Age-old Terror rises: Andrew Chiaramonte’s Young & Cursed, a spine tingling supernatural thriller, landing Oct 2025 on leading streamers

A chilling occult terror film from storyteller / visionary Andrew Chiaramonte, liberating an primordial entity when foreigners become conduits in a malevolent conflict. Dropping October 2, 2025, on Amazon’s Prime Video, YouTube, Google’s digital store, iTunes, Apple’s streaming platform, and Fandango’s digital service.

Hollywood, CA (August 8th, 2025) – hold tight for *Young & Cursed*, a gut-wrenching chronicle of resilience and forgotten curse that will alter genre cinema this fall. Guided by rising new wave horror talent Andrew Chiaramonte, this claustrophobic and moody motion picture follows five unknowns who regain consciousness imprisoned in a remote cabin under the ominous manipulation of Kyra, a female presence dominated by a 2,000-year-old sacred-era entity. Ready yourself to be captivated by a filmic venture that weaves together primitive horror with mythic lore, coming on Amazon’s streaming platform, YouTube, Google Play, iTunes, Apple TV+, and Fandango at Home on October 2, 2025.


Demon possession has been a recurring foundation in the silver screen. In *Young & Cursed*, that concept is twisted when the entities no longer develop from an outside force, but rather inside their minds. This represents the most primal shade of each of them. The result is a bone-chilling spiritual tug-of-war where the story becomes a ongoing push-pull between innocence and sin.


In a unforgiving landscape, five campers find themselves cornered under the ominous rule and infestation of a haunted figure. As the cast becomes incapable to fight her grasp, isolated and chased by powers mind-shattering, they are thrust to stand before their greatest panics while the deathwatch without pause edges forward toward their fate.


In *Young & Cursed*, tension surges and ties crack, pushing each protagonist to challenge their self and the idea of free will itself. The hazard rise with every minute, delivering a scare-fueled ride that weaves together paranormal dread with mental instability.

Andrew Chiaramonte, Director: “With *Young & Cursed*, my desire was to dive into instinctual horror, an power beyond recorded history, manipulating emotional vulnerability, and examining a entity that threatens selfhood when volition is erased.”

Madison Hubler (Kyra): “Embodying Kyra called for internalizing something deeper than fear. She is ignorant until the possession kicks in, and that flip is gut-wrenching because it is so internal.”

Release & Availability

*Young & Cursed* will be brought for viewing beginning from October 2, 2025, on Amazon’s platform, Google’s video hub, Google’s store, Apple iTunes, Apple TV+, and Fandango at Home—delivering subscribers across the world can dive into this paranormal experience.


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


In addition to its continental debut, Chiaramonte Films, Inc. has declared that *Young & Cursed* will also be released internationally, delivering the story to viewers around the world.


Avoid skipping this mind-warping fall into madness. Tune into *Young & Cursed* this horrific release to experience these fearful discoveries about the psyche.


For exclusive trailers, behind-the-scenes content, and press updates from Chiaramonte Films, follow @YoungAndCursedMovie across your favorite networks and visit our spooky domain.





U.S. horror’s tipping point: the 2025 season U.S. release slate Mixes biblical-possession ideas, festival-born jolts, and brand-name tremors

Beginning with survival horror inspired by legendary theology as well as returning series in concert with focused festival visions, 2025 is tracking to be horror’s most layered along with intentionally scheduled year for the modern era.

The 2025 horror calendar is more than crowded, it is calculated. studio majors lay down anchors via recognizable brands, in parallel streamers front-load the fall with new voices alongside scriptural shivers. Meanwhile, festival-forward creators is carried on the carry of a banner 2024 fest year. As Halloween stays the prime week, the surrounding weeks are charted with intent. The fall stretch is the proving field, however this time, strategies include January, spring, and mid-summer. Horror fans are craving, studios are calculated, so 2025 may be recorded as the genre’s most deliberate campaign.

Studio Playbook and Mini-Major Tactics: Premium genre swings back

No one at the top is standing still. If 2024 laid the groundwork for a horror reinvention, 2025 scales the plan.

Universal’s slate fires the first shot with an audacious swing: a newly envisioned Wolf Man, steering clear of the antique European village, but a sharp contemporary setting. Directed by Leigh Whannell and toplined by Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner, this chapter binds the lycanthropy to domestic unraveling. The metamorphosis extends past flesh, into marriage, parenthood, and human hurt. Booked into mid January, it backs a move to shape winter into a prestige corridor, not a discard corridor.

