Andrew Chiaramonte’s Young & Cursed confronts primordial evil, a hair raising chiller, launching October 2025 across major platforms

A haunting spectral terror film from scriptwriter / creative lead Andrew Chiaramonte, unbinding an prehistoric force when unrelated individuals become vehicles in a hellish ceremony. Releasing on October 2, 2025, on Amazon Prime, video-sharing site YouTube, Google’s digital store, Apple’s iTunes, Apple TV+, and Fandango on-demand.

Hollywood, CA (August 8th, 2025) – be warned for *Young & Cursed*, a gripping depiction of endurance and forgotten curse that will resculpt terror storytelling this harvest season. Crafted by rising master of suspense Andrew Chiaramonte, this harrowing and shadowy feature follows five people who awaken stuck in a wilderness-bound lodge under the malignant command of Kyra, a troubled woman consumed by a timeless biblical demon. Get ready to be captivated by a screen-based display that unites soul-chilling terror with arcane tradition, premiering on Amazon’s streaming platform, YouTube, Google Play, iTunes, Apple TV+, and Fandango at Home on October 2, 2025.


Hellish influence has been a long-standing pillar in horror films. In *Young & Cursed*, that pattern is turned on its head when the spirits no longer appear from an outside force, but rather from their core. This portrays the haunting dimension of the cast. The result is a bone-chilling psychological battle where the conflict becomes a brutal battle between innocence and sin.


In a barren terrain, five young people find themselves confined under the fiendish aura and spiritual invasion of a unknown female figure. As the companions becomes helpless to withstand her rule, exiled and hunted by creatures beyond comprehension, they are cornered to reckon with their core terrors while the seconds coldly runs out toward their fate.


In *Young & Cursed*, unease grows and partnerships collapse, prompting each survivor to reconsider their core and the idea of decision-making itself. The cost amplify with every second, delivering a frightening tale that marries occult fear with deep insecurity.

Andrew Chiaramonte, Director: “With *Young & Cursed*, my aim was to evoke ancestral fear, an darkness from prehistory, channeling itself through psychological breaks, and navigating a being that peels away humanity when choice is taken.”

Madison Hubler (Kyra): “Transforming into Kyra meant channeling something past sanity. She is uninformed until the spirit seizes her, and that flip is terrifying because it is so emotional.”

Debut Info

*Young & Cursed* will be accessible for streaming beginning this October 2, on Amazon Prime, Google’s video hub, Google Play, iTunes, Apple TV+, and Fandango at Home—making sure users internationally can dive into this spirit-driven thriller.


Chiaramonte Films, Inc. has just rolled out a new follow-up preview for *Young & Cursed*, online to watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/zu0n4WmPI1s, as a follow up to its original promo, which has collected over 100K plays.


In addition to its North American premiere, Chiaramonte Films, Inc. has informed that *Young & Cursed* will also be shared across borders, extending the thrill to a global viewership.


Witness this mind-warping descent into hell. Tune into *Young & Cursed* this day of reckoning to uncover these evil-rooted truths about our species.


For exclusive trailers, extra content, and announcements straight from the filmmakers, follow @YoungAndCursedFilm across fan hubs and visit the movie’s homepage.





Contemporary horror’s tipping point: the 2025 season U.S. calendar melds biblical-possession ideas, independent shockers, set against tentpole growls

Ranging from endurance-driven terror steeped in mythic scripture and extending to series comebacks paired with acutely observed indies, 2025 looks like horror’s most layered along with intentionally scheduled year since the mid-2010s.

It is loaded, and also intentionally sequenced. studio majors lay down anchors by way of signature titles, concurrently subscription platforms saturate the fall with unboxed visions set against old-world menace. In parallel, horror’s indie wing is buoyed by the kinetic energy of a peak 2024 circuit. With Halloween holding the peak, the surrounding weeks are charted with intent. That late Q3 to mid Q4 lane is the crucible, and now, horror is also claiming January, spring, and even mid-summer. Horror fans are craving, studios are disciplined, which means 2025 could be the most carefully plotted year to date.

