6 for 2026
This year, horror snd darkly suspenseful movies have gone all out! These movies have always been big, and done well, bit this year they are actually good. And I’m talking about a whole bunch of them. These are the prestigious horror movies of 2026. And those are two words that don’t often go together. This all started last year, with two horror movies that rose through the ranks to not only win over audiences, but also the Oscars. We’re talking about Sinners and Weapons of course. Easily the best horror movies since Get Out. Sinners won the best actor Oscar and Weapons won the best supporting actress Oscar. And just like that, the genre was back in s way it hadn’t been since the early nineties, when The Silence of the Lambs cleaned up at the Awards.
Now, we have no idea how this years crop of horror movies will do come Oscar time, of course. It will be hard to do better than last year. At the very least, I’m hoping Obsession gets recognized one way or another. And maybe thats just by nominating Indie Navarette, the films breakout star. But regardless if the Oscars, these are the horror movies of this year that were really good…
Obsession
Obsession is the best of the bunch. And that’s because its story is so relatable. Who hasn’t made a birthday wish, blowing out the candles, and hoping for love? Wishing that one special person who you are interested in will suddenly fall for you, is a tale as old as time. Only it hasn’t been put on screen very often for some reason. When we do get movies about magical wishes, it’s usually a wish for fame or money. Very often does it involve love, and even more rare is the occasion that it turns into horror snd possession. This movie has all of those. It is loaded with wild, crazy ideas. This one is not only good on a first watch, its s thinker movie worth analyzing and going back to, picking apart the clues. That easily makes it the best movie on this list.
They Will Kill You
This one is a wild ride. It’s part Ready or Not (one night, one location, everybody trying to kill you, hunting you down,) and part The Evil Dead 2 (supernatural, bodies coming back to life.) Zazzie Beats plays the protagonist and has a lot of fun with the role. It’s over-the-top and campy in all the right ways. The loud, fast-paced music, combined with crazy action, creative camera movements, and slow motion all work seamlessly together. It’s a blast.
Resident Evil
Another movie, like They Will Kill You, that is a whole lot of crazy, wild horror fun. We’re talking about body horror and extreme madness, and in this movie we are again with the protagonist the whole way. There’s basically no one else in this movie, save for a character here or there who pops in for a scene and then is gone. It’s very much like a video game in that way (and Resident Evil is of course based on a video game.) In the hands of director Zach Creggor, (Weapons,) this movie turns out way smarter than one might expect. It uses spatial awareness and logistics (especially in the first half,) to add to the fun, be it a chase around an upside down car or a loft escape out a window without a ladder.) The thrills are constant and the comedy elements also really work. A surprisingly good time.
The End of Oak Street
If those first three movies on the list were the great movies, then these next three are the pretty good ones. The End of Oak Street has a very intriguing premise, about a neighborhood being transported back to the time of dinosaurs. Which means the houses and cars are still there, but so are the dinos. The movie treats this story like an M Night Shamalan film, which happens to be a very smart move. It adds to the mystery element in the first half and the suspense element in the second. The only thing that doesn’t work for me is the ending, which wraps things up way too neatly without giving much thought to the consequences of its actions. Other than that, this one is pretty solid.
Send Help
A movie about survival more than horror, this one definitely turns scary in its second half. It’s unpredictable in the best of ways, making you sympathize with and sort of trust a character only to turn the tables on you. Definitely a cool movie and in the hands of director Sam Raimi, this one’s for style to boot. Definitely a good time.
Back Rooms
This one is tough. Unlike Obsession, which is easy to find a way into and relate to, this one is more weird than anything else. It’s probably more like the Cell meets Being John Malkovich than anything else, with there being a lot of unusual situations that don’t necessarily make sense or have an explanation. At times it’s scary, like when a character wearing a rope around his waste gets yanked down a hallway into an unknown area, and at other times it’s almost silly, like when a giant pirate monster chases a character around a store. At all times though, this one is very weird. Yes, there are ways to read up on this and find out more and dig deeper, but unlike Obsession, I’m not sure of doing those things is worth the effort. So why is it on this list, if the movie is so flawed? For one thing, like Send Help, the direction it takes the protagonist in is so unexpected and unpredictable, that for that alone, it’s worthwhile. For another, the whole Back Rooms experience and situation is pretty cool, whether it is fully comprehended or not.
And there you have it. The best horror movies of 2026. There have been plenty of stinkers in this department this year, including Scream 7, Ready or Not 2, Disclosure Day, and Verity. But there were also six solid entries, including three exceptional ones, and that alone is quite an accomplishment.