Antediluvian Terror Rises in Andrew Chiaramonte’s Young & Cursed, a bone chilling horror feature, launching Oct 2025 across global platforms

A terrifying unearthly horror tale from scriptwriter / cinema craftsman Andrew Chiaramonte, unbinding an primordial terror when outsiders become proxies in a dark maze. Debuting this October 2nd, 2025, on Prime Video, YouTube streaming, Google’s digital store, Apple’s iTunes, Apple’s TV+ service, and Fandango on-demand.

Los Angeles, CA (August 8th, 2025) – be warned for *Young & Cursed*, a intense story of living through and ancient evil that will reconstruct fear-driven cinema this season. Realized by rising master of suspense Andrew Chiaramonte, this nerve-racking and claustrophobic thriller follows five unknowns who snap to imprisoned in a isolated wooden structure under the unfriendly power of Kyra, a troubled woman haunted by a ancient biblical demon. Arm yourself to be shaken by a cinematic outing that merges visceral dread with legendary tales, arriving on Amazon’s streaming platform, YouTube, Google Play, iTunes, Apple TV+, and Fandango at Home on October 2, 2025.


Hellish influence has been a iconic concept in the silver screen. In *Young & Cursed*, that concept is turned on its head when the spirits no longer descend from elsewhere, but rather from their core. This embodies the most sinister side of the players. The result is a gripping mental war where the events becomes a unforgiving struggle between righteousness and malevolence.


In a desolate wilderness, five young people find themselves trapped under the possessive aura and domination of a obscure character. As the ensemble becomes incapable to combat her rule, marooned and tracked by entities beyond comprehension, they are confronted to confront their raw vulnerabilities while the seconds brutally runs out toward their expiration.


In *Young & Cursed*, distrust intensifies and friendships shatter, urging each individual to scrutinize their values and the structure of decision-making itself. The danger rise with every breath, delivering a frightening tale that intertwines otherworldly suspense with human vulnerability.

Andrew Chiaramonte, Director: “With *Young & Cursed*, my purpose was to uncover core terror, an threat from ancient eras, manipulating our weaknesses, and confronting a presence that tests the soul when we lose control.”

Madison Hubler (Kyra): “Portraying Kyra was about accessing something deeper than fear. She is unaware until the haunting manifests, and that pivot is emotionally raw because it is so private.”

Debut Info

*Young & Cursed* will be unleashed for worldwide release beginning October 2, 2025, on Prime Video, Google’s video hub, Google Play, iTunes, Apple TV+, and Fandango at Home—giving households internationally can be part of this horror showcase.


Chiaramonte Films, Inc. has just shared a new visual teaser for *Young & Cursed*, uploaded to watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/zu0n4WmPI1s, as a sequel to its original clip, which has received over a viral response.


In addition to its domestic release, Chiaramonte Films, Inc. has shared that *Young & Cursed* will also be released internationally, exporting the fear to fans of fear everywhere.


Mark your calendar for this heart-stopping spiral into evil. Tune into *Young & Cursed* this horror drop to confront these evil-rooted truths about human nature.


For teasers, extra content, and reveals from Chiaramonte Films, follow @YoungCursedOfficial across online outlets and visit the movie portal.





The horror genre’s Turning Point: the 2025 cycle U.S. Slate interlaces ancient-possession motifs, art-house nightmares, and returning-series thunder

Running from life-or-death fear steeped in scriptural legend through to legacy revivals in concert with sharp indie viewpoints, 2025 is tracking to be the richest in tandem with strategic year in a decade.

The 2025 horror calendar is not merely full, it is methodical. the big studios hold down the year using marquee IP, concurrently platform operators load up the fall with emerging auteurs set against legend-coded dread. On the independent axis, the artisan tier is drafting behind the afterglow from a top-tier 2024 festival cycle. Since Halloween is the prized date, the off-peak lanes are managed with purpose. A fat September–October lane is customary now, and now, teams are capturing January, spring, and mid-summer. Fans are ravenous, studios are calculated, accordingly 2025 may prove the most strategically arranged season.

Major and Mini-Major Maneuvers: The Return of Prestige Fear

The studio class is engaged. If 2024 framed the blueprint, 2025 deepens the push.

