It’s never too early to start preparing a must-see Halloween viewing list (or if you’re like me, you’ve been doing this all year), and we’re seeing quite a tempting lineup of upcoming horror movies for the fourth quarter associated with ’22. I figure there’s no better time than the present to start filling up your calendar – and in order to that end, we’re here to help in your quest for the newest and latest in spooky cinema.
Before I forge ahead, We should point out the release dates on some of these titles are still the little… well, squishy. I actually just wanted to make sure you knew that going in, because in this post-pandemic age, nothing seems certain anymore. A couple of drop-dates are still unknown, subject to change at a moment’s notice (it happens) plus might even get pushed to next year (which would suck, but it also happens). Of course, we’ve got our eyes laser-focused on the most recent horror news , so feel free to start penciling these movies into your schedule and we’ll keep you up in order to date.
This list is pretty eclectic as well, so there should be something for just about every scary fan out there, from reboots and long-awaited sequels inside legendary genre franchises to a few twisted new concepts that are already generating advance buzz on socials. In some cases, the trailers alone are giving folks cold-sweaty nightmares.
With that will said, let’s take a closer look at a new crop associated with upcoming horror movies on the near horizon, all of which have been growing fan anticipation, curiosity, and more than a few skin-crawling chills. Let’s go!
Barbarian (September 9, In Theaters)
Bill Skarsgård’s unforgettable incarnation (or reincarnation , really) of Pennywise the Dancing Clown in Stephen King’s IT is probably still shuffling somewhere in the particular shadows associated with our darkest dreams. But at first glance, it would appear his role in Barbarian is a human being… or in least he appears to be so far. But we still don’t know who or what is the real threat in this scenario.
Barbarian takes place at an Airbnb, which a woman named Tess (Georgina Campbell) has booked for an overnight stay ahead of an important job interview. When she arrives late at night, the young man named Keith (Skarsgård) answers the door, and she discovers the place has been double-booked. The pair agree in order to share the rental with regard to the night… but when Tess hears noises beneath the house, she finds out a long, dark tunnel leading deep beneath the basement. We’re itching to know that (or what) she finds down there, plus how Keith is involved. Thankfully, all of us won’t have to wait too long…
Dark Harvest (September 9, In Theaters)
This particular one’s already been quietly creeping up upon us over the past 15 years . It was 1st announced within 2007, just one year after the source novel was published, and now I’m hoping it fulfills its potential to become another Fall favorite – not only due to the fact 30 Days of Night director David Slade will be at the particular helm, but the premise suggests an eerily comforting (but still terrifying) fusion of Stranger Things , IT , and Ray Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes .
Based on the award-winning bestseller by Norman Partridge, Harvest revolves around a cursed town whose residents are usually stalked every Autumn by an all-too-real boogeyman. The killer is known by many names, but most folks call him “Sawtooth Jack. ” A group of courageous kids have been performing a yearly ritual called “The Run” to keep the particular supernatural killer at bay. But in order to fully break the curse that maintains a death-grip on their community, they must confront Jack face-to-face.
Pearl (September 16, Within Theaters)
Ti West’s grindhouse-style slasher X quickly raced to the top associated with many scary fans’ Best of 2022 lists, and it’s presently my Numero Uno. For good reason, as well: for the money, it is one of the best slasher movies of the past decade – a decade which usually has already been overflowing with that self-aware ‘80s lo-fi touch. But X stands out regarding West’s slow-and-steady building associated with suspense, likeable characters (mostly), gallons of blood plus the most unsettling horror villain I’ve seen inside a long time. The particular eighty-something Pearl is played expertly – beneath full-body old-age makeup effects – by Mia Goth, who else throws herself into the role with raw passion, as well because playing the completely separate character.