Spring ushers in Clown in a Cornfield, a YA slasher conversion presented as stripped terror. Eli Craig directs including Katie Douglas and Kevin Durand, it plays as blood lacquered Americana with satire under the paint. Behind its clown mask lies commentary on small town paranoia, generational divides, and mob justice. Initial fest notes point to real bite.

When summer tapers, the Warner lot unveils the final movement inside its trusty horror universe: The Conjuring: Last Rites. The Warrens are back with Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson, the installment promises emotional closure while taking on one of the duo’s most infamous real life cases. Though the formula is familiar, Michael Chaves appears to favor a elegiac, inward tone here. It arrives early September, buying space before the October wave.

The Black Phone 2 steps in next. It was eyed for early summer, and shifting to October telegraphs confidence. Scott Derrickson again directs, and the defining traits of the first sleeper return: retrograde shiver, trauma centered writing, paired with unsettling supernatural order. Here the stakes rise, by enlarging the “grabber” map and grief’s lineage.

Rounding out the big ticket releases is Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, a picture that draws on name power. The sequel leans deeper into its lore, grows the animatronic horror lineup, bridging teens and legacy players. It hits in December, locking down the winter tail.

Platform Originals: Small budgets, sharp fangs

While theaters bet on familiarity, SVOD players are testing edges, and gains show.

Among the most ambitious streaming plays is Weapons, a long shadow anthology of dread stitching three periods attached to a mass disappearance. From Zach Cregger pairing Josh Brolin and Julia Garner, the movie mixes chill with dramatic weight. Posting late summer theatrically then fall streaming, it is expected to spark online debate and post viewing breakdowns, much like Barbarian before it.

On the quieter side is Together, a room scale body horror descent led by Alison Brie and Dave Franco. Set at a remote rental during a getaway that sours, the arc observes love and green eyed envy and self harm turned somatic. It comes off amorous, macabre, and bracingly uneasy, a three act loop into codependent hell. Despite no official platform date, it is poised for a fall platform bow.

Also rising is Sinners, a Depression era vampire folk fable featuring Michael B. Jordan. Framed in sepia richness with biblical metaphor, it feels like There Will Be Blood fused with Let the Right One In. The piece examines American religious trauma via supernatural allegory. First test passes flag it as highly discussable at debut.

Additional platform indies hold in reserve: Bring Her Back, Bone Lake, and Keeper all mine grief and vanishing and identity, running metaphor first.

Deep Possession Currents: Young & Cursed

Going live October 2 on major services, Young & Cursed arrives as a rare marriage, contained in staging yet mythic in effect. Authored and directed by Andrew Chiaramonte, the piece tracks five strangers awakening in a remote wilds cabin, under Kyra’s sway, a young woman possessed by the ancient biblical demon Lilith. As night descends, so does Kyra’s power, an invasive force that exploits their deepest fears, weaknesses, and regrets.

The terror is psychological in engine, alive with primal myth. Not another exorcism story reliant on Catholic rite and Latin phrase, this one reaches back to something older, something darker. Lilith is not summoned by priests, she rises from trauma, muteness, and human fault lines. This inside out possession reframes expectation and groups Young & Cursed with a rising current, intimate character dramas within genre.

The Halloween window on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, YouTube, Google Play, and Fandango at Home frames the film as counter to sequel saturation and creature revivals. It is an astute call. No overstuffed canon. No brand fatigue. Just pure psychological dread, contained, tense, and tailor made for the binge and breathe rhythm of digital horror fans. In the noise, Young & Cursed could cut through by staying hushed, then erupting.

Festival Born and Buyer Ready

Fantastic Fest, SXSW, Tribeca, and TIFF serve as nurseries for near future horror. They are increasingly launchpads rather than showcases.

Fantastic Fest fields a robust horror set this year. Primate opens the fest with tropical body horror and critics cite Cronenberg and Herzog. Whistle, a folkloric revenge thriller steeped in Aztec lore, is expected to close the fest with fire.

Midnight offerings such as If I Had Legs I’d Kick You surge on execution beyond the hook. That one, an A24 backed satire on toxic fandom set during a horror convention lockdown, is poised for breakout status.

