We’re already halfway through the year, but we’re already looking to what’s next on the next queue of the most anticipated horror movies. Last year was a particularly strong one for the genre, giving us films like Weapons, 28 Years Later, Sinners (which took home four of its record-breaking 16 Oscar nominations), Bring Her Back, and Companion. Likewise, this year has already given us some standout horror releases too, with the indie hit Obsession currently killing it at the box office (no pun intended). So what’s next?
What are the most anticipated horror movies of 2026?
2026 has already started with a handful of horror films, like 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, Send Help, and The Bride! (which was fairly polarizing but an ambitious take) and Undertone. Like these films, our list of the most anticipated horror movies yet to be released this year spans the horror genre.
Insidious: Out of the Further (July)
We’re already at the sixth installment in the Insidious franchise, which probably answers the question of why they keep making these movies in the first place. They’re profitable, relatively low-risk, and clearly still have an audience. As with most long-running horror franchises, the quality has been a little mixed depending on which entry you ask about, but we’re not here to yuck anyone’s yum. One thing the Insidious films consistently do well is give us those deeply uncomfortable moments where you instinctively want to shut your eyes and pretend you didn’t see that shadow move in the corner. Judging by the trailer alone, Out of the Further looks like it’ll continue that tradition just fine.
The film follows Gemma, a young mother with the ability to travel through her dreams, which sounds like a fair warning to any of you watching astral projection tutorials on YouTube. As the franchise has taught us, wandering too far into other realms rarely ends well. The deeper Gemma goes, the harder it becomes to find her way back, and there’s the growing realization that she may not have returned alone.
Resident Evil (July)
At this point, adapting Resident Evil can feel somewhat like surviving the video game itself – plenty of restarts. Forgive us for the pun, but you know what we mean. As far as this next version goes, we have more faith with Zach Cregger (Weapons, Barbarian) at the helm as director and co-writer, alongside Shay Hatten. A medical courier has a bit of trouble on the road and knocks on the door of a modest-looking house. But get ready, because this set up fight for survival as he takes on bloodthirsty, mutated creatures. We’re excited for a film that promises to bring us back to the horror roots that made the games such a phenomenon in the first place.
Victorian Psycho (September)
If you loved Wuthering Heights, this is basically the same film. Just kidding, obviously. But it’s sure to draw out the period-film crowd (this writer included) who want to see a little more slasher in their Brontë. Not that any Brontë needs slasher, but it’s okay to want both. Directed by Zachary Wigon with a script by Victoria Feito after her novel, the film stars Maika Monroe (It Follows) as a governess who arrives at an estate in 1858. But soon, other members of the staff start to go missing, and everyone wonders if the new governess has something to do with it. The film just had its premiere at Cannes and seems fairly mixed in terms of feedback, but we’re ready for it.
Buddy (September)
This one came out of nowhere in the best possible way. Casper Kelly (the wild mind behind Too Many Cooks and a long-time Adult Swim experimentalist) has built a career out of warping familiar formats into something deeply wrong in all the right ways. If you know, you know. This time, he’s working with a surprisingly stacked cast, including Cristin Milioti, Topher Grace, Michael Shannon, Patton Oswalt, and Keegan-Michael Key, which already feels like an unusual but intriguing combination for a horror project.
Premiering in the Midnight section at Sundance, Buddy takes childhood nostalgia and bends it until it breaks, turning something familiar and comforting into something disturbing. That’s a tricky line to walk for plenty of filmmakers, but Kelley is someone with the right amount of Lynchian strangeness and imagination that we know it’s gonna be a good time. The logline is simple enough: a brave girl and her friends try to escape a children’s television show. We won’t look at children’s programming the same way after.
Werwulf (December)
For another horror take that doesn’t necessarily promise outright scares so much as a folkloric epic, Robert Eggers takes us back to 13th-century Europe, where a mysterious creature is wreaking havoc. Along with directing, Eggers co-wrote the script with Icelandic poet and novelist Sjón, continuing their long-standing collaboration.
Werwulf is also set to reunite Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Lily-Rose Depp, and Willem Dafoe, who previously worked together on Nosferatu. Jarin Blaschke returns as cinematographer, with choreography by Gabrielle Marie-Roti. While not much else is known at this point, it’s safe to assume this will be a meticulously crafted visual feast — very much in Eggers’ wheelhouse.
How we picked the most anticipated horror movies of 2026
We opted for an array of horror films, ranging from supernatural slow burns and survivalist films to serial-killer films, folkloric epics, and stylized pop-gothic adaptations. There are plenty more to keep our eyes on in 2026, but these are just the few that we’re most excited for, although they may not be getting the most buzz quite yet.