The surprise bumper at the end of that film revealed that will West had secretly shot an entire feature-length prequel at the same time – again starring Goth as Pearl, only this time in her freckle-faced youth. We may finally get in order to see what was only hinted in the particular first movie – Pearl’s strange obsession with sex, her equally skewed view from the world, and her eventual descent into madness. It looks absolutely insane, and therefore well worth checking out. If it’s even half as great as By , it’ll be worth the price of admission.
Goodnight Mommy (September 16, Amazon Prime)
I was a bit apprehensive about this English-language remake from first, since I’m a major fan of the original 2014 film simply by Austrian duo Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala, which also created the similarly disturbing follow-up The Lodge . But I’m willing to give this particular one a shot – and not just because I am curious about how the brand new version will handle the original twist ending (which shouldn’t happen to be much associated with a surprise for seasoned horror fans). I’m also a fan from the brilliantly twisted miniseries Brand New Cherry Flavor , and its co-showrunner Matt Sobel (who also directed two episodes of that show) offers a Lynchian flair for the bizarre that could be ideally suited to this new take on this paranoid tale of psychological scary.
If you missed the original, I’m not sure if it would benefit you to see that will one first, because I don’t know whether the particular plot associated with the remake is a direct copy, or requires the story within new directions. The premise is the same: the woman returns home to recover from extensive cosmetic surgery, but the girl unusual behavior leads her two sons to believe it is someone else under those bandages. I can’t imagine Sobel strays too far from that scenario, or from the climactic reveal and grim, disturbing ending. Still, if you have Amazon Prime, it should be worth a look which is why this makes our upcoming horror movies listing.
Jeepers Creepers: Reborn (September 19, In Theaters)
There’s still a stigma attached to “The Creeper” franchise, thanks to some very bad conduct by director Victor Salva that you’ve probably heard about (I won’t get into that right here; just Google it). Yet Salva is usually nowhere to be found behind the latest installment of the film series beyond the initial creation from the Creeper character, who is definitely one of horror’s more unique and chilling monsters. This time, it’s Iron Sky director Timo Vuorensola at the helm, therefore at least you can see the particular movie with a clear conscience (at minimum that’s how I’m dealing with it), and given the over-the-top premise of both Iron Atmosphere films, it should be weird since hell.
The trailer suggests the most recent life cycle of The Creeper , who again has been lying dormant intended for 23 many years before emerging to seek brand new victims. He’s also apparently traded in his old “BEATINGU” truck (one of the scariest vehicles in scary history), although the replacement model looks like it’s also been buried for 23 years. The particular Creeper’s new reign of terror begins when this individual resurfaces in order to stalk horror fans at a Halloween festival in Louisiana. We’ve known this one has been in the particular pipe to get the previous year, yet after lengthy delays it is finally headed for that big screen.
The Munsters (September 27, On Demand)
You can always count about rocker-turned-director Rob Zombie to polarize scary fans more than nearly every project he’s even glanced with (with the exception associated with The Devil’s Rejects , which I consider a near-masterpiece), and this feature-length return to the storyplot and characters from the particular groundbreaking ’60s monster sitcom is no exception. Personally, I’ve always thought the original collection would have been pretty amazing having a groovy ’60s color scheme, but given that it also taps into Universal Classic Monsters nostalgia, black & white works well as well. But through what I have seen plus heard, it’s not the particular wild, cartoony colors that have fans’ undies in the bunch.
Take advantage of Z has been name-checking Munsters imagery and themes since their early days in White Zombie, and of program his mega-hit solo single “Dragula” takes its title directly from Grandpa’s souped-up coffin dragster, so I am actually surprised it took him this particular long in order to get close to adapting it. Maybe Universal is still a bit gun-shy after House of 1000 Corpses , plus balked on the idea of a sleazy, gory, profanity-laced update to one of their own most beloved family series… but it turns out Rob’s taking a detour into PG territory for this one, which is promising in itself. It doesn’t hurt that we get some cool cameos – including Cassandra Peterson (not playing Elvira this time), genre legend Dee Wallace, and original cast members Butch Patrick & Pat Priest.