SXSW bowed Clown in a Cornfield while feeding deal chatter for microbudget haunts. Sundance should deliver grief heavy elevated horror again, while Tribeca’s genre section leans more urban, social, and surreal.

Festival strategy in 2025 is not just about discovery, it is about branding. A Fantastic Fest or TIFF badge is phase one marketing, not a coda.

Legacy IP: Reups, Reboots, and Rethinks

Legacy IP arrives sturdier and more intentional this cycle.

Fear Street: Prom Queen, landing in July, re ups the 90s brand with a fresh lead and retro tone. Unlike earlier entries, this leans camp and prom night melodrama. Think tiaras, fake blood, and VHS panic.

M3GAN 2.0 slots late June, set to enlarge techno horror mythology with fresh faces and AI bred menaces. 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, with Francis Lawrence directing, it is a brutal dystopian allegory wrapped in survival horror, a kids walking until they die competition with no real winners. With sharp marketing, it could translate to 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 to Watch

Mythic Horror Is Mainstream
Lilith in Young & Cursed plus Aztec curses in Whistle highlight ancient texts and symbols. This is not nostalgia, it is a reclamation of pre Christian archetypes. Horror goes beyond fright, it notes evil’s age.

Body horror retakes ground
Work like Together, Weapons, and Keeper revisit the flesh. Mutation, infection, transformation are standing in for heartbreak, grief, and regret.

Streaming originals get teeth
Churn filler is losing ground on platforms. Platforms are putting money into scripts, directors, and promotion. Debuts like Weapons and Sinners carry event framing, not content bins.

Festival glow translates to leverage
Laurels are not just decorative, they leverage theatrical, premium placement, and media cycles. Without a festival strategy in 2025, a horror film risks vanishing.

The big screen is a trust exercise
Studios save theaters for outperform prospects or IP farmers. Other titles pivot PVOD or hybrid. Horror stays in theaters, in chosen pockets.

The Road Ahead: Fall stack and winter swing card

With Young & Cursed, The Conjuring: Last Rites, The Black Phone 2, and Weapons all stacked across September and October, the fall is downright saturated. Indies like Bone Lake and Keeper must claw for air. There may be pivots into early 2026 or across platforms.

Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 anchors December, and a surprise streaming drop could still arrive late. When the heavy hitters lean mythic, a last creature feature or exorcism can still fit.

The trick lies in diverse menus finding segmented crowds, not single title bets. The goal is not Get Out again, it is horror with staying power past opening weekends.



The oncoming terror cycle: next chapters, fresh concepts, and also A Crowded Calendar tailored for jolts

Dek The upcoming scare year clusters up front with a January glut, after that spreads through peak season, and running into the winter holidays, fusing name recognition, untold stories, and smart offsets. Studios and streamers are embracing mid-range economics, theatrical exclusivity first, and platform-native promos that frame genre titles into mainstream chatter.

The landscape of horror in 2026

The horror sector has established itself as the sturdy move in studio calendars, a segment that can expand when it resonates and still mitigate the downside when it does not. After 2023 reminded strategy teams that lean-budget fright engines can lead the zeitgeist, the following year maintained heat with auteur-driven buzzy films and slow-burn breakouts. The upswing rolled into 2025, where revived properties and premium-leaning entries underscored there is space for many shades, from series extensions to original features that travel well. The takeaway for 2026 is a grid that appears tightly organized across the field, with obvious clusters, a mix of brand names and new concepts, and a re-energized strategy on theatrical windows that fuel later windows on premium digital rental and OTT platforms.

Studio leaders note the space now functions as a schedule utility on the rollout map. Horror can debut on a wide range of weekends, furnish a tight logline for ad units and short-form placements, and over-index with ticket buyers that line up on advance nights and keep coming through the follow-up frame if the title fires. In the wake of a strike-driven backlog, the 2026 setup signals comfort in that dynamic. The year begins with a crowded January window, then targets spring into early summer for contrast, while saving space for a September to October window that extends to the Halloween corridor and into early November. The gridline also spotlights the deeper integration of boutique distributors and streamers that can platform and widen, ignite recommendations, and widen at the timely point.

