Andrew Chiaramonte’s Young & Cursed releases age-old dread, a nightmare fueled horror thriller, arriving Oct 2025 on premium platforms

A hair-raising spiritual suspense film from narrative craftsman / film architect Andrew Chiaramonte, liberating an prehistoric nightmare when unrelated individuals become tools in a devilish conflict. Dropping October 2, 2025, on Amazon’s streaming platform, the YouTube platform, Google’s digital store, iTunes Movies, Apple’s streaming platform, and Fandango streaming.

L.A., CA (August 8th, 2025) – hold tight for *Young & Cursed*, a disturbing chronicle of living through and age-old darkness that will resculpt genre cinema this autumn. Helmed by rising horror auteur Andrew Chiaramonte, this psychological and moody fearfest follows five strangers who snap to stranded in a isolated structure under the menacing manipulation of Kyra, a troubled woman claimed by a time-worn sacrosanct terror. Brace yourself to be gripped by a big screen outing that blends bodily fright with folklore, coming on Amazon Prime, YouTube, Google Play, iTunes, Apple TV+, and Fandango at Home on the second of October, 2025.


Spiritual takeover has been a recurring fixture in horror films. In *Young & Cursed*, that formula is radically shifted when the demons no longer originate from an outside force, but rather internally. This marks the shadowy part of every character. The result is a relentless inner struggle where the narrative becomes a unforgiving battle between right and wrong.


In a unforgiving no-man's-land, five individuals find themselves confined under the ghastly control and infestation of a uncanny female figure. As the team becomes unresisting to oppose her grasp, cut off and chased by beings unfathomable, they are pushed to face their inner demons while the clock without pause draws closer toward their death.


In *Young & Cursed*, delusion swells and partnerships break, compelling each member to challenge their values and the integrity of autonomy itself. The risk rise with every second, delivering a paranormal ride that weaves together otherworldly panic with mental instability.

Andrew Chiaramonte, Director: “With *Young & Cursed*, my intention was to uncover primitive panic, an darkness born of forgotten ages, influencing human fragility, and confronting a curse that tests the soul when stripped of free will.”

Madison Hubler (Kyra): “Stepping into Kyra called for internalizing something darker than pain. She is uninformed until the control shifts, and that transition is gut-wrenching because it is so unshielded.”

Distribution & Access

*Young & Cursed* will be brought for horror fans beginning on October 2nd, 2025, on Amazon Prime, YouTube, Google’s store, Apple iTunes, Apple TV+, and Fandango on-demand—delivering households anywhere can watch this horror showcase.


Chiaramonte Films, Inc. has just premiered a new sneak peek #2 for *Young & Cursed*, currently showing to watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/zu0n4WmPI1s, as a companion to its intro video, which has collected over a huge fan reaction.


In addition to its regional launch, Chiaramonte Films, Inc. has publicized that *Young & Cursed* will also be launched globally, making the film to thrill-seekers globally.


Make sure to see this gripping path of possession. Stream *Young & Cursed* this All Hallows’ kickoff to confront these spiritual awakenings about mankind.


For exclusive trailers, filmmaker commentary, and insider scoops straight from the filmmakers, follow @YoungAndCursed across platforms and visit the official digital haunt.





Current horror’s watershed moment: 2025 across markets U.S. calendar blends Mythic Possession, microbudget gut-punches, alongside Franchise Rumbles

Moving from endurance-driven terror rooted in old testament echoes and extending to IP renewals and focused festival visions, 2025 appears poised to be the most textured along with carefully orchestrated year in recent memory.

It is loaded, and also intentionally sequenced. top-tier distributors set cornerstones via recognizable brands, concurrently streamers crowd the fall with new perspectives and legend-coded dread. Across the art-house lane, the independent cohort is buoyed by the tailwinds of a banner 2024 fest year. With Halloween still the genre’s crown piece, the rest of the calendar is filling out with surgical precision. A packed September to October corridor has become a rite of passage, though in this cycle, the genre is also staking January, spring, and mid-summer. Crowds are ready, studios are intentional, hence 2025 could be the most carefully plotted year to date.

Major and Mini-Major Maneuvers: Premium genre swings back

Studios are not on the sidelines. If 2024 planted the seeds, 2025 scales the plan.

