Jessie Buckley screams at something off-screen in The Bride!Image via Warner Bros.
By
Shawn Van Horn
Published
2 hours ago
Shawn Van Horn is a Senior Author for Collider. He's watched way too many slasher movies over the decades, which makes him an aficionado on all things Halloween and Friday the 13th. Don't ask him to choose between Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees because he can't do it. He grew up in the 90s, when Seinfeld, Everybody Loves Raymond, and TGIF were his life, and still watches them religiously to this day. Larry David is his spirit animal. His love for entertainment spreads to the written word as well. He has written two novels and is neck deep in the querying trenches. He is also a short story maker upper and poet with a dozen publishing credits to his name. He lives in small town Ohio, where he likes to watch professional wrestling and movies.
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For so long, horror was looked down on by critics as a subpar genre where gore and kill counts were more important than a compelling story and captivating writing. It wouldn't be an overstatement to say many actors saw horror as what they did at the beginning of their career before going on to better things. However, over the last several years, the genre's reputation has changed. Today, horror is not only a big box office draw, but it's also celebrated in reviews and draws in Hollywood heavyweights. As proof, look no further than the likes of Sinners and Weapons in 2025.
Taking a look at what's to come, 2026 shows another exciting year for horror. So far, in January, there have already been the surprisingly good Primate and the phenomenal 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, continuing the trend of at least one major horror movie premiering each month. Here are ten more horror films we can't wait for in 2026, ranked based on hype and the likelihood of their success.
10 'Scream 7' (February 27)
Ghostface returns in 'Scream 7.'Image via Paramount Pictures
There would have been a time when a Scream sequel would have been much higher on this list, but the path to Scream 7 has been fraught with controversy. After the success of Scream VI, Radio Silence left, with Christopher Landon coming in to take over. Then it all fell apart, with new franchise lead Melissa Barrera fired over political comments she made about the Israel-Palestine conflict, which led to an announcement from Jenna Ortega that she wouldn't be returning, and Landon quitting.
There are those who won't watch Scream 7 because of this controversy. However, the franchise is making the most of a bad situation. After sitting out Scream 6 over a pay dispute, final girl icon Neve Campbell is returning as Sidney Prescott in a film co-written and directed by original film writer Kevin Williamson. Courteney Cox, Mason Gooding, and Jasmin Savoy Brown are back as well, but the real intrigue is in how Matthew Lillard is coming back, despite his character being killed off in the first film.
9 'The Bride' (March 6)
A close up of Jessie Buckley as The BrideImage via Warner Bros
There have been a plethora of Frankenstein movies over the decades. Just last year, Guillermo del Toro gave us his vision on Netflix. No one has ever made a Frankenstein movie like this one, though. Maggie Gyllenhaal writes and directs The Bride!, starring her The Dark Knight co-star, Christian Bale, as the monster, and Jessie Buckley as the titular bride. The film is a star-studded one, with a supporting cast including Annette Bening, along with Gyllenhaal's husband, Peter Sarsgaard, and her brother, Jake Gyllenhaal.
It's the premise that makes this one must-see, with The Bride! taking place in 1930s Chicago, and the plot synopsis reading more like Bonnie and Clyde than anything Mary Shelley created. This ambitious horror will be Gyllenhaal's second directing effort after 2021's The Lost Daughter, which also co-starred Jessie Buckley and was nominated for three Oscars!
8 'Obsession' (May 15)
Michael Johnston in 'Obsession'Image via Focus Features
Curry Barker isn't well known among mainstream horror fans quite yet, but he's about to be. Like the Philippou brothers and Zach Cregger, Barker made his name on YouTube with several horror and comedy shorts before directing his feature film debut for the platform, 2024's brilliant found footage nightmare Milk & Serial. Barker has impressed so much that now he's getting a major theatrical feature film opportunity with Obsession.
Barker writes and directs the film about a young man named Bear (Michael Johnston), who wishes on a supernatural object for his crush, Nikki (Inde Navarrette), to fall in love with him. The object grants his wish, but because it's a horror movie we're talking about, it's not going to be so easy. If Milk & Serial was a hint of what's to come with Barker, expect some shocking moments in Obsession.
7 'Hokum' (May 1)
Adam Scott in 'Hokum'Image via Neon
Irish writer and director Damian McCarthy's 2020 feature film debut, Caveat, showed promise. Then came his follow-up, the terrifying Oddity in 2024, which was regarded as one of the best horror films of the year. It set McCarthy up as one of the best creators in the genre, and now he's back with his latest, Hokum. If that's not intriguing enough, he's got quite the lead actor for this one, because Severance's Adam Scott is at the focus of this nightmare.
Scott stars as Ohm Bauman, a writer who travels to Ireland to spread the ashes of his dead parents, before it all goes to Hell as supernatural phenomena start occurring where Ohm is staying. With McCarthy's masterful way of building slow burn tension, expect a creepy movie that will make your skin crawl.
6 'Ready or Not 2: Here I Come' (March 27)
Kathryn Newton and Samara Weaving in Ready or Not 2Image via Searchlight Pictures
Before Radio Silence took over the Scream franchise, they surprised audiences with Ready or Not. The major release was a step up from their smaller films like Devil's Due and Southbound, and it created a badass new heroine with Samara Weaving's Grace, a new bride who must survive the night in a mansion where her groom's family welcomes her into the family with a deadly game of hide and seek.