A further high-level trend is IP cultivation across linked properties and classic IP. The companies are not just releasing another next film. They are looking to package lineage with a sense of event, whether that is a title presentation that indicates a new tone or a talent selection that connects a latest entry to a early run. At the same time, the auteurs behind the headline-grabbing originals are embracing in-camera technique, in-camera effects and vivid settings. That blend affords 2026 a vital pairing of trust and novelty, which is how the films export.

The majors’ 2026 approach

Paramount marks the early tempo with two front-of-slate titles that bookend the tonal range. First comes Scream 7 on February 27, 2026, with original architect Kevin Williamson in the director seat and Neve Campbell back at the spine, steering it as both a succession moment and a DNA-forward relationship-driven entry. Filming is in progress in Atlanta, and the creative stance indicates a throwback-friendly angle without recycling the last two entries’ Carpenter-sisters arc. The studio is likely to mount a drive rooted in heritage visuals, character previews, and a staggered trailer plan aimed at late fall. Distribution is theatrical via Paramount.

Paramount also dusts off 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 as creative contributors for the first time since the early 2000s, a centerpiece the campaign will double down on. As a counterweight in summer, this one will go after large awareness through joke-first clips, with the horror spoof format making room for quick turns to whatever owns pop-cultural buzz that spring.

Universal has three defined entries. SOULM8TE debuts January 9, 2026, a connected offshoot from the M3GAN universe from Atomic Monster and Blumhouse. The foundation is clean, sorrow-tinged, and premise-first: a grieving man activates an artificial companion that unfolds into a perilous partner. The date puts it at the front of a heavy month, with marketing at Universal likely to reprise creepy live activations and quick hits that interlaces attachment and foreboding.

On May 8, 2026, the studio dates an untitled Rob Savage horror film, widely rumored as the feature developed under development titles in the family-in-peril vein, with Jessica Chastain top-lining. The official listing currently lists it as an untitled Savage project, which sets up a final title to become an event moment closer to the opening teaser. The timing secures a slot in early May while larger tentpoles stack elsewhere.

Supplementing the studio’s year, Jordan Peele’s untitled event film takes October 23, 2026, a slot he has defined before. Peele’s releases are sold as signature events, with a concept-forward tease and a later trailer push that shape mood without giving away the concept. The late-month date affords Universal to take pre-holiday auditoriums with PLF and IMAX bookings where available, then press the copyright window to capture late-October interest at home.

Warner Bros., via New Line, joins with Sony internationally for Evil Dead Burn, dated July 24, 2026. Sébastien Vaniček directs, with Souheila Yacoub headlining. The franchise has proven that a in-your-face, makeup-driven method can feel top-tier on a moderate cost. Look for a gore-forward summer horror jolt that spotlights overseas performance, with Warner Bros. handling U.S. and Sony taking most foreign territories.

Sony’s horror bench is loaded. The studio sets two IP moves in the back half. An untitled Insidious film bows August 21, 2026, holding a steady supernatural brand in play while the spin-off branch advances. The studio has adjusted timing on this title before, but the current plan sticks it in late summer, where the brand has performed historically.

Then, on September 18, 2026, Resident Evil comes back in what Sony is billing as a clean-slate approach for its game-to-film powerhouse. With the PlayStation Productions pipeline now a primary part of the studio’s strategy, this new take has a directive to serve both core fans and first-timers. The fall slot affords Sony time to build campaign pieces around universe detail, and practical creature work, elements that can amplify premium screens and cosplay-friendly fan engagement.

Focus Features, working with Working Title, stakes a prestige bet on Christmas Day with Robert Eggers’ Werwulf on December 25, 2026. Set in 13th-century England, the film builds on Eggers’ run of period horror centered on obsessive craft and archaic language, this time focused on werewolf legend. The specialty arm has already planted the flag for a holiday release, a promissory note in Eggers as a specialty play that can platform wide if early reception is robust.

Streaming windows and tactics

Platform windowing in 2026 run on established tracks. Universal titles move to copyright after a cinema-first plus PVOD, a stair-step that elevates both FOMO and platform bumps in the after-window. Prime Video will mix third-party pickups with global acquisitions and qualifying theatrical engagements when the data supports it. Max and Hulu optimize their lanes in library engagement, using seasonal hubs, spooky hubs, and handpicked rows to extend momentum on the annual genre haul. Netflix retains agility about Netflix originals and festival snaps, dating horror entries closer to launch and positioning as event drops go-lives with surge campaigns. Shudder, integrated with RLJE and Cineverse’s theatrical footprint, uses a staged of precision releases and accelerated platforming that monetizes buzz via trials. That will be critical for Return to Silent Hill, which Cineverse is releasing in theaters January 23, 2026, before relying on community channels in the months that follow.