Universal fires the first shot with a risk-forward move: a contemporary Wolf Man, eschewing a mist-shrouded old-world European town, but a sharp contemporary setting. Directed by Leigh Whannell anchored by Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner, this cut welds lycanthropy to home turmoil. The turn is more than creature work, it is about marriage, parenthood, and humanity. targeting mid January, it advances a tactic to control the winter valley through premium horror, not dumps.

Spring brings Clown in a Cornfield, a YA slasher adaptation turned minimalist horror show. Directed by Eli Craig featuring turns by Katie Douglas and Kevin Durand, it reads as gore kissed small town horror with wry bite. Behind its clown mask lies commentary on small town paranoia, generational divides, and mob justice. Festival whispers say it is sharp.

When summer tapers, Warner Bros. Pictures unveils the final movement of its steadiest horror franchise: The Conjuring: Last Rites. Farmiga and Wilson return as the Warrens, the movie targets a resonant finish through an infamous case. Even if the pattern is recognizable, Chaves is guiding toward a solemn, meditative finish. It is dated for early September, granting margin before October’s crush.

After that, The Black Phone 2. Planned for early summer, the October reposition reads assertive. Scott Derrickson returns, and the DNA that clicked last time remains: retro dread, trauma as narrative engine, plus uncanny supernatural grammar. The ante is higher this round, through a fuller probe of the “grabber” lore and inherited grief.

Rounding out the big ticket releases is Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, a movie that scarcely needs conventional ads. The sequel leans deeper into its lore, broadens the animatronic terror cast, seeking teens plus thirty something gamers. It books December, locking down the winter tail.

Digital Originals: Lean budgets, heavy bite

As theatricals lean on brands and continuations, streamers are trying sharper edges, and buzz accrues.

One of the year’s most ambitious streaming titles is Weapons, a long shadow anthology of dread lacing three time frames tied to a mass vanishing. From Zach Cregger pairing Josh Brolin and Julia Garner, the title blends fear with dramatic gravity. Hitting theaters late summer with fall digital, it should ignite online discourse and post viewing breakdowns, much like Barbarian.

At the smaller scale sits Together, a sealed box body horror arc featuring Alison Brie opposite Dave Franco. Set in a remote rental home during a getaway gone wrong, the piece probes how love, envy, and self loathing become bodily rot. It plays romantic, grotesque, and acutely uneasy, a three act descent into codependent hell. Even without a formal platform date, it is a near certain autumn drop.

On the docket is Sinners, a pre war vampire folk narrative anchored by Michael B. Jordan. Framed in sepia richness with biblical metaphor, it nods to There Will Be Blood beside Let the Right One In. The piece examines American religious trauma via supernatural allegory. Initial test audience notes point to a buzzy streaming debut.

Extra indies bide their time on platforms: Bring Her Back, Bone Lake, and Keeper all mine grief and vanishing and identity, running metaphor first.

The Possession Runs Deep: Young & Cursed

Going live October 2 on major services, Young & Cursed operates as a rare duality, minimal in staging, maximal in myth. From writer director Andrew Chiaramonte, the story trails five strangers who come to in a far off forest cabin, ruled by Kyra, a young woman possessed by the ancient biblical demon Lilith. As dusk gives way to night, Kyra’s grip intensifies, a violating force plundering fears, vulnerabilities, and regrets.

The terror is psychological in engine, alive with primal myth. Avoiding the usual exorcism path with Catholic ritual and Latin spell, this one burrows toward something older, something darker. Lilith arrives not by rite, but through trauma, silence, and human fragility. That possession comes from within, not without, flips the trope and aligns Young & Cursed with a growing trend in horror, intimate character studies that dress themselves in the skin of genre.

The film is positioned on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, YouTube, Google Play, and Fandango at Home as Halloween balance against sequel stacks and creature returns. It is a clever angle. No bloated canon. No canon weight. Just pure psychological dread, contained, tense, and tailor made for the binge and breathe rhythm of digital horror fans. Amid spectacle, Young & Cursed can distinguish itself by whispering, then howling.

Festival Born, Buyer Ready

Fantastic Fest, SXSW, Tribeca, and TIFF act as proving grounds for the next waves. They feel like launchpads now, not just showcases.

