A Quick Guide To Ti West's 'X' Trilogy: Unpacking 'X', 'Pearl', and 'MaXXXine'!

Forget the Marvel Cinematic Universe -- Ti West is creating one of his own!

His slasher trilogy, which includes the films X, Pearl, and MaXXXine (now in theaters), is the new horror hit. These 3 films introduce a new scream queen into the horror genre, Mia Goth, whose performances span across three different decades and multiple characters.

The franchise originally gained attention with the premiere of X, becoming the most talked-about horror movie of 2022. Numerous viewers were unaware of the plot of X, and the film's simple title left plenty to their imaginations. Months later, the X prequel Pearl had a similarly successful premiere at the Venice International Film Festival, making fans even more excited for the third film, MaXXXine. Just in time for the release of MaXXXine, we’re going to break down everything you need to know!

Pearl > MaXXXine > X

This is easily one of the best modern day horror trilogies. pic.twitter.com/a4x2j31rQr

— Overly Honest Reviews (@OverlyHonestR) July 4, 2024

The franchise started with the first film, X, which came out in March of 2022 and starred Mia Goth, Jenna Ortega, and Brittany Snow. The movie follows a small cast and crew who plan to film a pornographic movie on farm of an elderly couple who turn out to be homicidal. Set in 1979 Texas, and using many of the tropes that made slasher films of that era so popular, the film takes place over one day and ends with Mia Goth’s character, Maxine, being the only survivor.

The second movie, Pearl, which premiered just 6 months after X, is a prequel detailing the origin story of Pearl, the psychotic elderly woman in the first film. Mia Goth, who donned prosthetics in the first film to play Pearl, reprises her role here as a younger version of the character. It tells the backstory of the main antagonist, who committed heinous crimes on her family's Texas property in 1918 because of her intense desire to become a movie star. When she learns that she didn’t book an audition to be in a dance troupe, she takes her anger out on her whole family until her husband returns from war and she pays her penance by creating a home for him.

MaXXXine, the most recent and final film, was released on July 5th as a direct sequel to X. Goth reprises her role as Maxine while adding Lily Collins, Elizabeth Debicki, Halsey, and Kevin Bacon to the cast. In the movie, Maxine, who is the sole survivor of X, heads to 1980s Hollywood to seek the fame and fortune that eluded Pearl and becomes a target of real-life serial killer Richard Ramirez, AKA The Night Stalker.

According to director Ti West, the films may be viewed on their own, although some fans may choose to watch them in order. Even while X, Pearl, and MaXXXine are all stand-alone movies, seeing more than one can help a viewer have a deeper grasp of the movie's overall plot, characters, setting, and themes. The films of the trilogy are meant to be complementary to one another, continuing the trend of slasher film series producing prequels and sequels, but these 3 movies are set apart with their detailed technique and flair.

You can stream X is on Paramount +, Pearl on Paramount +, Prime Video, and Hulu, and see MaXXXine now in theaters!