How to Watch All the ‘X’ and ‘Pearl’ Movies in Order

Over a year ago, director Ti West — an established name in the horror sector — dropped a subtle bombshell in X, an under-promoted gem that flew under the radar for some time, despite being a product of production company A24, known at this time for Midsommar, The Witch, and Hereditary. West returns to his horror roots with X, having previously worked throughout the 2000s on supernatural horrors, namely The Roost, The House of the Devil, The Innkeepers, and The Sacrament.

In 2022, A24 announced that it would produce X, the beginning of a planned trilogy, but when the COVID-19 pandemic halted production, West took the downtime to write the entire screenplay for Pearl, a prequel to X that was eventually filmed back-to-back with it.

Following the resounding success of both, West revealed that he’d been focusing his efforts on a sequel to X that would be fittingly titled MaXXXine. We know that the series’ third entry is currently filming at the time of writing, but judging by the order of release versus the chronological timeline, it can be confusing as to which of West’s projects should precede the other. Which came first, X or Pearl?

Pearl (1918)

Technically, Pearl didn’t hit theaters until later in 2022, several months after the hype for X had dissipated. However, as far as the lore is concerned, Pearl precedes X by just over 60 years. Set in 1918 during the influenza pandemic and the World War I era, Pearl sees its titular villain living an unrewarding life as a live-in caretaker for her sickly father and an errand girl for her overbearing mother. She longs for much more than this provincial life can offer, so as she becomes captivated by the films she sees at the local movie theater, Pearl dreams of becoming a chorus girl.

Although she auditions to join a local troupe, the judges reject her, resulting in fits of rage that don’t bode well for her German immigrant parents, nor the handsome projectionist she’d seduced while frequenting the movie theater. Pearl not only provides a backstory for West’s main antagonist, but it also acts as a deep dive into the character’s psyche and makes her actions in X all the more terrifying with added context.

X (1979)

Although it came before Pearl, the trilogy kick-starter should be enjoyed second to complement the villain’s origins. Flash-forward to 1979 and Pearl — along with Howard — is delusional, decrepit, and despondent about her girlish good looks, which have withered away over time. Even as old age ruins her, Pearl laments her youth and expresses jealousy towards Maxine, who lives the free-spirited, sexually non-confining life she’d only ever dreamed of.

Maxine travels with a filmmaking crew, who pay Howard to use the guest house on their property for the purpose of shooting a pornographic film, an intention unbeknownst to the homeowners at the time. Pearl grows jealous of Maxine, which isn’t a foreign feeling to her, considering how enraged she felt when her sister-in-law Mitsy bagged the spot in the troupe that she desperately wanted all those years ago. Needless to say, things don’t end well, especially as Howard persistently rejects Pearl’s sexual advances.