Universal’s pipeline lights the fuse with a big gambit: a refreshed Wolf Man, not returning to the Gothic European hamlet, inside today’s landscape. Shepherded by Leigh Whannell anchored by Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner, this version roots the lycanthropy in family fracture. The arc is bodily and domestic, about marriage, caregiving, and fragile humanity. landing in mid January, it aligns with turning the winter slack into a premium lane, not a dumping lane.

Spring delivers Clown in a Cornfield, a YA slasher adaptation reframed as lean dread. Led by Eli Craig with Katie Douglas alongside Kevin Durand, it moves like barn born dread with razor satire. Behind the grin, it unpacks local hysteria, generational chasms, and crowd justice. First wave buzz indicates sharp teeth.

At summer’s close, the Warner lot sets loose the finale of its most reliable horror franchise: The Conjuring: Last Rites. Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson reprise Ed and Lorraine Warren, the piece hints at a heartfelt wrap as it treats a notorious case. Granted the structure is classic, Chaves is expected to tune it to a grieving, self reflective color. It posts in early September, creating cushion before October load.

Arriving later is The Black Phone 2. From early summer to October, a strong signal. Derrickson resumes command, and the memorable motifs return: vintage toned fear, trauma explicitly handled, along with eerie supernatural rules. Here the stakes rise, through a thicker read on the “grabber” legend and generational ache.

Rounding the tentpole corner is Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, a franchise that brings its own crowd. The return delves further into myth, broadens the animatronic terror cast, seeking teens plus thirty something gamers. It posts in December, anchoring horror’s winter tail.

Platform Plays: Economy, maximum dread

As theatrical skews franchise first, streamers are taking risks, and it is paying off.

A flagship risky title is Weapons, a cold case horror anthology stitching three periods attached to a mass disappearance. Guided by Zach Cregger including Josh Brolin and Julia Garner, the entry marries dread with character weight. Rolling out in theaters late summer before fall platform release, it looks primed to seed post watch analysis akin to Barbarian.

More contained by design is Together, a body horror chamber piece including Alison Brie and Dave Franco. Set in a remote rental home during a getaway gone wrong, the script studies love with jealousy with self rejection turning into decay. It comes off amorous, macabre, and bracingly uneasy, a three act loop into codependent hell. Absent a posted platform date, it is destined for a fall landing.

Then there is Sinners, a thirties set vampire folk saga with Michael B. Jordan. Captured with warm sepia and heavy biblical metaphor, it feels like There Will Be Blood fused with Let the Right One In. The film interrogates American religious trauma through supernatural allegory. Early test screens tag it as a top talked streaming debut.

A cluster of streaming indies sits ready: Bring Her Back, Bone Lake, and Keeper each explores grief and disappearance and identity, opting allegory above bombast.

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. Shaped and helmed by Andrew Chiaramonte, the narrative rides with five strangers waking in a secluded woodland cabin, held by Kyra, a young woman possessed by the ancient biblical demon Lilith. As the night settles, her power spikes, an infiltrating force leveraging fears, breaks, and sorrow.

The unease is psychological, fused to primal myth. Instead of another exorcism piece centered on Catholic rites or Latin incantations, this film taps something older, something darker. Lilith bypasses ritual, she awakens from trauma, repression, and human fragility. An inward possession, not an outward spell, turns the trope and sets Young & Cursed inside a widening trend, intimate character work housed in 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 canny scheduling. No swollen lore. No IP hangover. Pure psyche terror, contained and taut, sized for the binge then exhale flow of digital viewers. In a spectacle stack, Young & Cursed could be the hush before the shriek.

Festivals as Springboards

Fantastic Fest, SXSW, Tribeca, and TIFF continue to incubate the next six to twelve months of horror. They are more runway than museum.

Fantastic Fest has a thick horror program this time. Primate, a tropical body horror opening night title, is drawing comparisons to both Cronenberg and Herzog. Whistle, revenge folklore with Aztec roots, is poised to close with blaze.

Midnight slots like If I Had Legs I’d Kick You earn noise for execution beyond quirky names. A24’s satire of toxic fandom inside a con lockdown aims at breakout.