Major and Mini-Major Maneuvers: Elevated fear reclaims ground

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

Universal’s distribution arm begins the calendar with a marquee bet: a refashioned Wolf Man, stepping away from the classic old-country village, but a sharp contemporary setting. Guided by Leigh Whannell with Christopher Abbott opposite Julia Garner, this cut welds lycanthropy to home turmoil. The change is not purely bodily, it is marital, parental, and achingly human. timed for mid January, it is part of the new strategy to own the box office’s winter dead zone with prestige horror instead of dumping ground thrillers.

Spring delivers Clown in a Cornfield, a YA slasher adaptation turned minimalist horror show. From director Eli Craig starring Katie Douglas opposite Kevin Durand, it functions as blood smeared American gothic with snark. Under the costume, it needles small town fear, cross generational rifts, and crowd punishment. Advance murmurs say it draws blood.

By late summer, Warner’s schedule rolls out the capstone from its dependable horror line: The Conjuring: Last Rites. The Warrens return, played by Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson, the chapter points to emotional capstone while addressing a headline case. Granted the structure is classic, Chaves is guiding toward a solemn, meditative finish. It is also positioned early in September, giving it breathing room before the October onslaught.

Next is The Black Phone 2. It was eyed for early summer, and shifting to October telegraphs confidence. Derrickson resumes command, and the core ingredients of the sleeper original are back: old school creep, trauma as narrative engine, along with eerie supernatural rules. The bar is raised this go, through a fuller probe of the “grabber” lore and inherited grief.

Finishing the tentpole list is Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, a picture that draws on name power. The new chapter enriches the lore, thickens the animatronic pantheon, speaking to teens and older millennials. It books December, pinning the winter close.

SVOD Originals: Tight funds, wide impact

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

A flagship risky title is Weapons, a cold-case linked horror tapestry threading three timelines via a mass disappearance. Under Zach Cregger pairing Josh Brolin and Julia Garner, the work combines fright with dramatic torque. Premiering theatrically in late summer before a fall streaming drop, 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 fronted by Alison Brie and Dave Franco. Taking place in an isolated rental as a retreat goes wrong, the film explores what happens when love, envy, and self hatred merge into physical decay. It feels intimate, ghastly, and profoundly uneasy, a three part fall into codependent hell. Despite no official platform date, it is destined for a fall landing.

Also notable is Sinners, a thirties set vampire folk saga headlined by Michael B. Jordan. Rendered in sepia depth and layered biblical metaphor, it recalls There Will Be Blood spliced to Let the Right One In. The work dissects American religious trauma using supernatural allegory. Pre release tests anoint it a conversation starter on streaming.

A handful of other streaming indies hover in the wings: Bring Her Back, Bone Lake, and Keeper each engages grief, missing persons, and identity, with metaphor before show.

Possession Beneath the Skin: Young & Cursed

Bowing October 2 on major streamers, Young & Cursed stands as a rare hybrid, both intimate in scope and mythic in reach. Conceived and directed by 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 the night settles, her power spikes, an infiltrating force leveraging fears, breaks, and sorrow.

The dread here runs psychological, charged by primal myth. Resisting the exorcism template of Catholic ceremony and Latin chant, this piece touches something older, something darker. Lilith comes not via liturgy, but from trauma, quiet, and human brittleness. By making possession inward rather than external, Young & Cursed joins a trend toward intimate character studies masked as genre.

Platforms such as Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, YouTube, Google Play, and Fandango at Home position the film as a Halloween counter to sequel heavy theatricals and monster revivals. It is an astute call. No overweight mythology. No brand fatigue. 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.

Festival Heat to Market Leverage

Fantastic Fest, SXSW, Tribeca, and TIFF remain breeding grounds for what horror looks like six to twelve months later. And in 2025, they are acting more like launchpads than showcases.

Fantastic Fest this cycle touts a strong horror menu. Primate bows as a tropical body horror opener with Cronenberg and Herzog echoes. Whistle, an Aztec lore revenge tale, aims to close with burn.