My Best Friend’s Exorcism (September 30, Amazon Prime)
Grady Hendrix, one of the brightest rising stars in horror fiction, first obtained my attention with his comprehensive, nostalgic and eye-popping art book Paperbacks through Hell (which spawned the growing line of reprints and originals with the same lurid ‘70s-’80s flair). At the same time, Hendrix has been breaking through in the fictional world with his 2016 novel My Best Friend’s Exorcism – a smart, affectionate plus surprisingly terrifying tribute not really only to The Exorcist but in order to horror’s VHS era. The particular book provides amassed a huge and enthusiastic fanbase considering that its publication (hit up YouTube for some very passionate reviews), so expectations are pretty high for this one.
Exorcism stars Elsie Fisher ( Netflix’s Texas Chainsaw Massacre ) as a high school sophomore who’s not only troubled by her own adolescent problems, but more than a little bit concerned about the girl BFF’s bizarre changes within behavior – which seem to go beyond teen angst and rebellion and in to the realm associated with demonic possession. If this particular adaptation – premiering in Amazon Primary – manages to capture the same dead-on satire and over-the-top horror as the novel, it has the particular potential to be a great kickoff to the Halloween movie season. Along with the particular new series Paper Girls , it might be enough to stave off hunger pangs for your fifth season of Stranger Things .
Smile (September 30, inside Theaters)
Unless you’ve been on a sabbatical from virtually all media (if therefore, welcome back to our own world), the trailer with this ultra-creepy supernatural mystery ends with one of the most unexpected plus gasp-inducing jump scares in recent memory. I won’t spoil that moment for you if a person haven’t seen the truck yet, but I’m including it here because…damn. The trailer usually ran before Nope inside theaters, and since I’d seen this online previously, I made a point of watching the particular audience’s reaction: an incredibly loud collective gasp, followed by the burst associated with nervous laughter. That alone is a pretty good indication that Smile would be best experienced around the big screen in a packed theater.
The movie trailer has a lot more nightmare nuggets scattered throughout , which includes some blink-and-you’ll-miss-it reveals plus strange, almost-subliminal whispers upon the soundtrack, hinting that will there’s a bizarre mystery to solve, and very little time to solve it. Combining elements of It Follows and The particular Ring , the story finds Dr . Rose Cotter (Sosie Bacon) pursued by the deadly curse somehow linked to her own past. The curse manifests itself because a grotesque smile within the faces of its victims – beginning along with among Cotter’s patients, who also almost immediately kills their self. It’s then a race against period as Cotter tries in order to unravel the mystery prior to she suffers exactly the same fate.
Hellraiser (October 7, Hulu)
This particular reboot associated with Clive Barker’s 1987 scary classic has been kicking around Hollywood for so many years in one form or another, I’d pretty much written it off completely… until the particular announcement came that style genius Jesse Bruckner ( Southbound, the Night House, The Ritual ) would be taking the helm, which got me interested again. Since I heard the storyplot would likely adhere more closely to Barker’s source novella The particular Hellbound Heart , exploring the sexual ambiguity of the interdimensional S& M entities known as Cenobites, all the way down in order to casting trans actress Jamie Clayton ( Sense8 ) within the part from the villain we’ve almost all come to understand, love and fear since Pinhead (although there’s no such personality in the book), I remain intrigued.
I’m not anti-remake as a rule, plus I can usually tell an intriguing new spin on the source material from a senseless cash-in – and let us face this, Dimension Films continues to be squeezing the last few pennies out of the franchise for years just to retain rights to the story and characters. I am also a bit disappointed Barker himself has been sidelined as far as the particular screenplay can be concerned, though David S. Goyer ( The Dark Knight ) comes with some heavy genre cred, and I’m a big lover of Bruckner’s output. That said, I don’t exactly have got high hopes for this 1 – especially since it is skipping cinemas and going straight to Hulu – yet I’m willing to give it a shot.