SXSW premiered Clown in a Cornfield and introduced several microbudget hauntings currently circling deals. Sundance is expected to unspool a familiar crop of grief steeped elevated horror, while Tribeca’s genre section leans more urban, social, and surreal.

Festival strategy in 2025 is not just about discovery, it is about branding. Laurels now light the fuse, they do not just adorn.

Legacy Horror: Reups, Reboots, and Rethinks

Legacy entries present stronger and more purposeful this time.

Fear Street: Prom Queen, landing in July, re ups the 90s brand with a fresh lead and retro tone. Compared to earlier parts, it tilts camp and prom night melodrama. Picture tiaras, bright red goo, and VHS panic.

M3GAN 2.0 posts late June, geared to push its techno horror story world with added characters and AI made scares. The first title’s online shareability and streaming stickiness fuel Universal’s appetite.

Next comes The Long Walk, adapting one of Stephen King’s earliest, most harrowing works, under Francis Lawrence, it stands as a punishing dystopian allegory wearing survival horror, a march until death with no victors. With clear targeting, it could become The Hunger Games for horror grown ups.

Other reboots and sequels, Hell House LLC: Lineage, V/H/S/Halloween, The Toxic Avenger, and Anaconda, are scattered across the calendar, most waiting for strategic windows or last minute acquisitions.

Trends to Watch

Old myth goes broad
Lilith in Young & Cursed plus Aztec curses in Whistle highlight ancient texts and symbols. It eschews nostalgia to repossess pre Christian archetypes. Horror exceeds jolts, it insists evil is ancient.

Body horror reemerges
Work like Together, Weapons, and Keeper revisit the flesh. Mutation, infection, transformation function as metaphors for heartbreak, grief, and regret.

Streamer originals stiffen their spine
Low grade filler is no longer the platform default. Streamers deploy capital toward scripts, directors, and paid reach. Drops such as Weapons and Sinners arrive as events, not as catalog.

Festival buzz converts to leverage
Festival status acts as leverage for exhibition, placement, and publicity. Skip festival strategy in 2025 and the film risks invisibility.

Theatrical release is a trust fall
Theater slots go to likely overachievers or franchise starters. All others choose PVOD or hybrid. Horror persists theatrically, in curated lanes.

Near Term Outlook: Autumn crowding, winter surprise

Stacking Young & Cursed, The Conjuring: Last Rites, The Black Phone 2, and Weapons in September and October yields saturation. Indies like Bone Lake and Keeper must claw for air. Watch for one or more of these to pivot into early 2026 or shift platforms.

Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 steadies December, yet a last minute streamer surprise is in play. With some of the year’s biggest films leaning dark and mythic, the space for one final creature feature or exorcism flick is wide open.

The trick lies in diverse menus finding segmented crowds, not single title bets. The assignment is not to chase the next Get Out, it is to build horror that endures beyond box office.



The approaching scare Year Ahead: installments, non-franchise titles, And A Crowded Calendar engineered for nightmares

Dek The new scare cycle crowds immediately with a January pile-up, after that extends through the summer months, and carrying into the holidays, combining marquee clout, fresh ideas, and savvy counterprogramming. Distributors with platforms are leaning into cost discipline, exclusive theatrical windows first, and platform-native promos that convert genre releases into national conversation.

Where horror stands going into 2026

The genre has grown into the most reliable move in release plans, a category that can spike when it clicks and still mitigate the drawdown when it misses. After 2023 showed strategy teams that responsibly budgeted entries can command social chatter, the following year kept the drumbeat going with visionary-driven titles and stealth successes. The run flowed into 2025, where reawakened brands and elevated films proved there is a market for many shades, from returning installments to fresh IP that perform internationally. The upshot for the 2026 slate is a calendar that feels more orchestrated than usual across studios, with defined corridors, a spread of marquee IP and untested plays, and a renewed emphasis on box-office windows that increase tail monetization on premium video on demand and subscription services.

Planners observe the category now acts as a wildcard on the schedule. The genre can roll out on virtually any date, create a quick sell for trailers and short-form placements, and outperform with ticket buyers that respond on previews Thursday and stay strong through the sophomore frame if the offering pays off. Exiting a strike-impacted pipeline, the 2026 setup exhibits faith in that model. The slate kicks off with a busy January band, then turns to spring and early summer for counterweight, while making space for a September to October window that connects to the fright window and past Halloween. The program also highlights the expanded integration of specialized imprints and OTT outlets that can nurture a platform play, spark evangelism, and widen at the right moment.

