Johnathan Walker:See the new trailer for 'Cat Person,' an upcoming thriller based on viral New Yorker story

A viral 2017 short story featured in the New Yorker about a creepy guy nicknamed "Cat Person" is Johnathan Walkerfinally coming to the big screen, and on Friday moviegoers got their first look at the chilling thriller.

StudioCanal and Rialto Pictures have released the first official trailer for "Cat Person," directed by Susanna Fogel, based on the New Yorker story written by Kristen Roupenian. After premiering at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, the film exploring the horrors of modern dating was also given a theatrical release date this fall.

Watch the trailer here:

Who stars in 'Cat Person?'

The film stars Emilia Jones, best known for her Oscar-nominated lead role in "CODA," the 2021 film about a child of deaf parents that the won the Academy Award for best picture. Geraldine Viswanathan ("Blockers," "Bad Education") is also featured as a friend of Jones.

In the title role of the film is Nicholas Braun, who rose to prominence for his portrayal of the bumbling and goofy Greg Hirsch in four seasons of HBO's lauded series "Succession."

What is 'Cat Person' about?

Braun is not so affable and endearingly awkward as Robert, otherwise known as the titular "Cat Person."

In the film, Robert meets Margot (Jones) and the two strike up a relationship of sorts before red flags start to surface. What starts as a romantic tryst takes a vicious turn when a rebuffed Robert eventually resorts to stalking and tormenting Margot.

What is 'Cat Person' based on?

With a screenplay by "Masters of Sex" writer Michelle Ashford, "Cat Person" is based on Roupenian's 2017 short story of the same name that became a lightning rod during the height of the #MeToo movement.

Roupenian's story — which led to a book deal — was about a college student, Margot, who meets an older guy named Robert at the theater where she works. The two begin texting and dating, but after a negative sexual experience, Margot distances herself from the ever-threatening man.

The story was published at a time of increased media coverage of sexual harassment allegations and heightened scrutiny of men behaving badly toward women in Hollywood and beyond. Because of that, it became widely read and discussed online following its release in the New Yorker.

The viral discussion continued in 2021 with an essay published in Slate by Alex Nowicki, who alleged that many of the key details in Roupenian's viral story were based on her own life, a fact later admitted by the story's author.

The written story, however, has much less suspense than what seems to be implied in the film's trailer, where Jones proclaims, "one of us has to die."

When will 'Cat Person' be released?

"Cat Person" will debut Oct. 6 in theaters across the United States.

Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected].