Shadow of God 2025 The Cult, & the Flaming Father

The Devil’s Not in the Details, He’s in the Dad

Michael Peterson’s Shadow of God, written by Tim Cairo, starts with a bang, or rather, a bunch of bad words being sprayed out in a young girl’s bedroom. Located in Guadalajara, Mexico, the girl is in a wheelchair, rotting from the inside out. Her body is wasting away while her demon passenger grows stronger.

The room is drenched in orange candlelight, though it looks suspiciously like her bedroom. Father Scott (David Feehan) leads the exorcism, demanding the demon name itself in the usual priestly fashion. It doesn’t go well. Father Scott is struck down instantly. His fellow priest, Mason Harper (Mark O’Brien), yes, our protagonist, uses the blood from Scott’s fatal wound to force the demon out. Blood sacrifice apparently works better than holy water.

Mason heads home to the land of cold shoulders and long grudges. His hometown isn’t exactly welcoming. He’s picked up by his ex-girlfriend, a psychologist, Tanis Green (Jacqueline Byers), who works with violent offenders and generally believes demons = trauma. They’ve got that awkward, “we used to date, but one of us joined the priesthood” energy.

As he wanders around his old stomping ground near a bridge into town, Mason sees a vision: his dead father, Angus (Shaun Johnston), jumping into the water. Except it’s not just a vision, his father’s alive, and as soon as the local cops see him, they handcuff him and take him to Jail. Everyone knows who he is. Pretty sure being dead trumps any outstanding warrants.

Welcome Back, Weirdo

(Holy trauma, hometown cults, and demon-slinging disobedience)

Despite that, it still feels relatively normal. Everyone seems disturbed but oddly resigned. On top of that, Mason has seen it all as a top-tier exorcist. The town’s sheriff responds by hand-delivering him to Mason’s doorstep like a cursed Amazon package. Nobody in this place blinks at the sight of a resurrected cult leader. It’s all very normal. Small towns, am I right? Everyone in town seems to be in on it, the shop clerk, the police dispatcher, even the guy behind the counter with the haunted stare.

Psychological Horror with Extra Stigmata – Shadow of God

Tanis tries to rationalize everything, but her confidence starts to crack as Mason’s visions intensify.

Eventually, even Tanis can’t deny what’s happening. Her breaking point? Being bound, gagged, and forced to watch a woman nailed to a wooden board. Posed in a praying position. That’ll do it. She pivots from “trauma manifests behavior” to “holy hell, maybe demons are real” without much fanfare, but at least the transition is there. She watches on helplessly as a girl named Gale (Emily James) is accused of being impure and executed by a circle of glassy-eyed townswomen with crosses carved into their foreheads.

In another part of the world, Father Gabrielle tries another exorcism. It fails. He dies. The Vatican slaps Mason with a full ban, forbidding him from performing any further rites. Mason, being Mason, ignores it. He’s driven, angry, and has a dream about a blade that once slayed 1,000 angels. Conveniently, he dreams of it and wakes up holding it. With his dad now in full possession mode, that blade sure comes in handy.

Final Showdown: Light vs. Legacy

What follows is a celestial showdown between Mason and his fully possessed father. There’s glowing. There’s floating. Mason shoots light from his face like a low-rent Archangel cosplay. It should be epic, but the effects are uneven, and the emotional beats don’t quite land.

Tanis contributes by engaging in some hand-to-hand fist fighting and shooting some cultists (as you do). The final act closes with a lot of destruction and a slightly overbaked score. Mason delivers the final blow with the sacred blade, killing his father, or at least the demon inside him.

With the world free of destruction, some crates nearby blow up for good measure. The town calms down, and Mason stands over his dead dad in the morgue with his ex-girlfriend, who suddenly looks like she’s in with a chance. Until, of course, Dad’s fingers twitch. Cue credits.

The cinematography, performances, and watchability are thankfully several cuts above the rest. Shadow of God 2025 shoots from creative angles, solid lighting, and Lucifer’s disciples collaborating to take God out once and for all.

Shadow of God is rated

2 “Separating the black sheep from the flock” out of 5

Mother of Movies Says:

“Possession horror meets cult drama in this snowy slow burn with a flaming dad finale. Trauma, theology, and a town full of secrets, Shadow of God never picks a side, but burns plenty of them.” – Mother of Movies

Streaming Info & Production

• Streaming on: Shudder (U.S., 2025)
• Original Release: Streaming On Shudder April 11
• Available in the US, AU, NZ, UK.
• Runtime: 1h 27m
• Director: Michael Peterson
• Writer: Tim Cairo

Cast:

• Mark O’Brien as Mason Harper
• Jacqueline Byers as Tanis Green
• Shaun Johnston as Angus Harper
• Josh Cruddas as Lucifer
• David Feehan as Father Scott
• Emily James as Gale Hanson

Shadow of God Production Company: Peterson Polaris
Distributors: Shudder, Première TV Distribution, 888 Films International, Exponenta

Should You Watch Shadow of God on Shudder?

Did you Z That reviewed this film on YouTube, watch there here.