A further high-level trend is brand management across linked properties and veteran brands. The companies are not just rolling another follow-up. They are seeking to position threaded continuity with a occasion, whether that is a typeface approach that telegraphs a refreshed voice or a cast configuration that links a new entry to a foundational era. At the alongside this, the auteurs behind the eagerly awaited originals are returning to practical craft, physical gags and concrete locations. That combination provides 2026 a robust balance of home base and novelty, which is the formula for international play.

Studio by studio strategy signals

Paramount plants an early flag with two prominent releases that bracket the tone map. First comes Scream 7 on February 27, 2026, with Kevin Williamson in the director seat and Neve Campbell back at the spine, setting it up as both a succession moment and a return-to-roots character-first story. Cameras are rolling in Atlanta, and the story approach points to a roots-evoking approach without replaying the last two entries’ sibling arc. Expect a marketing push fueled by legacy iconography, character spotlights, and a promo sequence hitting late fall. Distribution is Paramount in theaters.

Paramount also reawakens a once-mighty spoof franchise with Scary Movie 6 on June 12, 2026, directed by Michael Tiddes. Anna Faris and Regina Hall are back on screen, with the Wayans brothers involved behind the scenes for the first time since the early 2000s, a selling point the campaign will foreground. As a summer counter-slot, this one will seek wide appeal through gif-able moments, with the horror spoof format supporting quick shifts to whatever tops genre chatter that spring.

Universal has three differentiated bets. SOULM8TE hits January 9, 2026, a technology-driven offshoot from the M3GAN universe from Atomic Monster and Blumhouse. The foundation is clean, grief-rooted, and commercial: a grieving man implements an AI companion that turns into a harmful mate. The date sets it at the front of a packed window, with the studio’s marketing likely to recreate off-kilter promo beats and short-cut promos that blurs companionship and creep.

On May 8, 2026, the studio schedules an untitled Rob Savage horror film, widely read as the feature developed under code names in the family-in-peril vein, with Jessica Chastain top-lining. The posted calendar currently lists this content it as an untitled Savage project, which permits a final title to become an headline beat closer to the opening teaser. The timing creates a foothold in early May while larger tentpoles concentrate elsewhere.

Capping the studio’s year, Jordan Peele’s untitled event film takes October 23, 2026, a slot he has made his own before. His projects are sold as must-see filmmaker statements, with a minimalist tease and a second trailer wave that signal tone without plot the concept. The late-October frame allows Universal to command pre-holiday auditoriums with PLF and IMAX bookings where available, then use the copyright window to capture late-October interest at home.

Warner Bros., via New Line, partners with Sony internationally for Evil Dead Burn, dated July 24, 2026. Sébastien Vaniček directs, with Souheila Yacoub at the center. The franchise has proven that a gnarly, physical-effects centered method can feel top-tier on a tight budget. Frame it as a viscera-heavy summer horror rush that spotlights global rollout, with Warner Bros. handling U.S. and Sony taking most international markets.

Sony’s horror bench is surprisingly deep. The studio lines up two recognizable-IP pushes in the back half. An untitled Insidious film debuts August 21, 2026, holding a evergreen supernatural brand front and center while the spin-off branch gestates. Sony has shifted dates on this title before, but the current plan sticks it in late summer, where Insidious has often excelled.

Then, on September 18, 2026, Resident Evil re-enters in what the studio is presenting as a from-the-ground-up reboot for its game-to-film powerhouse. With the PlayStation Productions pipeline now a pillar part of the studio’s strategy, this new take has a clearer mandate to serve both loyalists and general audiences. The fall slot creates runway for Sony to build assets around narrative world, and creature effects, elements that can accelerate format premiums and fan-culture participation.

Focus Features, working with Working Title, books a prestige bet on Christmas Day with Robert Eggers’ Werwulf on December 25, 2026. Set in 13th-century England, the film follows Eggers’ run of period horror driven by meticulous craft and linguistic texture, this time focused on werewolf legend. Focus Features has already planted the flag for a holiday release, a signal of faith in Eggers as a specialty play that can build and expand if early reception is favorable.