Ready or Not had a satisfying (and very bloody) ending, with no need for a sequel. However, all you have to do is watch the trailer for the perfectly titled Ready or Not 2: Here I Come to see that there's a lot of story left in this game. The second film ups the ante, with more wealthy families forcing Grace into playing a new game by threatening the life of her sister, Faith (Kathryn Newton). With Newton already established as a great 21st century scream queen, get ready for a one-two punch of badassery as these sisters slay their way through more rich and twisted bad guys.
5 'Clayface' (September 11)
Clayface in Batman: The Animated Series Feat of ClayImage via HBO Max
Clayface is a DC character who has appeared over the decades in both Batman comics and Batman: The Animated Series, as well as Harley Quinn. The blob of shapeshifting clay has been portrayed as both the hero and the villain, and now, thanks to producer James Gunn, co-writer Mike Flanagan, and director James Watkins (Eden Lake, Speak No Evil), he's coming to life in the feature film simply titled Clayface.
Taking place in Gotham City, Tom Rhys Harries stars as Matt Hagan, a young actor who is turned into Clayface. Don't expect some campy horror movie with this one. Instead, as described by Peter Safran, the co-CEO of DC Studios, is going for serious body horror. They want Clayface to be The Fly, and they might just pull it off.
4 'Evil Dead Burn' (July 24)
Evil Dead Rise Opening SceneImage Via Warner Bros.
There hasn't been a bad step taken yet in the Evil Dead franchise. Sam Raimi's first two films are some of the best '80s horror, and Army of Darkness is a hilarious, wacky comedy. The 2013 reboot took the gore to the next level, and Ash vs. Evil Dead is an underrated series. However, it took 2023's Evil Dead Rise, written and directed by Lee Cronin, to show that there was a new path to go down that had nothing to do with Ash Williams (Bruce Campbell) or a cabin in the woods.
Alas, Cronin isn't coming back for this year's Evil Dead Burn (as you'll see in a moment, he's a bit busy with something else), but have no fear, because the franchise is still in good hands. Sébastien Vaniček, who impressed with 2023's Infested, co-writes and directs this original story starring Souheila Yacoub and Hunter Doohan. Giant spiders have nothing on what Vaniček has in store for the sixth film in the Evil Dead franchise.
3 'The Mummy' (April 17)
A decaying woman wrapped in bandages in Lee Cronin's The MummyImage via Blumhouse
Lee Cronin wasn't available for Evil Dead Burn because he had his hands full writing and directing The Mummy, produced by James Wan and Jason Blum. Don't expect some Mummy monster from the 1930s, an action adventure like what Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz starred in, or whatever that mess was that Tom Cruise made. Instead, as Cronin told The Hollywood Reporter, “This will be unlike any Mummy movie you ever laid eyeballs on before. I’m digging deep into the earth to raise something very ancient and very frightening.”
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Joining the newsletter delivers curated coverage of upcoming horror films—previews, hype rankings, and director spotlights—so subscribers stay informed about the year's must-see macabre cinema and what to watch next. Subscribe By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.Cronin's The Mummy is about a journalist's daughter who goes missing in the desert, only to return years later in a reunion that is horrific rather than joyful. Starring Jack Reynor and Laia Costa, we can't wait to unwrap this one. The mystery surrounding it only increases the anticipation, even if audiences have been burned before by this uneven IP.
2 'Werwulf' (December 25)
Director Robert Eggers against a cloudy gray background.Image via DFree/Shutterstock
No modern horror director makes films as dark, beautiful, and complicated as Robert Eggers. He's already conquered witches with The Witch and vampires with Nosferatu, and now it's time for werewolves with Werwulf, which he also co-wrote. Aiming for a Christmas release like Nosferatu, and starring actors from that film, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Lily-Rose Depp, as well as his favorite collaborator, Willem Dafoe, you can expect Werwulf to be one of the best horror movies of the year.
Werwulf takes place during the 13th century, giving us a take on the subgenre rarely seen. And to up the anticipation, Egger has called it, "the darkest thing I’ve ever written by far.” Yes, please! Creature features can be hit-or-miss, but Eggers is pretty much a guarantee by now, so Werwulf has everyone excited, even non-horror fans.
1 'Resident Evil' (September 18)
James (Austin Abrams) is a drug addict in Weapons.Image via Warner Bros. Pictures
Few horror fans knew who YouTube comedian Zach Cregger was when he released Barbarian in 2022, a film low on the radar that went on to be one of the most terrifying of the year. Everyone was paying attention last year to Weapons, a follow-up even better in every way. Now, with two original ideas under his belt, Cregger faces his most challenging project yet with Resident Evil. The popular video game has already led to a franchise that was more action than horror. Now that Cregger has his hands on it, the iconic monsters might finally be scary on the big screen for the first time.
Resident Evil will star Weapons' Austin Abrams, but don't look for this version to be too familiar. Zach Cregger told Variety that he's not interested in simply recreating the games, because those already exist. He'd rather tell an original story in the same world, which will make his Resident Evil familiar yet full of unpredictable horror. And considering how disappointing the previous adaptations have been, this approach is exactly what audiences need.
Resident Evil
Release Date
September 18, 2026
Director
Zach Cregger
Writers
Zach Cregger, Shay Hatten
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