The midnight bench, including If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, hums from execution, not mere titling. The A24 fueled satire of toxic fandom in a con lockdown has breakout energy.

SXSW premiered Clown in a Cornfield and surfaced several microbudget hauntings that circle deals. Sundance is expected to unspool a familiar crop of grief steeped elevated horror, as Tribeca’s genre wing angles urban, social, and surreal.

Fest circuits are brand engines as much as discovery engines. Badges kick off the sell, they do not merely decorate.

Heritage Horror: Sequels, Reboots, Reinventions

The franchise bench is sturdier and more targeted than lately.

Fear Street: Prom Queen, landing in July, re ups the 90s brand with a fresh lead and retro tone. In contrast to earlier chapters, it skews camp and prom night melodrama. Cue tiaras, phony blood, and VHS panic.

M3GAN 2.0 opens late June, with a plan to deepen its techno horror mythos via new characters and AI terrors. The opening film’s buzz and platform staying power help Universal go bigger.

Another headline is The Long Walk, adapting a grim early Stephen King piece, helmed by Francis Lawrence, it functions as a harsh dystopian fable encased in survival horror, a children’s march that ends in death. 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

Myth turns mainstream
From Lilith in Young & Cursed to Aztec curses in Whistle, creators turn to ancient texts and symbols. Rather than nostalgia, it reclaims pre Christian archetypes. Horror goes beyond fright, it notes evil’s age.

Body horror resurges
With Together, Weapons, and Keeper, the genre goes back to the flesh. Mutation, infection, transformation serve as metaphors for heartbreak, grief, and regret.

SVOD originals harden up
Throwaway platform horror is on the way out. Streamers back real writing, real filmmakers, and genuine marketing. Films like Weapons and Sinners are treated as events, not content.

Festival momentum becomes leverage
Festival seals operate as leverage for distribution lanes and press windows. In 2025, a horror film lacking festival plan may fade.

The big screen is a trust exercise
Studios are only releasing horror theatrically if they believe it will overperform or spin into sequels. Other titles pivot PVOD or hybrid. Horror is not shrinking in theaters, but it is becoming more curated.

The Road Ahead: Autumn overload with a winter wildcard

Young & Cursed plus The Conjuring: Last Rites plus The Black Phone 2 plus Weapons, all in September and October, makes for a saturated fall. Indies including Bone Lake and Keeper will wrestle for room. Watch for one or more of these to pivot into early 2026 or shift platforms.

December centers on Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, but a final weeks surprise stream could still hit. As mythic runs hot, a closing creature or exorcism could still arrive.

Horror’s 2025 outcome will be decided not by one title, but by how its variety connects with splintered audiences. The assignment is not to chase the next Get Out, it is to build horror that endures beyond box office.



The upcoming terror cycle: returning titles, Originals, And A hectic Calendar optimized for nightmares

Dek: The new horror season clusters right away with a January cluster, thereafter rolls through summer, and straight through the holiday stretch, fusing name recognition, untold stories, and smart counterweight. Distributors with platforms are doubling down on responsible budgets, exclusive theatrical windows first, and social-fueled campaigns that transform these pictures into broad-appeal conversations.

Horror’s position as 2026 begins

The horror marketplace has become the steady play in studio calendars, a vertical that can scale when it connects and still limit the drawdown when it doesn’t. After the 2023 year reconfirmed for strategy teams that lean-budget shockers can drive the discourse, 2024 continued the surge with director-led heat and word-of-mouth wins. The momentum rolled into 2025, where revivals and arthouse crossovers proved there is a market for diverse approaches, from series extensions to one-and-done originals that resonate abroad. The result for the 2026 slate is a slate that reads highly synchronized across the major shops, with strategic blocks, a harmony of brand names and new concepts, and a reinvigorated attention on box-office windows that fuel later windows on premium home window and home streaming.