Halloween Ends (October 14, In Theaters & on Peacock)
After the meh performance of Halloween night Kills – the rather disappointing follow-up towards the incredibly scary 2018 business reboot through Blumhouse – I’ve said a little prayer to the film gods (namely John Carpenter, who serves again as Executive Producer and supplies the chilling score) that the particular third film’s script offers a much tighter focus, with fewer pesky diversions and occasionally cringey dialogue (“Evil Dies Tonight! ”), and lots more Jamie Lee Curtis (who’s also an EP for the trilogy).
I’m going to venture a guess this chapter’s name not just signals the ultimate destruction of nearly-unstoppable franchise boogeyman Michael Myers, but possibly provides the fittingly heroic end pertaining to Curtis’s legendary final-girl-turned-badass, Laurie Strode. I am totally cool with that, because long since Laurie is more closely involved in Michael’s destiny – since that’s where Halloween Kills kinda dropped the ball in favor of clunky fan-service. Carpenter themselves has gone on record in order to say this particular final chapter is unlike any Halloween party film you have ever observed (and he’s seen a few stinkers in his time), and I hope that means director Brian Gordon Green and writing collaborator Danny McBride manage to send off the series using a bang.
Piggy (October fourteen, In Theaters)
I initial saw Carlota Pereda’s amazing short Cerdita when it was released about YouTube horror channel ALTER a couple of yrs ago , and it left me more than a little shook. Far more complex than just a morality play in relation to body-shaming, it creates a good uncomfortably real nightmare situation that each bullied kid has faced in some form yet another. If you’ve ever been on the particular receiving finish of teenage sadism, it’s not hard to imagine how a victim might take advantage associated with a lethal coincidence to exact sweet revenge.
It is a story nicely worth expanding, and that’s exactly what Pereda offers done along with Piggy, in whose protagonist Sara is fat-shamed by the vacant teen girls the girl reluctantly tries to hang with – mainly in an attempt to maintain the tenuous friendship with her childhood pal Claudia. Points take a dark turn when Claudia gives in to peer pressure plus joins the others in tormenting Sara… until an still darker circumstance presents the girl with a moral conundrum: the serial fantastic kidnaps just about all of her tormentors, and deliberately leaves her behind. She can easily identify the particular kidnapper… but does the lady really want to? The particular short indicates the abductor somehow understood Sara’s pain and rage, and he or she gives the girl a knowing look implying “this will certainly be the little secret. ” This left me personally with some uncomfortable questions… all of which We hope are usually answered within the feature-length version.
V/H/S/99 (October 20 upon Shudder)
I can already hear the groans of “crap, not a lot more found footage, ” plus you’re even more than entitled to your stance on that time-worn format. Me, I like to think the POV, first-person, screen-life or mockumentary approach to horror is more of a stylistic choice than a subgenre of scary by itself, and there have been several skin-crawling masterpieces in that style over the years. I’m not saying all the V/H/S anthologies rank high among them – the individual chapters are more situations than stories, with payoffs that are usually often hit-and-miss.
Since Shudder picked up the particular franchise ball last year with V/H/S/94 , there is been the spike within the popularity of “analog horror” along with web collection like The Backrooms , which may lead to a mini-revival meant for the file format. I actually enjoyed ‘ 94 quite a bit – it’s the step up in quality from the lackluster VHS: Viral , though not really as balls-to-the-wall insane while V/H/S/2 . Here’s wishing this installment throws a few new twists into the particular formula.
The Lair (October 28, Inside Theaters)
The particular main reason I’m looking forward in order to this gritty action-horror piece is the presence of movie director Neill Marshall – whom not only produced one of the best (in my opinion) horror films of the past quarter-century with 2006’s The Descent , but also channeled new mojo to the werewolf subgenre along with his debut film Dog Soldiers .