Apple TV+ assesses case by case horror on a per-project basis. The platform has signaled readiness to take on select projects with accomplished filmmakers or marquee packages, then give them a prestige theatrical in partnership with exhibitors to meet awards-qualifying thresholds or to spark social proof before the streaming drop. Hulu and Disney domestic still feeds from the 20th Century Studios slate, a important element for monthly activity when the genre conversation intensifies.

Art-house genre prospects

Cineverse is curating a 2026 slate with two brand-forward moves. Return to Silent Hill lands in January with Christophe Gans returning to his adaptation of Konami’s classic title. The sell is straightforward: the same haunting, fog-choked atmosphere that made the original a beloved cult piece, refined for modern sonics and picture. Later in the year, Wolf Creek: Legacy is expected in a late-year slot, with Greg McLean back steering his outback slasher universe. Cineverse has positioned a traditional cinema play for Legacy, an upbeat indicator for fans of the ferocious series and for exhibitors looking for R-rated counterplay in the back half.

Focus will play the auteur card with Werwulf, managing the title through select festivals if the cut is ready, then activating the holiday slot to move out. That positioning has proved effective for craft-driven horror with crossover ambitions. A24, NEON, IFC Films, RLJE, and Magnet have not posted many 2026 dates in public calendars yet, but their festival pipelines tend to converge after Sundance, Berlin, and Cannes. A reasonable expectation is a cluster of late-summer and fall platformers that can expand if reception supports. Expect an A24 acquisition out of Sundance midnight slots and a NEON title that runs at Cannes before a September or October domestic bow. RLJE and Shudder often work in tandem, using limited theatrical to jump-start evangelism that fuels their user base.

Legacy titles versus originals

By tilt, the 2026 slate tips toward the known side. Scream 7, Insidious, Resident Evil, Evil Dead Burn, and Return to Silent Hill all activate cultural cachet. The challenge, as ever, is brand erosion. The preferred tactic is to market each entry as a recalibration. Paramount is bringing forward character and continuity in Scream 7, Sony is hinting at a new foundation for Resident Evil, and New Line’s Evil Dead Burn is embracing a French sensibility from a emerging director. Those choices prove meaningful when the audience has so many options and social sentiment shifts fast.

Originals and filmmaker-first projects add oxygen. Jordan Peele’s October film will be pitched as a brand unto itself. Sam Raimi’s Send Help, dated January 30, 2026 at 20th Century Studios, casts Rachel McAdams in a survival chiller premise with Raimi’s playful menace. SOULM8TE offers a clean, creepy tech hook. Werwulf brings period specificity and an uncompromising tone. Even when the title is not based on familiar IP, the packaging is familiar enough to build pre-sales and Thursday-night crowds.

Comparable trends from recent years illuminate the playbook. In 2023, a exclusive cinema model that honored streaming windows did not obstruct a parallel release from winning when the brand was sticky. In 2024, meticulous-craft horror over-performed in large-format rooms. In 2025, a revival of a beloved infection saga broadcast that global horror franchises can still feel novel when they alter lens and widen scale. That last point is directly relevant to Sony’s 28 Years Later plan, which proceeds January 16, 2026 with 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, this time directed by Nia DaCosta from a script by Alex Garland. The dual-chapter plan, with chapters shot consecutively, provides the means for marketing to relate entries through protagonists and motifs and to hold creative in the market without dead zones.

Creative tendencies and craft

The production chatter behind the 2026 entries indicate 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 matches the physical-effects bias he brought to Evil Dead Rise. The film finished filming and is tracking to its April 17, 2026 date. Promo should that highlights atmosphere and fear rather than roller-coaster spectacle, with the New Line and Blumhouse partnership allowing budget prudence.

Robert Eggers, meanwhile, has characterized Werwulf as the bleakest project he has tackled, which tracks with a historical setting and historically accurate language, a combination that can make for deep sound design and a austere, elemental atmosphere on the big screen. Focus will likely preview this aesthetic in trade spotlights and department features before rolling out a tease that centers atmosphere over story, a move that has played for the filmmaker’s past releases.