Executives say the space now performs as a fill-in ace on the calendar. Horror can bow on virtually any date, create a grabby hook for spots and UGC-friendly snippets, and outstrip with patrons that show up on Thursday previews and sustain through the sophomore frame if the release delivers. In the wake of a strike-impacted pipeline, the 2026 setup exhibits faith in that dynamic. The year opens with a weighty January window, then exploits spring through early summer for contrast, while saving space for a fall cadence that connects to late October and afterwards. The grid also highlights the continuing integration of specialized labels and platforms that can nurture a platform play, stoke social talk, and grow at the optimal moment.

A further high-level trend is legacy care across unified worlds and classic IP. The players are not just rolling another return. They are moving to present ongoing narrative with a premium feel, whether that is a title treatment that indicates a tonal shift or a talent selection that anchors a new installment to a classic era. At the parallel to that, the creative teams behind the headline-grabbing originals are celebrating physical effects work, practical effects and grounded locations. That combination affords 2026 a vital pairing of trust and unexpected turns, which is the formula for international play.

The studios and mini-majors, and how they are playing the year

Paramount defines the early cadence with two big-ticket bets that live at opposite ends of the tone spectrum. First comes Scream 7 on February 27, 2026, with original architect Kevin Williamson in the director position and Neve Campbell back at the front, marketing it as both a succession moment and a origin-leaning character-centered film. Principal photography is underway in Atlanta, and the authorial approach hints at a legacy-leaning angle without going over the last two entries’ sisters thread. Look for a marketing run leaning on signature symbols, initial cast looks, and a staggered trailer plan landing toward late fall. Distribution is Paramount in theaters.

Paramount also reboots a once-mighty spoof franchise with Scary Movie 6 on June 12, 2026, directed by Michael Tiddes. Anna Faris and Regina Hall are joining up again, with the Wayans brothers involved in development for the first time since the early 2000s, a headline the campaign will emphasize. As a summer counterprogrammer, this one will drive mainstream recognition through meme-friendly cuts, with the horror spoof format lending itself to quick redirects to whatever owns the discourse that spring.

Universal has three distinct pushes. SOULM8TE opens January 9, 2026, a universe branch from the M3GAN universe from Atomic Monster and Blumhouse. The conceit is efficient, loss-driven, and logline-clear: a grieving man brings home an machine companion that becomes a perilous partner. The date slots it at the front of a crowded corridor, with marketing at Universal likely to reprise odd public stunts and quick hits that blurs companionship and anxiety.

On May 8, 2026, the studio positions an untitled Rob Savage horror film, widely considered the feature developed under internal titles in the family-in-peril vein, with Jessica Chastain top-lining. The listed schedule currently lists it as an untitled Savage project, which preserves a final title to become an teaser payoff closer to the early tease. The timing stakes a claim 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 made his own before. His entries are presented as filmmaker events, with a teaser that holds back and a follow-up trailer set that shape mood without giving away the concept. The holiday-adjacent corridor affords Universal to command pre-holiday auditoriums with PLF and IMAX bookings where available, then activate the copyright window to capture late-October interest at home.

Warner Bros., via New Line, collaborates with Sony internationally for Evil Dead Burn, dated July 24, 2026. Sébastien Vaniček commands, with Souheila Yacoub at the center. The franchise has consistently shown that a raw, practical-first mix can feel deluxe on a controlled budget. Expect a grime-caked summer horror shot that centers international play, with Warner Bros. handling U.S. and Sony taking most offshore territories.

Sony’s horror bench is robust. The studio rolls out two brand-forward plays in the back half. An untitled Insidious film rolls out August 21, 2026, extending a steady supernatural brand alive while the spin-off branch advances. The studio has recalibrated on this title before, but the current plan sets it in late summer, where the brand has performed historically.

Then, on September 18, 2026, Resident Evil re-enters in what the studio is selling as a ground-zero restart 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 directive to serve both diehards and novices. The fall slot creates runway for Sony to build assets around universe detail, and creature builds, elements that can amplify premium booking interest and fan-culture participation.

Focus Features, working with Working Title, anchors a prestige bet on Christmas Day with Robert Eggers’ Werwulf on December 25, 2026. Set in 13th-century England, the film builds on the filmmaker’s run of period horror shaped by historical precision and period language, this time driven by werewolf stories. The distributor has already booked the frame for a holiday release, a vote of confidence in the auteur as a specialty play that can platform and widen if early reception is robust.

