'Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark' Is No Joke with Terrifying Full Trailer for Upcoming Horror Film

We thought they were spooked in book form, but "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark" looks like it may be way more terrifying on the big-screen, if the first full trailer is any indication.

We've already seen how beautifully (i.e. horrifyingly accurate) the monsters themselves are, as well as some of the book's most iconic imagery, but now we have a sense for how it's all coming together into a cohesive story for the film. And it may just give "It: Chapter Two" a run for its money in spooks.

The film brings together the stories in the book through a book in the film (natch). And yes, the book is haunted. And yes, the book came from a haunted house. But that's not the scariest part.

The book is apparently writing itself, and inserting the names of the kids who found it into each new story, and then essentially "feeding" the named kid to the monster in that story.

That follows the familiar horror trope of targeting one innocent life at a time while everyone else does what they can to try and stop the malevolent force behind the terror before anyone -- or at least everyone -- dies.

The trailer does a fantastic job of setting up the chills to come, and gives us an even better look at some of the terrifyingly awesome creatures created for the film, as well as the group of young kids who must band together to try and stop this evil from destroying them all ... and possibly beyond.

At least that part sounds familiar, and it's a classic formula that has found recent mainstream success with both the "It" feature film as well as Netflix's blockbuster "Stranger Things" series. The trailer smartly shares a tone and atmosphere with the successes that have come before it.

And quite frankly, by the time Stephen King's tome "It" hit bookshelves in 1986, Alvin Schwartz had already dropped two volumes of his "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark" series, so in many ways it could be argued that "It" and "Stranger Things" are following in his footsteps.

In the film, the book the children found was written by a tortured young girl in 1968. Her story will surely unfold alongside our young protagonists and the monsters she created when "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark" hits theaters on August 9.

It's going to be a wild month for children fighting horrors as "Scary Stories" drops right in the middle between "Stranger Things" (Season 3 drops July 4) and "It Chapter Two" (in theaters September 6).

And with three "Scary Stories" books on the shelves we've every reason to believe there'll be future chapters of this franchise-in-the-making as well, if this trailer is any indication. If, somehow, the movie disappoints then whoever was in charge of putting this trailer together needs a raise ... because it certainly looks like a blockbuster here. We're already having nightmares!

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