The Lair appears to blend elements of each, with its tale of an RAF pilot whose plane is certainly downed inside Afghanistan, forcing her to find refuge inside a seemingly abandoned underground bunker. Of training course, it’s not abandoned at all – the complex contains the still-living results of gruesome experiments in order to create super-soldiers by splicing human DNA with an unknown species – a single of possible extraterrestrial origin. After a bit of a rough spot with their witch-hunt period piece The particular Reckoning a couple associated with years ago, it looks like Marshall is returning once again to classic form.
Prey for the Devil (October 28, In Theaters)
You’ve probably heard about the particular recent revival of The Exorcist operation , which seems to be hitching its future to the current wave of demonic-possession cinema that includes some strong entries like Veronica or Godforsaken , plus unfortunately more than the few clunkers like Neill Blomkamp’s unsatisfactory Demonic . It’s difficult to say which usually side from the fence Victim for the Devil may fall, yet if the particular trailer will be any indicator, there may be a decent story and strong central character to suspend the film’s many shocks and shudders on. We’re not ultra optimistic, but hey – it’s still cool looking enough in order to make our upcoming horror movies checklist.
What might set Prey apart from the legions (see what I did there? ) associated with Exorcist wannabes is protagonist Sister Ann (Jacqueline Byers), a young nun who have believes she has already been called by God to combat the rising tide of demonic possession. This evil uprising has become so overwhelming that the Vatican has secretly reinstated special schools worldwide to train priests in the rites of exorcism, but historically only men have been trained in order to perform the ritual. When Sister Ann’s skills are revealed, the girl may be the only hope against a powerful and malicious entity with a mysterious connection to her past.
Run Sweetheart Run (October 28, Amazon Prime)
Filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic, writer-director Shana Feste’s thriller about a blind date gone badly, terribly, horrifyingly wrong languished for two years just before finally being acquired designed for distribution – and it is about damn time, too. Star Ella Balinska provides grabbed the particular attention of horror fans with the girl role in Netflix’s now-cancelled Resident Evil series , and this project could further solidify her cred as a horror heroine. Feste is the creator of spicy web drama Dirty Diana , which was toplined by the likes associated with Demi Moore, Mackenzie Davis, Lili Taylor and Rosa Salazar (to name simply a few), and I am thinking that will could have been the particular ideal launchpad for this particular feature directorial debut.
Sweetheart stars Balinska as Cherie, who nervously accepts a good arranged blind date with the handsome Ethan (Pilou Asbæk), exactly who gives a charming very first impression, which (naturally, since this is a horror film) is merely the mask just for his evil nature. It seems Ethan gets a thrill out of hunting women within a Most Dangerous Game scenario, along with Cherie following in line for his nocturnal pursuits. Once their monstrous core is revealed, Cherie spends virtually the entire film on the particular run; in case she handles to evade Ethan for the entire night, he promises to leave her alone… yet really, might you trust this guy to hold upward his end of the bargain? Feste uses the tropes from the against-the-clock thriller in order to dissect a lot more than just toxic masculinity; it’s a horror tale about paranoia, over-sexualized social “norms, ” and relationships in general.
Bones and All (November 23, Within Theaters)
It’s pretty obvious the studio is packaging this cannibalism-themed romance like art-house or even “elevated” scary (I hate that term BTW), as the promos depict this as more of a road movie with emphasis on the love story between 2 good-looking young people (Timothee Chalamet & Taylor Russell), basically dodging the whole “by the particular way, these types of kids eat people” aspect of the plot. Maybe that is a deliberate misdirection, but I doubt it, because the basic synopsis is already known to horror fans – thus simply no shocking OMG reveal. But I can not say that for the purpose of sure, and the teaser doesn’t really help fill inside some of the blanks.
Probably the full-length trailer can let more of the horror components come gushing out… either way, it looks want a stylish plus ominous tale, with good performances at the heart of it. In case the script is smart and original, Bones can be an additional Best associated with ’22 contender.
There are a lot more titles coming, so become sure to keep watch for brand new and upcoming horror films and launch dates, mainly because we’re simply getting started!