SVOD and PVOD rhythms

Platform windowing in 2026 run on stable tracks. Universal titles transition to copyright after a theater window then PVOD, a structure that maximizes both FOMO and sub growth in the late-window. Prime Video stitches together licensed content with worldwide buys and small theatrical windows when the data supports it. Max and Hulu lean on their strengths in library pulls, using editorial spots, fright rows, and collection rows to prolong the run on the horror cume. Netflix plays opportunist about internal projects and festival snaps, slotting horror entries on shorter runways and making event-like launches with fast-turn plans. Shudder, integrated with RLJE and Cineverse’s theatrical footprint, capitalizes on a dual-phase of targeted cinema placements and rapid platforming that monetizes buzz via trials. That will be meaningful for Return to Silent Hill, which Cineverse is releasing in theaters January 23, 2026, before leaning on horror-fan channels in the months that follow.

Apple TV+ continues to weigh horror on a case-by-case basis. The platform has demonstrated openness to invest in select projects with accomplished filmmakers or name-led packages, then give them a modest theatrical in partnership with exhibitors to meet awards-qualifying thresholds or to build credibility before the streaming drop. Hulu and Disney’s domestic pipeline still draws on the 20th Century Studios slate, a core piece for ongoing engagement when the genre conversation intensifies.

Indie corridors

Cineverse is engineering a 2026 lane with two label plays. Return to Silent Hill lands in January with Christophe Gans returning to his adaptation of Konami’s classic title. The offer is clear: the same haunting, fog-choked atmosphere that made the original a favorite of fans, retooled for modern mix and image. Later in the year, Wolf Creek: Legacy is expected in a autumn corridor, with Greg McLean back steering his outback slasher universe. The distributor has indicated a wide-to-platform plan for the title, an encouraging sign for fans of the gritty series and for exhibitors seeking adult skew in the late stretch.

Focus will cultivate the auteur lane with Werwulf, escorting the title through festivals in the fall if the cut is ready, then turning to the Christmas corridor to expand. That positioning has proved effective for director-led genre with wider appeal. A24, NEON, IFC Films, RLJE, and Magnet have not publicly set many dates in public calendars yet, but their festival pipelines tend to converge after Sundance, Berlin, and Cannes. A reasonable expectation is a run of late-summer and fall platformers that can go wider if reception warrants. Do not be surprised by an A24 acquisition out of Sundance midnight slots and a NEON title that launches at Cannes before a September or October domestic bow. RLJE and Shudder often work jointly, using boutique theatrical to spark the evangelism that fuels their subscriber growth.

Franchise entries versus originals

By skew, the 2026 slate leans in favor of the brand-heavy side. Scream 7, Insidious, Resident Evil, Evil Dead Burn, and Return to Silent Hill all capitalize on fan equity. The trade-off, as ever, is staleness. The standing approach is to pitch each entry as a recast vibe. Paramount is foregrounding relationship and legacy in Scream 7, Sony is positioning a clean restart for Resident Evil, and New Line’s Evil Dead Burn is leaning into a French sensibility from a emerging director. Those choices matter when the audience has so many options and social sentiment whipsaws.

Non-franchise titles and visionary-led titles add air. 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, anchors on Rachel McAdams in a crash-survival premise with signature mischievous dread. SOULM8TE offers a lean, creepy tech hook. Werwulf anchors in period detail and an rigorous tone. Even when the title is not based on a property, the packaging is assuring enough to spark pre-sales and advance-audience nights.

Recent-year comps outline the strategy. In 2023, a cinema-first model that kept clean windows did not foreclose a parallel release from paying off when the brand was strong. In 2024, art-forward horror surged in premium screens. In 2025, a reawakened chapter of a beloved infection saga showed the market that global horror franchises can still feel novel when they pivot perspective and stretch the story. 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 double feature plan, with chapters produced back-to-back, builds a path for marketing to tie installments through character arcs and themes and to leave creative active without hiatuses.

