It stars Kate Beckinsale and Luke Wilson as a married couple who book at the motel after their car breaks down and are soon stalked by masked killers for their snuff films.

On their way home from a family party, David and Amy Fox, who are on the verge of divorce, are on a remote mountain road due to a wreck slowing down the interstate.

David searches the room and finds multiple hidden security cameras and realizes that Mason is watching them.

David hides Amy in the ceiling while he plans to make it to Mason's office to retrieve a revolver, but the men stab him as he leaves.

Amy fights back and manages to gain the upper hand, finally shooting Mason dead.

In March 2005, it was announced Hal Lieberman would be producing Vacancy written by Mark L. Smith for Screen Gems.

[2] Early in the film's development, it was thought Sarah Jessica Parker would star; but, in September 2006, The Hollywood Reporter announced Beckinsale had been signed instead.

Special features include deleted scenes, a making-of featurette, the full versions of the snuff films, and a trailer gallery.

In addition to the TV spots and trailers shown in theaters and on television, the toll free number was made to sound as if one is actually calling the motel in which the film is set.

In the background, screaming can be heard accompanying the voice of the proprietor, who informs callers about "slashing" prices and the "killer" deals that the motel has—if it has a vacancy.

[7] Ty Burr of The Boston Globe described the film as "a stripped-down suspense drama" and "the kind of taut B-movie chiller they don't make any more", with a set-up "as simple and stark as an urban legend."

"[9] In a 2007 episode of Ebert and Roeper, film critic Richard Roeper gave the film a negative review, calling it an "uninspired, unoriginal, and chills-free thriller", and was disappointed with the central characters, saying "apparently these two have never seen any scary movies because they make rookie mistakes" and "do one stupid thing after another so the movie can keep going."

He concluded that "with two appealing leads and a nifty opening credits sequence, Vacancy seems like it has potential" but that it was ultimately "a slick and lazy effort.

Written by Mark L. Smith, and directed by Eric Bross, it serves as a prequel, and focuses on how the motel's employees started their tortures.