This year, Fantastic Fest confirms a strong horror slate. Primate kicks off with tropical body horror and gets Cronenberg Herzog cross talk. Whistle, a folkloric revenge burner in Aztec code, should close with flame.

Midnight slots like If I Had Legs I’d Kick You earn noise for execution beyond quirky names. A24 support plus satire of toxic fandom in a convention lockdown puts it on breakout watch.

SXSW staged Clown in a Cornfield and lined up microbudget haunts for talks. Sundance tends to present grief infused elevated horror and likely will, with Tribeca’s genre menu reading urban, social, and surreal.

Festival playbooks now prize branding as much as discovery. A Fantastic Fest or TIFF badge is phase one marketing, not a coda.

Legacy Brands: Sequels, Reboots, and Reinvention

This year’s legacy entries carry strength and deliberation.

Fear Street: Prom Queen, set for July, reanimates the 90s series with a new lead and nostalgia tone. Rather than prior modes, it goes camp and prom night melodrama. Bring tiaras, red dye, and VHS panic.

M3GAN 2.0 arrives late June, aiming to expand its techno horror mythology with new characters and new AI generated terrors. The opening film’s buzz and platform staying power help Universal go bigger.

Then there is The Long Walk, an adaptation of one of Stephen King’s earliest and most harrowing works, Directed by Francis Lawrence, it operates as a bleak dystopian tale masked as survival horror, a walk off to death for kids. Marketed correctly, it could be The Hunger Games for horror adults.

Across the board, reboots and sequels such as Hell House LLC: Lineage, V/H/S/Halloween, The Toxic Avenger, and Anaconda fill gaps, most looking for tactical dates or fast pickups.

Trends Worth Watching

Mythic horror goes mainstream
From Lilith in Young & Cursed through Aztec curses in Whistle, teams draw on ancient texts and symbols. Rather than nostalgia, it reclaims pre Christian archetypes. Horror exceeds jolts, it insists evil is ancient.

Body horror resurges
The likes of Together, Weapons, and Keeper reshift toward flesh. Mutation, infection, transformation are standing in for heartbreak, grief, and regret.

Streaming originals get teeth
Low grade filler is no longer the platform default. Streamers are investing in real scripts, real directors, and real marketing pushes. Works such as Weapons and Sinners are positioned as events, not filler.

Badges become bargaining chips
Wreaths work as currency, buying release slots, placement, and press. Without a festival strategy in 2025, a horror film risks vanishing.

Big screen is a trust fall
Studios release horror theatrically only when they believe in overperformance or sequel trees. Other titles pivot PVOD or hybrid. Horror continues in theaters, in narrower curated lanes.

Forecast: Autumn crowding, winter surprise

A cluster of Young & Cursed, The Conjuring: Last Rites, The Black Phone 2, and Weapons in September and October equals saturation. Indies, including Bone Lake and Keeper, will battle for oxygen. Keep an eye on possible slips into early 2026 or platform flips.

Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 locks December, while a late surprise on a platform remains possible. With mythic energy high, a late creature or exorcism entry could pop.

The trick lies in diverse menus finding segmented crowds, not single title bets. The brief is not the next Get Out, it is horror with afterlife beyond receipts.



The oncoming chiller release year: Sequels, new stories, in tandem with A stacked Calendar tailored for shocks

Dek: The brand-new terror year clusters in short order with a January wave, and then carries through the mid-year, and well into the festive period, weaving series momentum, new concepts, and shrewd counterplay. The big buyers and platforms are doubling down on tight budgets, theater-first strategies, and influencer-ready assets that shape these releases into broad-appeal conversations.

Where horror stands going into 2026

The genre has become the sturdy move in studio calendars, a segment that can expand when it resonates and still cushion the exposure when it underperforms. After 2023 signaled to strategy teams that lean-budget fright engines can own social chatter, 2024 maintained heat with auteur-driven buzzy films and unexpected risers. The carry carried into 2025, where re-entries and prestige plays demonstrated there is demand for a spectrum, from series extensions to original one-offs that carry overseas. The result for the 2026 slate is a roster that seems notably aligned across the industry, with strategic blocks, a equilibrium of established brands and new pitches, and a revived focus on box-office windows that power the aftermarket on premium home window and OTT platforms.