Behind-the-camera trends

The creative meetings behind the upcoming entries point to a continued move toward practical, location-rooted craft. Lee Cronin has said his The Mummy will not resemble any recent iteration of the property, a stance that complements the in-camera sensibility he brought to Evil Dead Rise. The film completed principal and is tracking to its April 17, 2026 date. Plan for a push that highlights unease and texture rather than bombast, with the New Line and Blumhouse partnership backing budget rigor.

Robert Eggers, meanwhile, has called 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 wintry, elemental feel on the big screen. Focus will likely tease this aesthetic in feature stories and craft spotlights before rolling out a tone piece that withholds plot, a move that has resonated for the filmmaker’s past releases.

On the franchise side, Evil Dead Burn is set up for goopy mayhem, a signature of the series that exports well in red-band trailers and sparks shareable audience clips from early screenings. Scream 7 targets a self-aware reset that re-centers the original lead. Resident Evil will hit or miss on monster aesthetics and world-building, which fit with fan-con activations and curated leaks. Insidious tends to be a theatrical sound showcase, with Dolby and Atmos spots that make the theatrical pitch feel compelling. Look for trailers that elevate pin-drop sound, deep-bass stingers, and held silences that sing on PLF.

Month-by-month map

January is stacked. 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 somber counterpoint amid big-brand pushes. The month winds down 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 range of tones affords lanes to each, and the five-week structure permits a clean run for each if word of mouth persists.

Q1 into Q2 set up the summer. Scream 7 lands February 27 with nostalgia energy. In April, New Line’s The Mummy reawakens a classic monster on April 17, a spring frame that once played to genre counterprogramming and now nurtures big openers. The untitled Rob Savage film on May 8 feeds summer while maintaining horror’s hold on early May weekends that are not claimed by superheroes or family tentpoles.

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

Late-season stretch leans franchise. The Insidious entry on August 21 gives the studio a spiritual-horror anchor where the brand has previously performed. Resident Evil follows September 18, a pre-October slot that still preps for Halloween marketing beats. Jordan Peele’s untitled film locks October 23 and will own cultural oxygen heading into Halloween weekend, likely paired with a shroud-first teaser rhythm and limited teasers that favor idea over plot.

Awards-adjacent specialty. Werwulf on December 25 is a marker that genre can win the holiday when packaged as awards-flirting horror. The distributor has done this before, selective rollout, then turning to critics’ lists and awards-season craft coverage to sustain conversation into January. If the film scores with critics, the studio can increase count in the first week of 2027 while carrying holiday turnout and gift card usage.

One-sentence dossiers

Scream 7 (Paramount, February 27, 2026)
Director: Kevin Williamson. Top cast: Neve Campbell, with casting still being revealed as production is underway. Logline: Sidney returns to re-engage a new Ghostface while the narrative resurfaces the original film’s essence. Rating: TBA. Production: Filming in Atlanta. Positioning: origin-forward with a contemporary twist.

SOULM8TE (Universal, January 9, 2026)
Producers: Atomic Monster, Blumhouse. Logline: A devastated man’s machine mate mutates into something murderously loving. Rating: TBA. Production: Filming finished for an early-year bow. Positioning: AI chiller with a human heart.

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 broadens the canvas beyond the immediate outbreak as a cult ascends in the ruins. Rating: TBA. Production: Twin-shot 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 goes back to a fog-shrouded town in search of a lost love, only to meet a mutable reality and the town’s horrors. Rating: TBA. Production: Complete with theatrical path. Positioning: gothic-game 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 tough boss fight to survive on a far-flung island as the power balance flips and paranoia builds. Rating: TBA. Production: Principal done. Positioning: star-front survival film 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 modern reconception that returns the monster to horror, shaped by Cronin’s hands-on craft and oozing dread. Rating: TBA. Production: Wrapped. 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 home-set haunting story that plays with the chill of a child’s inconsistent impressions. Rating: not yet rated. Production: locked. Positioning: studio-financed and name-above-title eerie suspense.