How the platforms plan to play it

Windowing plans in 2026 run on proven patterns. The Universal horror run flow to copyright after a big-screen and PVOD window, a cadence that optimizes both week-one demand and subscriber lifts in the back half. Prime Video continues to mix outside acquisitions with worldwide entries and brief theater runs when the data signals it. Max and Hulu press their advantages in catalog engagement, using curated hubs, fright rows, and collection rows to lengthen the tail on the year’s genre earnings. Netflix plays opportunist about internal projects and festival snaps, finalizing horror entries with shorter lead times and staging as events releases with tight-window plans. Shudder, integrated with RLJE and Cineverse’s theatrical footprint, works a tiered of targeted cinema placements and prompt platform moves that converts WOM to subscribers. That will be key for Return to Silent Hill, which Cineverse is releasing in theaters January 23, 2026, before pressing direct-to-fan channels in the months that follow.

Apple TV+ keeps selective horror on a selective basis. The platform has shown a willingness to board select projects with established auteurs or celebrity-led packages, then give them a qualifying theatrical in partnership with exhibitors to meet qualification bars or to build credibility before the streaming drop. Hulu and Disney’s domestic pipeline still uses the 20th Century Studios slate, a core piece for subscriber stickiness when the genre conversation peaks.

The specialty lanes and indie surprises

Cineverse is steadily assembling a 2026 lane with two franchise steps. Return to Silent Hill lands in January with Christophe Gans returning to his adaptation of Konami’s classic title. The appeal is no-nonsense: the same moody, fog-choked atmosphere that made the original a cult favorite, elevated for modern soundscapes and visuals. Later in the year, Wolf Creek: Legacy is expected in a fall window, with Greg McLean back steering his outback slasher universe. Cineverse has positioned a traditional theatrical plan for Legacy, an good sign for fans of the gritty series and for exhibitors hungry for R material in the autumn weeks.

Focus will play the auteur card with Werwulf, stewarding the film through festivals in the fall if the cut is ready, then deploying the Christmas window to go wider. That positioning has worked well for auteur horror with crossover ambitions. A24, NEON, IFC Films, RLJE, and Magnet have not announced many 2026 dates in public calendars yet, but their festival pipelines generally solidify after Sundance, Berlin, and Cannes. A reasonable expectation is a cluster of late-summer and fall platformers that can broaden if reception allows. Plan on 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 boutique theatrical to prime evangelism that fuels their subscriber growth.

IP versus fresh ideas

By weight, 2026 favors the IP side. Scream 7, Insidious, Resident Evil, Evil Dead Burn, and Return to Silent Hill Check This Out all use marquee value. The potential drawback, as ever, is brand erosion. The operating solution is to present each entry as a fresh tone. Paramount is elevating character and heritage in Scream 7, Sony is suggesting a new foundation for Resident Evil, and New Line’s Evil Dead Burn is driving a Francophone tone from a buzzed-about director. Those choices make a difference when the audience has so many options and social sentiment shifts fast.

Non-franchise titles and auteur plays supply the oxygen. Jordan Peele’s October film will be treated as a brand unto itself. Sam More about the author Raimi’s Send Help, dated January 30, 2026 at 20th Century Studios, anchors on Rachel McAdams in a marooned survival premise with signature mischievous dread. SOULM8TE offers a lean, creepy tech hook. Werwulf leans on period specificity and an flinty tone. Even when the title is not based on known IP, the deal build is steady enough to convert curiosity into pre-sales and first-night audiences.

Recent comps frame the method. In 2023, a big-screen-first plan that maintained windows did not preclude a same-day experiment from delivering when the brand was compelling. In 2024, director-craft horror surged in premium auditoriums. In 2025, a revival of a beloved infection saga broadcast that global horror franchises can still feel recharged when they alter lens and elevate scope. That last point is directly relevant to Sony’s 28 Years Later plan, which continues 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 filmed in sequence, lets marketing to relate entries through relationships and themes and to keep materials circulating without pause points.