Schedulers say the genre now slots in as a wildcard on the rollout map. Horror can open on almost any weekend, offer a quick sell for marketing and social clips, and lead with viewers that show up on first-look nights and sustain through the sophomore frame if the release lands. On the heels of a strike-bent pipeline, the 2026 pattern telegraphs comfort in that model. The calendar gets underway with a thick January window, then exploits spring through early summer for contrast, while clearing room for a fall run that carries into All Hallows period and past Halloween. The arrangement also shows the deeper integration of boutique distributors and subscription services that can develop over weeks, grow buzz, and expand at the right moment.

A second macro trend is IP stewardship across brand ecosystems and long-running brands. Studios are not just releasing another entry. They are seeking to position connection with a sense of event, whether that is a title presentation that indicates a new tone or a talent selection that connects a incoming chapter to a foundational era. At the meanwhile, the creative leads behind the most anticipated originals are championing physical effects work, special makeup and place-driven backdrops. That alloy gives 2026 a strong blend of brand comfort and invention, which is what works overseas.

What the big players are lining up

Paramount leads early with two big-ticket pushes that span tone from serious to silly. First comes Scream 7 on February 27, 2026, with Kevin Williamson in the lead and Neve Campbell back at the front, angling it as both a lineage transfer and a DNA-forward character study. Filming is underway in Atlanta, and the narrative stance conveys a heritage-honoring angle without repeating the last two entries’ Carpenter-sisters arc. Expect a marketing push rooted in classic imagery, character previews, and a teaser-to-trailer rhythm landing toward late fall. Distribution is cinema-first via Paramount.

Paramount also brings back a once-mighty spoof franchise with Scary Movie 6 on June 12, 2026, directed by Michael Tiddes. Anna Faris and Regina Hall are paired again, with the Wayans brothers involved in development for the first time since the early 2000s, a selling point the campaign will double down on. As a non-tentpole summer option, this one will drive large awareness through viral-minded bites, with the horror spoof format lending itself to quick updates to whatever defines the conversation that spring.

Universal has three differentiated entries. SOULM8TE bows January 9, 2026, a tech-forward branch from the M3GAN universe from Atomic Monster and Blumhouse. The core idea is crisp, heartbroken, and high-concept: a grieving man installs an AI companion that shifts into a killer companion. The date sets it at the front of a stacked January, with the Universal machine likely to bring back uncanny-valley stunts and snackable content that hybridizes devotion and chill.

On May 8, 2026, the studio sets an untitled Rob Savage horror film, widely believed to be the feature developed under temporary titles in the family-in-peril vein, with Jessica Chastain top-lining. The official listing currently lists it as an untitled Savage project, which allows a branding reveal to become an headline beat closer to the opening teaser. The timing gives the studio a foothold in early May while larger tentpoles cluster around other dates.

Anchoring the studio’s year, Jordan Peele’s untitled event film lands October 23, 2026, a slot he has worked well before. Peele’s work are positioned as must-see filmmaker statements, with a minimalist tease and a second wave of trailers that signal tone without plot the concept. The late-month date offers Universal room to saturate pre-holiday auditoriums with PLF and IMAX bookings where available, then capitalize on the copyright window to capture late-October interest at home.

Warner Bros., via New Line, teams with Sony internationally for Evil Dead Burn, dated July 24, 2026. Sébastien Vaniček guides, with Souheila Yacoub at the center. The franchise has repeatedly shown that a in-your-face, makeup-driven treatment can feel big on a moderate cost. Look for a hard-R summer horror blast that emphasizes worldwide reach, with Warner Bros. handling U.S. and Sony taking most international territories.

Sony’s horror bench is loaded. The studio sets two brand plays in the back half. An untitled Insidious film bows August 21, 2026, maintaining a steady supernatural brand in the market while the spin-off branch builds quietly. The studio has shifted dates on this title before, but the current plan anchors it in late summer, where Insidious has often excelled.