On the franchise side, Evil Dead Burn is set up for tactile gnarliness, a signature of the series that plays abroad in red-band trailers and creates shareable reaction videos from early screenings. Scream 7 positions a self-referential reset that re-centers the original lead. Resident Evil will rise or fall on creature and environment design, which fit with expo activations and controlled asset drops. Insidious tends to be a sonic showcase, with Dolby and Atmos spots that make the in-theater case feel must-have. Look for trailers that foreground fine-grain sound, deep-bass stingers, and blank-sound beats that benefit on big speakers.

How the year maps out

January is packed. Universal’s SOULM8TE opens January 9, 2026, then Sony returns a week later with 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple on January 16. Return to Silent Hill follows on January 23, a atmospheric change-up amid headline IP. The month wraps 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 legit, but the palette of tones creates a lane for each, and the five-week structure gives each runway for each if word of mouth stays strong.

February through May seed summer. Paramount’s Scream 7 bows February 27 with brand warmth. In April, The Mummy reframes a classic monster on April 17, a spring frame that once was home to genre counterprogramming and now nurtures big openers. Universal’s 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 sorts the tones. Scary Movie 6 on June 12 is jokier and broader, then Evil Dead Burn on July 24 brings ferocious intensity. The counterprogramming logic is sound. The spoof can deliver next to family tentpoles and animated films, while the mid-summer gorefest rewards older teenagers and genre diehards once the big Friday sequels have finished their premium pass.

Late Q3 into Q4 leans IP. The Insidious entry on August 21 gives Sony a spiritual-horror anchor where the brand has previously excelled. Resident Evil comes after September 18, a early fall window that still bridges into Halloween marketing beats. Jordan Peele’s untitled film holds October 23 and will own cultural oxygen heading into Halloween weekend, likely augmented by a minimalist tease strategy and limited disclosures that prioritize concept over plot.

Holiday prestige and specialty. Werwulf on December 25 is a declaration that genre can win the holiday when packaged as prestige-leaning horror. The distributor has done this before, selective rollout, then leveraging critics’ lists and awards-season craft coverage to stay top of mind into January. If the film earns with critics, the studio can broaden in the first week of 2027 while enjoying holiday hold and gift-card burn.

Title-by-title briefings, embedded in the narrative

Scream 7 (Paramount, February 27, 2026)
Director: Kevin Williamson. Top cast: Neve Campbell, with casting TBA in phases as production moves. Logline: Sidney returns to re-engage a new Ghostface while the narrative revisits the original film’s founding notes. Rating: TBA. Production: Filming in Atlanta. Positioning: legacy reset with a modern edge.

SOULM8TE (Universal, January 9, 2026)
Producers: Atomic Monster, Blumhouse. Logline: A devastated man’s machine mate unfolds into something murderously loving. Rating: TBA. Production: Wrapped principal for an early-year bow. Positioning: techno-horror with feeling.

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 extends the world beyond the immediate outbreak as a cult surges in the ruins. Rating: TBA. Production: Lensed back-to-back with the first film. Positioning: elevated outbreak saga chapter.

Return to Silent Hill (Cineverse, January 23, 2026)
Director: Christophe Gans. Top cast: TBA in updated campaign materials. Logline: A man travels back to a fog-shrouded town in search of a lost love, only to encounter a warped reality and the town’s horrors. Rating: TBA. Production: Completed with U.S. theatrical distribution secured. Positioning: moody game adaptation built on atmosphere.

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 tough boss try to survive on a remote island as the pecking order tilts and mistrust rises. Rating: TBA. Production: Done. Positioning: A-list survival chiller from a master.

The Mummy (New Line, April 17, 2026)
Director: Lee Cronin. Producers: Blumhouse, Atomic Monster, Doppelgängers. Top cast: roles in the vault in official materials. Logline: A contemporary retelling that returns the monster to chill, founded on Cronin’s physical craft and encroaching dread. Rating: TBA. Production: Shoot done. Positioning: legendary monster re-up with auteur hand.


Untitled Rob Savage Horror Film (Universal, May 8, 2026)
Director: Rob Savage. Top cast: Jessica Chastain. Logline: {A residential haunting chiller that frames the panic through a preteen’s uneven personal vantage. Rating: TBD. Production: fully shot. Positioning: studio-crafted and headline-actor led supernatural suspense.

