly, your audience is satisfied and tension continues to build.

One of those questions is how will Finney escape? He’s locked in a soundproof basement so screaming is not an option. There is no way for him to signal for help and no way to get out. He doesn’t even know what the Grabber wants other than to kill him, maybe.

Another question, why does the black phone keep ringing? This answer comes pretty quickly but our curiosity is elevated once more when we learn the Grabber doesn't hear the phone at all. Once this question is answered and the viewer knows the reason for the phone, it raises the next question of how will the voices help Finney.

Knowing the consequences of being caught while trying to escape, will Finney try to run? The callers on the black phone try to help Finney but what they say could impact if and how he tries to flee. The audience wonders how they would react in the same situation and live vicariously through the character.

You can see how the filmmakers pose these questions and put the audience into the shoes of the characters, solving the mystery along with the protagonist.

4. Who is the Grabber?

Villains these days need backstories that show how they became the misunderstood monsters they are. There must be some reason why the Grabber kidnaps and kills teenage boys.

Only there isn’t.

In fact, there is almost nothing known about who this person is and why they do it. He is literally a faceless villain who covers up with a devilish mask. It’s not even known why he chooses the victims he does.

Your scariest monster doesn't need a lot of backstories. Knowing the character might even detract from the tension you're building because providing background might slow the pace of the story and even reduce the suspense of the film. The Grabber’s anonymity works for the story because the audience doesn’t know what the person is capable of doing.

Just like Saw, a bad guy with no history can provide plenty of thrills.

5. A lesson in tension

There is a scene in the film that writers can look to for lessons in building suspense. Explaining this scene requires spoilers so there won’t be any specifics regarding The Black Phone stated here.

The first thing you must do is set the stakes. Finney is in a life-or-death situation. If he stays in the basement, he will be killed. If he tries to escape and is caught, he will be tortured. For example, in the first scene of Scream, Casey (played by Drew Barrymore) sees that her boyfriend has been murdered when she answers a trivia question incorrectly. Now the stakes are set when her own life is on the line if she doesn’t answer the next question correctly.

The audience also must know what the hero needs to do to escape. With the help of the black phone, Finney has an idea of how he can escape but also learns there are obstacles in the way. For example, in Top Gun: Maverick, before the pilots set off on their mission, they have learned about all the obstacles they will encounter, which include fighter jets, missiles and a near-impossible climb out of the valley. The same goes for tension in horror and thrillers. What challenges must the hero overcome to succeed?

The Black Phone is currently in theaters and available on-demand.