Then, on September 18, 2026, Resident Evil reboots in what the studio is framing as a new foundation for its game-to-film powerhouse. With the PlayStation Productions pipeline now a key part of the studio’s strategy, this new take has a mission to serve both devotees and curious audiences. The fall slot allows Sony to build marketing units around canon, and creature work, elements that can fuel premium screens and community activity.

Focus Features, working with Working Title, plants a prestige bet on Christmas Day with Werwulf on December 25, 2026. Set in 13th-century England, the film maintains the filmmaker’s run of period horror characterized by careful craft and archaic language, this time exploring werewolf lore. Focus has already staked the slot for a holiday release, a clear message in the auteur as a specialty play that can scale widely if early reception is favorable.

Streaming strategies and platform plays

Streaming playbooks in 2026 run on stable tracks. Universal’s horror titles window into copyright after a theatrical-first then PVOD phase, a cadence that maximizes both first-week urgency and viewer acquisition in the late-window. Prime Video will mix acquired titles with worldwide buys and small theatrical windows when the data backs it. Max and Hulu work their edges in library pulls, using prominent placements, horror hubs, and curated strips to sustain interest on aggregate take. Netflix keeps optionality about Netflix films and festival buys, dating horror entries on shorter runways and eventizing launches with tight-window plans. Shudder, integrated with RLJE and Cineverse’s theatrical footprint, operates a staged of precision theatrical plays and prompt platform moves that funnels enthusiasm into trials. That will play for Return to Silent Hill, which Cineverse is releasing in theaters January 23, 2026, before working fan pipelines in the months that follow.

Apple TV+ cherry-picks horror on a bespoke basis. The platform has proven amenable to invest in select projects with prestige directors or star packages, then give them a small theatrical footprint in partnership with exhibitors to meet qualification bars or to spark social proof before the streaming drop. Hulu and Disney’s domestic pipeline still leverages the 20th Century Studios slate, a critical input for monthly engagement when the genre conversation ramps.

The specialty lanes and indie surprises

Cineverse is steadily assembling a 2026 Check This Out runway with two brand extensions. Return to Silent Hill lands in January with Christophe Gans returning to his adaptation of Konami’s classic title. The pitch is straightforward: the same moody, fog-choked atmosphere that made the original a cult item, elevated for modern audio and picture. Later in the year, Wolf Creek: Legacy is expected in a fall corridor, with Greg McLean back steering his outback slasher universe. Cineverse has telegraphed a theatrical rollout for the title, an encouraging sign for fans of the brutal series and for exhibitors wanting edgy counter in the September weeks.

Focus will lean into the auteur lane with Werwulf, marshalling the project through a fall festival swing if the cut is ready, then leveraging the holiday frame to widen. That positioning has been successful for prestige horror with crossover potential. A24, NEON, IFC Films, RLJE, and Magnet have not released many dates in public calendars yet, but their festival pipelines often crystallize after Sundance, Berlin, and Cannes. A likely scenario is a handful of late-summer and fall platformers that can widen if reception allows. Plan on an A24 acquisition out of Sundance midnight slots and a NEON title that premieres at Cannes before a September or October domestic bow. RLJE and Shudder often work jointly, using mini theatrical to prime evangelism that fuels their subscriber base.

Known brands versus new stories

By proportion, 2026 tilts in favor of the recognizable IP side. Scream 7, Insidious, Resident Evil, Evil Dead Burn, and Return to Silent Hill all use franchise value. The caveat, as ever, is overexposure. The practical approach is to position each entry as a tone reset. Paramount is spotlighting character and heritage in Scream 7, Sony is signaling a ground-zero restart for Resident Evil, and New Line’s Evil Dead Burn is leading with a French-accented approach from a breakout filmmaker. Those choices have impact when the audience has so many options and social sentiment spins fast.

Non-franchise titles and auteur plays keep the lungs full. Jordan Peele’s October film will be presented as a brand unto itself. Sam Raimi’s Send Help, dated January 30, 2026 at 20th Century Studios, puts Rachel McAdams in a stranded survival premise with signature mischievous dread. SOULM8TE offers a simple, unsettling tech hook. Werwulf roots in era detail and an hard-edged tone. Even when the title is not based on a recognizable brand, the package is recognizable enough to drive advance ticketing and early previews.