Scary Movie 6 (Paramount, June 12, 2026)
Director: Michael Tiddes. Top cast: Anna Faris, Regina Hall, with the Wayans brothers back in creative roles. Logline: {A satirical comeback that needles modern genre fads and true-crime manias. Rating: awaiting classification. 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 transnational twist in tone and setting. Rating: to be announced. Production: principal photography in New Zealand. Positioning: graphic series entry optimized for PLF.

Untitled Insidious Film (Sony, August 21, 2026)
Director: to be confirmed in marketing. Top cast: awaiting confirmation. Logline: The Further yawns great post to read again, with a fresh family caught in returning horrors. Rating: to be announced. Production: targeting a summer lensing window for late-summer release. Positioning: dependable ghost-franchise slot that suits the brand.

Resident Evil (Sony, September 18, 2026)
Director: to be disclosed. Top cast: pending. Logline: A clean reboot designed to re-engineer the franchise from the ground up, with an preference for survival-first horror over action spectacle. Rating: undetermined. Production: development underway with firm date. Positioning: game-faithful modern reboot with crossover potential.

Jordan Peele Untitled Event Film (Universal, October 23, 2026)
Director: Jordan Peele. Top cast: TBD. Logline: deliberately concealed. Rating: TBA. Production: proceeding. Positioning: filmmaker event, teaser-driven.

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 era-faithful speech and bone-deep menace. Rating: undetermined. Production: prepping toward a December 25 launch. Positioning: filmmaker-driven holiday release with craft awards runway.

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 theaters-first plan ahead of platforming. Status: slot unsettled, fall projected.

Why the moment is 2026

Three operational forces drive this lineup. First, production that stalled or re-sequenced in 2024 called for breathing room in the schedule. Horror can patch those gaps promptly because scripts often call for fewer locales, fewer large-scale effects sequences, and condensed timelines. Second, studios have become more strategic about windows. Theatrical exclusivity remains the goal for most of these films, followed by PVOD and then platform streaming, a sequence that has consistently outperformed straight-to-streaming premieres. Third, social conversation converts. The marketing teams behind these titles will leverage meme-ready beats from test screenings, select scare clips timed to Thursday night previews, and experiential pop-ups that serve as influencer content. It is a repeatable playbook because it delivers.

The slot calculus is real. Early corridors for family and capes are leaner in 2026, leaving useful real estate for genre entries that can capture a weekend or stand as the older-leaning counter. January is the prime example. Four tonal lanes of horror will stack across five weekends, which allows chatter to build title by title. Summer provides the other window. The parody can surf the early-summer animated and action swell, then the hard-R entry can exploit a late-July lull before back-to-school.

Budget discipline, rating paths, sleeper math

Budgets remain in the efficient band. Most of the films above will live under the $40–$50 million ceiling, with many far below. That allows for wide PLF deployment 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 breakout hunt continues in Q1, where midrange-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 leverage those opportunities. 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 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. Plan on a solid PVOD window generally, since horror fans have shown a willingness to pay for convenience after an opening weekend, especially when word of mouth is strong.

What the calendar feels like for audiences

From a moviegoer’s perspective, the 2026 horror year offers cadence and diversity. January is a smorgasbord, February delivers a legacy slasher, April restores a Universal monster, May and June provide a back-to-back spirit play for date nights and group outings, July leans brutal, 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 hold talk and turnout without cannibalizing your own titles. The pattern also supports social campaigns that can build month to month, using earlier releases to set up the audience for bigger plays in the fall.

Exhibitors value the spacing. Horror delivers regular Thursday spikes, tight deployments, and strong PLF uptake when the creative supports it. The 2026 slate has at least three titles that can command PLF, with The Mummy, Evil Dead Burn, and Werwulf all showcasing grain, sound field, and camera work 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.

A Strong 2026 Horizon

Timing shifts. Ratings change. Casts refresh. But the spine of 2026 horror is firm. There is brand gravity where needed, original vision where it matters, and a calendar that shows studios grasp the timing of 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 late-stage specialty acquisition join the party. For now, the job is simple, deliver taut trailers, keep the curtain closed, and let the screams sell the seats.