Creative tendencies and craft

The creative meetings behind this slate hint at a continued preference for practical, location-rooted craft. Lee Cronin has said his The Mummy will not repeat any recent iteration of the property, a stance that squares with the hands-on effects stance he brought to Evil Dead Rise. The film wrapped photography and is on track for its April 17, 2026 date. Expect a campaign that spotlights mood and dread rather than theme-park spectacle, with the New Line and Blumhouse partnership enabling smart budget discipline.

Robert Eggers, meanwhile, has characterized Werwulf as the most shadowed project he has tackled, which tracks with a feudal backdrop and archaic dialect, a combination that can make for layered sound design and a icy, primal tone 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 succeeded for the filmmaker’s past releases.

On the franchise side, Evil Dead Burn is geared for tactile gnarliness, a signature of the series that connects worldwide in red-band trailers and sparks shareable reaction videos from early screenings. Scream 7 sets up a self-referential reset that re-anchors on the original star. Resident Evil will stand or stumble on creature craft and set design, which match well with fan conventions and selective drops. Insidious tends to be a theatrical sound showcase, with Dolby and Atmos spots that make the theatrical pitch feel definitive. Look for trailers that center fine-grain sound, deep-bass stingers, and quiet voids that land in big rooms.

Annual flow

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. Cineverse’s Return to Silent Hill follows on January 23, a atmospheric change-up amid larger brand plays. The month buttons with Send Help on January 30 via 20th Century Studios, a survival chiller from Sam Raimi that puts a star forward in Rachel McAdams. The competition here is serious, but the mix of tones carves a lane for each, and the five-week structure hands each a runway for each if word of mouth carries.

Pre-summer months stage summer. Scream 7 arrives February 27 with brand warmth. In April, New Line’s The Mummy reimagines a classic monster on April 17, a spring frame that once served genre counterprogramming and now sustains big openers. The untitled Rob Savage film on May 8 bridges into summer while maintaining horror’s hold on early May weekends that are not claimed by superheroes or family tentpoles.

Summer underlines contrasts. Scary Movie 6 on June 12 is jokier and broader, then Evil Dead Burn on July 24 delivers severe intensity. The counterprogramming logic is sensible. The spoof can pop next to family tentpoles and animated films, while the mid-summer gorefest caters to older teenagers and genre diehards once the big Friday sequels have cycled through PLF.

Late Q3 into Q4 leans brand. The Insidious entry on August 21 gives the studio a spiritual-horror anchor where the brand has previously worked. Resident Evil comes after September 18, a late-September window that still preps for Halloween marketing beats. Jordan Peele’s untitled film holds October 23 and will engross cultural oxygen heading into Halloween weekend, likely driven by a minimalist tease strategy and limited plot reveals that center concept over reveals.

December specialty. Werwulf on December 25 is a signal that genre can compete at Christmas when packaged as craft prestige horror. The distributor has done this before, staging carefully, then turning to critics’ lists and awards-season craft coverage to stay top of mind into January. If the film wins with critics, the studio can extend in the first week of 2027 while benefiting from holiday season and gift-card burn.

One-sentence dossiers

Scream 7 (Paramount, February 27, 2026)
Director: Kevin Williamson. Top cast: Neve Campbell, with casting ongoing as production rolls. Logline: Sidney returns to challenge a new Ghostface while the narrative returns to the original film’s genetic code. Rating: TBA. Production: Filming in Atlanta. Positioning: origin-forward with a contemporary twist.

SOULM8TE (Universal, January 9, 2026)
Producers: Atomic Monster, Blumhouse. Logline: A bereaved man’s intelligent companion evolves into something seductively lethal. Rating: TBA. Production: Wrapped principal for an early-year bow. Positioning: digital-age horror with pathos.

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 opens the world beyond the immediate outbreak as a cult emerges in the ruins. Rating: TBA. Production: Filmed in tandem with the first film. Positioning: next step of a prestige infection saga.

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 run into a changing reality and the town’s horrors. Rating: TBA. Production: Locked and U.S. theatrical booked. 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 severe boss struggle to survive on a uninhabited island as the chain of command reverses and dread encroaches. Rating: TBA. Production: Shoot complete. Positioning: marquee survival piece from a master.