Past-three-year patterns frame the template. In 2023, a exclusive window model that respected streaming windows did not prevent a hybrid test from succeeding when the brand was powerful. In 2024, meticulous-craft horror popped in large-format rooms. In 2025, a resuscitation of a beloved infection saga reminded the market that global horror franchises can still feel recharged when they rotate perspective and scale the storytelling. That last point is directly relevant to Sony’s 28 Years Later plan, which moves forward January 16, 2026 with 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, this time directed by Nia DaCosta from a script by Alex Garland. The two-step approach, with chapters lensed sequentially, enables marketing to cross-link entries through character arcs and themes and to hold creative in the market without long gaps.

Production craft signals

The craft conversations behind the upcoming entries signal a continued turn toward physical, site-specific craft. Lee Cronin has said his The Mummy will not mirror any recent iteration of the property, a stance that reinforces the in-camera sensibility he brought to Evil Dead Rise. The film wrapped principal photography and is tracking toward its April 17, 2026 date. Expect a campaign that emphasizes texture and dread rather than roller-coaster spectacle, with the New Line and Blumhouse partnership sustaining budget prudence.

Robert Eggers, meanwhile, has called Werwulf as the most chilling project he has tackled, which tracks with a 13th-century milieu and authentic period speech, a combination that can make for wraparound sound and a cold, elemental mood on the big screen. Focus will likely pre-sell this aesthetic in craft journalism and craft coverage before rolling out a teaser that keeps plot minimal, a move that has resonated for the filmmaker’s past releases.

On the franchise side, Evil Dead Burn is engineered for red-band excess, a signature of the series that works internationally in red-band trailers and sparks shareable reaction videos from early screenings. Scream 7 sets up a meta recalibration that brings back the core lead. Resident Evil will win or lose on creature and environment design, which play well in fan conventions and controlled asset drops. Insidious tends to be a sound-mix showcase, with Dolby and Atmos spots that make the auditorium case feel irresistible. Look for trailers that accent disciplined sound, deep-bass stingers, and blank-sound beats that land in premium houses.

Calendar cadence

January is stacked. SOULM8TE opens January 9, 2026, then Sony returns a week later with 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple on January 16. Cineverse’s Return to Silent Hill follows on January 23, a quiet contrast amid macro-brand pushes. The month finishes with Send Help on January 30 via 20th Century Studios, a crash-survival thriller from Sam Raimi that puts a star forward in Rachel McAdams. The competition here is formidable, but the variety of tones opens lanes for all, and the five-week structure allows a clean run for each if word of mouth spreads.

Post-January through spring build the summer base. Paramount’s Scream 7 rolls out February 27 with heritage buzz. In April, New Line’s The Mummy re-centers a classic monster on April 17, a spring frame that once favored genre counterprogramming and now accommodates big openers. The untitled Rob Savage film on May 8 leads into summer while maintaining horror’s hold on early May weekends that are not claimed by superheroes or family tentpoles.

Summer heightens the contrast. Scary Movie 6 on June 12 is comedic and broad, then Evil Dead Burn on July 24 serves no-compromise intensity. The counterprogramming logic is solid. The spoof can win next to family tentpoles and animated films, while the mid-summer gorefest delights older teenagers and genre diehards once the big Friday sequels have finished their premium pass.

August into fall leans franchise. The Insidious entry on August 21 gives Sony a spiritual-horror anchor where the brand has previously done well. Resident Evil slides in after September 18, a early fall window that still feeds into Halloween marketing beats. Jordan Peele’s untitled film claims October 23 and will dominate cultural oxygen heading into Halloween weekend, likely supported by a mystery-driven teaser strategy and limited teasers that prioritize concept over plot.

Christmas prestige. Werwulf on December 25 is a marker that genre can win the holiday when packaged as filmmaker-driven prestige horror. Focus has done this before, platforming carefully, then leveraging critics’ lists and awards-season craft coverage to remain in discourse into January. If the film wins with critics, the studio can add screens in the first week of 2027 while enjoying holiday hold and gift-card redemption.

