With his breakout hit and Best Picture nominee The Sixth Sense, M. Night Shyamalan became a household name, only to hit a career roadblock a few years later, only to come back in the 2010s. Many people ᴀssociate his return to form with 2016’s Split, a secret sequel to Unbreakable, but he actually had a sleeper success in 2015.

Shyamalan’s name became synonymous with disappointing twist endings over the years and it hurt his reputation to the point where he started having to fund his own films. However, he found his way back to success and is currently enjoying a career resurgence.

While Split was the box office hit that really brought him back into the public eye, Shyamalan’s 2015 movie was the one that saw the director return to form. It, more than Split, showed that he was still a filmmaker to watch.

The Visit Was Shyamalan’s Best Movie In Years

It Worked Because It Was Simple, Yet Effective

Released quietly in 2015, The Visit was M. Night Shyamalan’s true return to form. Though it wasn’t a mᴀssive hit like some of his other films, The Visit did gross nearly $100 million on a minuscule $5 million budget. More than commercially, though, it excelled from a critical standpoint.

After some bumps in the 2000s, the early 2010s were rough for Shyamalan, with The Last Airbender and After Earth being big budget movies that struggled financially and were widely panned by both critics and audience members. They felt like a nail in Shyamalan’s coffin, yet The Visit helped him rebound.

The Visit follows a pair of young siblings who visit their estranged grandparents for the first time, only for their disturbing behavior to make things turn horrifying. The film sits at a solid 68% on Rotten Tomatoes and was praised for the atmosphere, twists, and practical effects. It was proof that Shyamalan could still deliver, especially on a small budget.

Keeping the cost low allowed Shyamalan to get creative to get the most out of a small budget. Things like CGI are expensive, so Shyamalan finding ways around it and utilizing an eerie atmosphere showcased his forgotten talent as a filmmaker.

Since The Visit, Shyamalan Has Been On A Good Run

His Latest Batch Of Films Is A Strong One

As noted, films like After Earth hurt Shyamalan’s career but fans were disappointed long before that with Lady in the Water and The Happening. However, The Visit truly rejuvenated the director as his latest string of films since its arrival have kind of been his best batch. He followed The Visit with the aforementioned Split, which was a huge hit.

Glᴀss, which ended the Unbreakable trilogy, was met with a mixed response but not the scathing reviews of Shyamalan’s worst films. The same went for 2021’s Old and since then, he’s put out Knock at the Cabin and Trap, which were both well-received and utilize twist endings in a positive way.

Next up for Shyamalan is Remain, slated for a 2026 release, which is one of his most intriguing projects. He wrote it with Nicholas Sparks, who is most known for his romance novels and is penning the novel version. Given Shyamalan’s track record after The Visit, there are high hopes for it.