The Best New Horror Films Still to Come in 2026
Once upon a time, it was comic book and superhero movies that saturated the cinema screens. Love for them has recently fatigued somewhat, and while we’re all eagerly awaiting Avengers: Doomsday and the latest Spider-Man movie, horror is currently king in movie theatres.
There has barely been a week in 2026 when there hasn’t been at least one new genre title unleashed onto the unsuspecting public. That trend won’t be changing anytime soon either, as 2026 still has a stacked slate of horror content.
Whereas some of the big-hitter horror entries, such as Insidious: Into the Further, are on everyone’s radar due to the studios behind them, a much more common route for horror movies to go is via festivals. Watching horror films is such a communal activity that there are hundreds of genre-themed film festivals scattered across the globe. Some of them, such as Panic Fest in the US, manage to snag the creme de la creme of exciting new horror titles to keep an eye out for.
Now in its 14th year, Panic Fest took place in Kansas City, Missouri and played host to a week’s worth of scary movies. Speaking as someone who was in attendance, here is a round-up of all the films horror fans should be noting down in their diaries.
First up is Hokum, which has just been released as of May 1. Starring Adam Scott, Hokum is a twisty and creepy Ireland-set horror film that finds a writer getting in over his head when he visits an Irish hotel once visited by his parents. Directed by Damian McCarthy, Hokum is packed full of atmosphere, and its mystery plays like a horror video game.
To say much more would spoil the surprise, but Hokum is populated with some rather unsettling imagery, and you’ll never think of rabbits in the same way again. If you’ve yet to see Damian McCarthy’s previous films, Caveat and Oddity, you are in for a treat as both are horribly uncomfortable viewing and the perfect training ground for working up the courage to watch Hokum.
Curry Barker rose to fame as a comedian, but then he directed the divisive Milk & Serial and caught the attention of genre fans. Now, he’s back in the directing chair for Obsession, a film that is set to unite audiences as it is exceptionally unnerving. The story follows mild-mannered Bear, who makes a wish for his crush, Nikki, to love him more than anything else in the world. We all know how well love spells go in horror movies, and Obsession pushes that to the absolute limits.
Full of creeping unease, stomach-churning gore, and a comedic but mean-spirited tone, Obsession keeps the audience on the edge of their seat. An ideal selection for those who enjoyed both Talk to Me and Bring Her Back, Obsession is set to be the feel-bad hit of the summer.
In Pitfall, director James Kondelik mixes the single-situation survival thriller with the slasher in the woods subgenre; think 127 Hours meets Wrong Turn. The story joins estranged siblings as they go on what is meant to be a healing camping trip with their friends. However, soon after embarking on the hike, one of the number finds themselves trapped at the bottom of a sadistic pit. The rest of the group is unable to assist as they have their own problems fighting off the deranged hunter who laid the trap.
Starring Randy Couture as the depraved killer, Pitfall is a throwback to the best of B-movie horror. Pitfall also boasts another excellent comedic performance from Final Destination: Bloodlines highlight, Richard Harmon.
The third film from writer and director Pierre Tsigaridis, Frankie, Maniac Woman is his most personal. Having proved that he can handle witches and demons in his previous movies, Two Witches and Traumatika, Tsigaridis has now turned his attention to the slasher film.
Rather than rehash the stalk and slash model seen countless times before, Tsigaridis and his co-writer and lead actress, Dina Silva, have dug deeper. Set in Los Angeles, Frankie, Maniac Woman joins Frances – but you can call her Frankie – as she struggles to make a name for herself in the music industry. It is not Frankie’s lack of talent that is hampering her, but rather that she doesn’t fit into conventional beauty standards.
A real crowd pleaser at Panic Fest, Frankie, Maniac Woman juggles a vital social commentary with comedy and some gnarly kills, and has already generated early comparisons to both The Stylist and The Substance.
The great thing about genre festivals is that they don’t exclusively stick to pure horror. In a bid to offer some respite to endless ghosts and goblins, these festivals stretch out the umbrella of horror to encompass other outlier genres such as sci-fi and action cinema.
One such outlier that tore the roof off of Panic Fest (and everywhere else it has played thus far) is The Furious. The Hong Kong action film is being hailed as the new The Raid, and that comparison is very well earned. After a man’s daughter is kidnapped, he teams up with an investigative journalist to take down the criminal syndicate, leaving a mass of bodies in their wake.
A blistering blaze of fists, fury, and bicycle pedals, The Furious is a must-see for fans of high-spectacle fight movies. Just when you think The Furious has peaked, it finds a new level to ascend to, and it is sure to leave audiences' jaws on the floor.
Sleep is a vital function. Along with eating and drinking, it is one of the things that our bodies have to do in order to survive. Despite this, horror movies have spent decades making it their mission to ensure that audiences are denied restful nights' sleep. This is made worse by films that place sleep at the centre of the narrative, such as A Nightmare on Elm Street, and now Parasomnia.
Recently acquired by Shudder, Parasomnia finds young woman Riley confronting the demon from her night terrors after one of her friends vanishes. Full of literal nightmare fuel, as well as an interesting ‘sleep’ hack, Parasomnia is a startling feature debut from James Ross II, and it’s very easy to see why the genre giant streamer scooped this one up.
Of all the subgenres of horror, the anthology is probably the trickiest to get right. Collections of stories from different filmmakers can be hard to stitch together cohesively, and oftentimes, there is at least one entry that brings the whole film down.
This is not the case with comedy horror anthology Grind. Directed by the trio of Brea Grant, Ed Dougherty, and Chelsea Stardust, who each take the reins for two stories, Grind is one of the best horror anthologies ever. The passing of the baton between sections is seamless, an element that so many struggle to do well, but also, the stories themselves are all delightfully dark.
The theme for Grind is the climate of the modern working landscape. Stories cover the gig economy, hustle culture, and the perils of trying to get unionised, making it a movie for anyone who has ever worked a day in their lives.