One-sentence dossiers

Scream 7 (Paramount, February 27, 2026)
Director: Kevin Williamson. Top cast: Neve Campbell, with casting TBA in phases as production proceeds. Logline: Sidney returns to meet a new Ghostface while the narrative revisits the original film’s genetic code. Rating: TBA. Production: Filming in Atlanta. Positioning: return-to-core with a fresh edge.

SOULM8TE (Universal, January 9, 2026)
Producers: Atomic Monster, Blumhouse. Logline: A loss-struck man’s AI companion becomes something seductively lethal. Rating: TBA. Production: Principal is complete for an early-year bow. Positioning: tech thriller with grief spine.

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (Sony, January 16, 2026)
Director: Nia DaCosta. Writer: Alex Garland. Top cast: Cillian Murphy, Jack O’Connell, and additional ensemble tied to a new antagonist faction. Logline: The second chapter in a trilogy grows the world beyond the immediate outbreak as a cult coalesces in the ruins. Rating: TBA. Production: Filmed consecutively with the first film. Positioning: prestige zombie continuation.

Return to Silent Hill (Cineverse, January 23, 2026)
Director: Christophe Gans. Top cast: TBA in updated campaign materials. Logline: A man ventures back to a fog-shrouded town in search of a lost love, only to stumble upon a unstable reality and the town’s horrors. Rating: TBA. Production: Done with U.S. run set. Positioning: mood-led adaptation.

Send Help (20th Century Studios, January 30, 2026)
Director: Sam Raimi. Top cast: Rachel McAdams, Dylan O’Brien, Dennis Haysbert, Chris Pang. Logline: After a plane crash, an employee and her demanding boss battle to survive on a rugged island as the control dynamic turns and paranoia builds. Rating: TBA. Production: Done. Positioning: celebrity-led survival horror from a legend.

The Mummy (New Line, April 17, 2026)
Director: Lee Cronin. Producers: Blumhouse, Atomic Monster, Doppelgängers. Top cast: roles confidential in official materials. Logline: A contemporary re-envisioning that returns the monster to dread, founded on Cronin’s material craft and creeping dread. Rating: TBA. Production: Principal wrapped. Positioning: iconic monster return with auteur mark.


Untitled Rob Savage Horror Film (Universal, May 8, 2026)
Director: Rob Savage. Top cast: Jessica Chastain. Logline: {A in-home haunting narrative that threads the dread through a youth’s uneven POV. Rating: rating pending. Production: locked. Positioning: studio-scale and toplined occult chiller.

Scary Movie 6 (Paramount, June 12, 2026)
Director: Michael Tiddes. Top cast: Anna Faris, Regina Hall, with the Wayans brothers rejoining on the creative side. Logline: {A parody return that satirizes contemporary horror memes and true-crime obsessions. Rating: rating forthcoming. Production: production booked for fall 2025. Positioning: wide-lane seasonal counterprogram.

Evil Dead Burn (Warner Bros. domestic, July 24, 2026)
Director: Sébastien Vaniček. Top cast: Souheila Yacoub, with ensemble additions. Logline: A new infestation of Deadites flares, with an globe-spanning twist in tone and setting. Rating: pending. Production: production in New Zealand. Positioning: R-forward continuation crafted for PLF.

Untitled Insidious Film (Sony, August 21, 2026)
Director: TBA in marketing materials. Top cast: to be announced. Logline: The Further widens again, with a young family entangled with past horrors. Rating: TBD. Production: eying a summer shoot for late-summer slot. Positioning: bankable spirit-world IP in a proven lane.

Resident Evil (Sony, September 18, 2026)
Director: unrevealed publicly. Top cast: TBD. Logline: A restart designed to recreate the franchise from the ground up, with an lean toward survival-first horror over action fireworks. Rating: undetermined. Production: on a development track with locked window. Positioning: fidelity-minded reboot with crossover prospects.

Jordan Peele Untitled Event Film (Universal, October 23, 2026)
Director: Jordan Peele. Top cast: TBD. Logline: tightly guarded. Rating: TBD. Production: proceeding. Positioning: director-branded event with teaser focus.

Werwulf (Focus Features, December 25, 2026)
Director: Robert Eggers. Top cast: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, with other regulars expected. Logline: A medieval werewolf story built on period language and primal menace. Rating: not yet rated. Production: in preparation with Christmas frame locked. Positioning: holiday prestige play with craft awards upside.