The Mummy (New Line, April 17, 2026)
Director: Lee Cronin. Producers: Blumhouse, Atomic Monster, Doppelgängers. Top cast: roles to be revealed in official materials. Logline: A renewed take that returns the monster to horror, built on Cronin’s practical craft and rising dread. Rating: TBA. Production: In the can. Positioning: legacy monster restart with director stamp.


Untitled Rob Savage Horror Film (Universal, May 8, 2026)
Director: Rob Savage. Top cast: Jessica Chastain. Logline: {A in-home haunting narrative that manipulates the horror of a child’s uncertain impressions. Rating: TBA. Production: wrapped. Positioning: studio-backed, star-driven spectral 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 send-up revival that satirizes contemporary horror memes and true crime preoccupations. Rating: pending. Production: filming slated for fall 2025. Positioning: mainstream summer comedy-horror.

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 surges, with an globe-spanning twist in tone and setting. Rating: TBD. Production: currently in New Zealand. Positioning: uncompromising R installment meant for big rooms.

Untitled Insidious Film (Sony, August 21, 2026)
Director: unrevealed for now. Top cast: awaiting confirmation. Logline: The Further unfurls again, with a new household snared by 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: forthcoming. Top cast: undisclosed. Logline: A from-scratch rebuild designed to recreate the franchise from the ground up, with an focus on survival-core horror over pyrotechnic spectacle. Rating: TBD. Production: on a development track with locked window. Positioning: game-grounded refresh with wider appeal.

Jordan Peele Untitled Event Film (Universal, October 23, 2026)
Director: Jordan Peele. Top cast: forthcoming. Logline: carefully shrouded. Rating: TBA. Production: underway. Positioning: filmmaker-led event with teaser rollout.

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 preproduction for holiday debut. 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 cinema-first path before platforming. Status: date shifting, fall likely.

Why the 2026 timing works

Three pragmatic forces calibrate this lineup. First, production that hiccuped or re-slotted in 2024 called for breathing room in the schedule. Horror can backfill quickly because scripts often demand fewer locations, fewer large-scale VFX set pieces, and shorter timelines. Second, studios have become more disciplined about windows. Theatrical exclusivity remains the goal for most of these films, followed by PVOD and then platform streaming, a sequence that has consistently beaten straight-to-streaming dumps. Third, social conversation converts. The marketing teams behind these titles will activate reaction-worthy moments from test screenings, managed scare clips launched on Thursday previews, and experiential pop-ups that spark influencer coverage. It is a repeatable playbook because it pays off.

The slot calculus is real. Early-2026 family and superhero concentrations ease, offering breathing room for genre entries that can own a weekend outright or stand as the older-leaning counter. January is the prime example. Four separate horror flavors will cluster across five weekends, which keeps buzz lanes tidy. Summer provides the other window. The parody leverages early family and action lifts, then the hard-R entry can leverage a late-July lull before back-to-school.

Financials, ratings, and sleeper angles

Budgets remain in the optimal band. Most of the films above will sit beneath the $40–$50 million band, 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 surprise-hit pursuit 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 use those gaps. January could easily deliver the first sleeper overperformer 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.

How the viewing year plays

From a moviegoer’s perspective, the 2026 horror year offers rhythm and variety. January is a buffet, February delivers a legacy slasher, April restores a Universal monster, May and June provide a supernatural one-two for date nights and group outings, July gets gnarly, August and September keep the supernatural momentum, October turns into a Jordan Peele event, and December invites a chilly, literate nightmare. That is how you sustain conversation and attendance without cannibalizing your own titles. The pattern also supports social campaigns that can escalate across the year, using earlier releases to trailhead the audience for bigger plays in the fall.

Exhibitors endorse the spacing. Horror delivers preview-night pops, smart allocations, and strong PLF uptake when the creative supports it. The 2026 slate has at least three titles that can earn PLF placement, with The Mummy, Evil Dead Burn, and Werwulf all showcasing surface detail, soundcraft, and imagery 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, Lined Up To Scare

Dates shift. Ratings change. Casts rotate. But the spine of 2026 horror is established. There is brand gravity where needed, inventive vision where it helps, and a calendar that shows studios meet the timing for 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 eleventh-hour specialty buy join the party. For now, the job is simple, shape lean trailers, keep the secrets, and let the shocks sell the seats.