The Amityville Murders trailer has dropped and it's horrific and dark. The upcoming movie is a prequel to the 1979 horror classic The Amityville Horror, and it centers on 23-year-old Ronald "Butch" DeFeo Jr. There have been a number of Amityville movies over the years, but the first one is still the best, so going in to make a prequel is a pretty bold move, though from the looks of the trailer, director and writer Daniel Farrands seems to have pulled off something pretty special with The Amityville Murders.

In 1974, Ronald "Butch" DeFeo Jr. murdered his entire family with a high-powered rifle while they were sleeping. During the court case, DeFeo Jr. claimed that he heard voices in his head that told him to commit the gruesome act. He was later convicted on six counts of second-degree murder. This is the story that the The Amityville Murders will tackle and the story that influenced The Amityville Horror. Some of DeFeo Jr.'s story was told in The Amityville Horror II: The Possession as well as the more recent remake, but it looks like the latest take will have more of an authentic look on the subject matter.

Ronald DeFeo Jr. is played by John Robinson in The Amityville Murders and his voiceover in the trailer references a "terrible, beautiful end." Things start to spiral out of control from there as the story is set. DeFeo Jr. can be heard stating that they don't live in the house by themselves, which is something that was later argued in court when he said that voices in his head told him to murder his family. The real-life court case has been the subject of conspiracy theories for years. Jay Anson's 1975 book The Amityville Horror has been criticized over the years for its truthfulness, but the story is still huge amongst horror and true crime fans.

The Amityville Horror takes place after the Ronald DeFeo Jr. killed his family and focuses on the Lutz family who move into the house where the act took place. The family moved into the house in December of 1975 and only lasted 28 days later before leaving. The family claims that they were terrorized by paranormal beings while living at the house. The story made for an intriguing book and an even better horror film in 1979.

The Amityville Murders will hit select theaters and be available on VOD starting February 8th, 2019. The horror movie stars John Robinson, Chelsea Ricketts, Diane Franklin, and Paul Ben-Victor. It will be interesting to see how this installment stacks up to the rest of the Amityville related projects that have come out over the years, but it certainly looks like it was done really well as evidenced by the trailer. We'll just have to wait a few more months to see for sure, but you can check out the trailer below, thanks to the Skyline Entertainment YouTube channel.