Wolf Creek: Legacy (Cineverse, TBA 2026)
Director: Greg McLean. Top cast: John Jarratt expected to return as Mick Taylor. Logline: The Australian outback slasher returns, with a theatrical-first route ahead of platforming. Status: date in flux, fall expected.

Why 2026, why now

Three practical forces frame this lineup. First, production that downshifted or re-slotted in 2024 called for breathing room in the schedule. Horror can backfill quickly because scripts often use fewer locations, fewer large-scale visual effects runs, and accelerated schedules. Second, studios have become more orderly about windows. Theatrical exclusivity remains the goal for most of these films, followed by PVOD and then platform streaming, a sequence that has consistently outpaced straight-to-streaming landings. Third, social conversation converts. The marketing teams behind these titles will capitalize on social-ready stingers from test screenings, select scare clips timed to Thursday night previews, and experiential pop-ups that power influencer posts. It is a repeatable playbook because it works.

Calendar math also matters. The family and cape slots are lighter early in 2026, offering breathing room for genre entries that can seize a weekend or function as the older-skew counter. January is the prime example. Four different flavors of horror will compete across five weekends, which permits distinct conversations to flourish. Summer provides the other window. The parody leverages early family and action lifts, then the hard-R entry can benefit from a late-July lull before back-to-school.

Business view: budgets, ratings, sleeper chase

Budgets remain in the sweet spot. Most of the films above will land under the $40–$50 million mark, with many far below. That allows for robust premium-format allocation without needing superhero-level volume to break even. The most likely R ratings include Evil Dead Burn, Werwulf, and possibly Resident Evil depending on the final cut. Scream 7, Insidious, and SOULM8TE can plausibly land PG-13 to maximize reach, though each franchise has toggled between ratings in the past. Specialty plays tend to lean R to preserve tone and intensity.

The search for sleepers continues in Q1, where modest-budget genre can own weekends with minimal competition, and again in late summer, where horror often becomes the conversation when tentpoles tire. The 2026 slate is set up to work those windows. January could easily deliver the first unexpected breakout of the year, and August into September gives Sony an avenue to hold screens with back-to-back supernatural IP while still leaving room for an indie breakout.

Internationally, brand recognition helps Resident Evil, Evil Dead, and Scream travel, while 28 Years Later benefits from a British setting and returning talent. Werwulf and The Mummy check over here will lean on auteur and classic-monster awareness abroad. Streamers will amplify the tail, with copyright pickups boosting Universal’s slate and Shudder driving evangelism for Cineverse titles. Expect a healthy PVOD phase across the board, since horror fans have shown a willingness to pay for convenience after an opening weekend, especially when word of mouth is strong.

How the viewing year plays

From a moviegoer’s perspective, the 2026 horror year offers rhythm and variety. January is a banquet, February delivers a legacy slasher, April returns a Universal monster, May and June provide a supernatural one-two for date nights and group outings, July goes for the throat, August and September keep the supernatural momentum, October turns into a Jordan Peele event, and December invites a bleak, literate nightmare. That is how you keep the discourse going and the seats filled without cannibalizing your own titles. The pattern also supports social campaigns that can build month to month, using earlier releases to condition the audience for bigger plays in the fall.

Exhibitors appreciate the spacing. Horror delivers reliable Thursday lifts, disciplined footprints, and strong PLF uptake when the creative supports it. The 2026 slate has at least three titles that can qualify for PLF, with The Mummy, Evil Dead Burn, and Werwulf all showcasing materiality, soundcraft, and visuals that benefit from larger formats. The calendar also leaves room for specialty platformers to open in New York and Los Angeles, build reviews, and slide into national conversation as the fall progresses.

2026 Is Well Positioned

Release dates move. Ratings change. Casts adjust. But the spine of 2026 horror is solid. There is name recognition where it counts, auteur intent where it matters, and a calendar that shows studios get how and when audiences want scares. The awards and festival pipeline into 2027 will come into focus once the fall festivals lock, and it would not be surprising to see at least one final-hour specialty addition join the party. For now, the job is simple, roll out exact trailers, keep secrets, and let the gasps sell the seats.