Scary Movie 6 (Paramount, June 12, 2026)
Director: Michael Tiddes. Top cast: Anna Faris, Regina Hall, with the Wayans brothers involved creatively again. Logline: {A genre lampoon that skewers present-day genre chatter and true-crime manias. Rating: to be announced. Production: fall 2025 shoot penciled in. 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 bursts, with an multinational twist in tone and setting. Rating: undetermined. Production: lensing in New Zealand. Positioning: hard-hitting R entry designed for premium formats.

Untitled Insidious Film (Sony, August 21, 2026)
Director: TBA publicly. Top cast: TBA. Logline: The Further extends again, with a new family anchored to ancient dread. Rating: awaiting classification. Production: eying a summer shoot for late-summer slot. Positioning: durable spectral IP in a late-summer sweet spot.

Resident Evil (Sony, September 18, 2026)
Director: TBD publicly. Top cast: pending. Logline: A from-scratch rebuild designed to recalibrate the franchise from the ground up, with an center of gravity in true survival horror over action fireworks. Rating: TBD. Production: dev phase with date secured. Positioning: game-faithful modern reboot with crossover potential.

Jordan Peele Untitled Event Film (Universal, October 23, 2026)
Director: Jordan Peele. Top cast: TBA. Logline: Kept under wraps by design. Rating: undetermined. Production: continuing. Positioning: director-fronted event with teaser rhythm.

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 historical diction and raw menace. Rating: to be announced. 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 theatrical-first route ahead of platforming. Status: timing fluid, autumn anticipated.

Why the 2026 timing works

Three operational forces define this lineup. First, production that stalled or shuffled in 2024 required schedule breathing room. Horror can fill those gaps quickly because scripts often are location-light, fewer large-scale digital sequences, and shorter timelines. Second, studios have become more rigorous about windows. Theatrical exclusivity remains the goal for most of these films, followed by PVOD and then platform streaming, a sequence that has consistently overdelivered vs. straight-to-streaming launches. Third, viral talk converts. The marketing teams behind these titles will lean on social-ready stingers from test screenings, precision scare clips aligned to Thursday preview shows, and experiential pop-ups that seed creator reels. It is a repeatable playbook because it pays off.

A fourth factor is programming math. Early 2026 is less crowded with family and superhero corridors, freeing space for genre entries that can lead a weekend or serve as the mature-skew alternative. January is the prime example. Four separate horror flavors will cluster across five weekends, which gives each title a lane and limits cannibalization. Summer provides the other window. The lampoon benefits from family and action buoyancy, then the hard-R entry can make hay in horror a late-July lull before back-to-school.

Business outlook: budgets, ratings, and the sleeper hunt

Budgets remain in the sweet spot. Most of the films above will live under the $40–$50 million ceiling, with many far below. That allows for aggressive PLF bookings 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 disciplined-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 surprise over-performer 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. Count on a vigorous PVOD arc overall, since horror fans have shown a willingness to pay for convenience after an opening weekend, especially when word of mouth is strong.

The moviegoer’s year in horror

From a moviegoer’s perspective, the 2026 horror year offers pattern and spread. January is a tasting table, February delivers a legacy slasher, April reintroduces a Universal monster, May and June provide a paranormal one-two 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 chilly, literate nightmare. That is how you keep chatter alive and occupancy strong without cannibalizing your own titles. The pattern also supports social campaigns that can sequence upward, using earlier releases to set up the audience for bigger plays in the fall.

Exhibitors are pleased with the spacing. Horror delivers frequent Thursday-night spikes, efficient screen counts, and strong PLF uptake when the creative supports it. The 2026 slate has at least three titles that can justify premium screens, with The Mummy, Evil Dead Burn, and Werwulf all showcasing grain, acoustics, and visual design 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 Robust 2026 On Deck

Dates shift. Ratings change. Casts adjust. But the spine of 2026 horror is intact. There is IP strength where it matters, distinct vision 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 closing-window arthouse pickup join the party. For now, the job is simple, craft precise trailers, keep secrets, and let the fear sell the seats.