Looking Forward To in 2026: Episode 209

We’ve got 2025 in the rear view window, and Hollywood has determined to not just relegate horror movies into the fall/Halloween schedule. Springtime apparently is a good time to have a big fear injection. So, we had to get the word out on movies you can anticipate coming to a theater near you!

Admittedly, we’re out a little late this year. But, I would suggest we are just in time! Surprisingly, there are a lot of horror movies that are being released in late March. It also happens to be the eve of when many of the big genre film festivals get rolling. Sundance has just completed. SXSW is right on us now. Overlook is around the corner. So is Panic Fest. With these festivals, it sets the table for what you all can expect to come out this year. It becomes a bit of a guessing game for those of us who attend these festivals to predict what films are going to be on the schedule.

Horror has proven to be profitable in what used to be a dead period for box office. Already, both Iron Lung ($50 million on a $3 million budget) and Send Help ($92 Million) opened up strong in January, traditionally the dumping ground for cast-off studio films. With the tremendous profitability and critical response to last year’s crop of films, we will see what will become this year’s banner carrier. My guess? Scream 7.

There isn’t a studio backed big prestige movie like Sinners or Weapons this year, but I could very easily see a Neve Campbell led Scream 7 into a $300 million earner, much like Final Destinations: Bloodline from last year. If Scream 7 lives up to its potential, it could fly past that number. I don’t think that the effect of last year’s horror boom will be felt until next year’s crop. The studios didn’t have enough time to understand the influence until the season largely wrapped in October, well after prduction had wrapped for most films getting released for 2026.

A Good Year for Indie Films?

The indie horror films are in abundance this year. SXSW has a huge roster of genre films. Overlook just announced their roster, and so has Panic Fest. Usually there is a lot of overlap, but not so much this year. That suggests a wide variety and a lot of options out there. An that’s not taking into account the large Summer and Fall festivals like Frightfest, Popcorn Frights, and Screamfest.

As usual, there will be films that we didn’t see coming because they come with zero fanfare, but end up surprising us with original storytelling or raw savagery. Better yet… both! We always summarize what we did from the previous year, and I think we actually did pretty well in our selections for 2025. You can check out last year’s predictions HERE. Will 2026 be as solid for Scariest Things selections? Listen in, and remember this come the end of the year!