Editorials
Six More Well Overdue Horror Sequels!
A little while back I wrote an article on the top six long overdue horror sequels that I would personally like to see get made in the future, and you horror fans had quite the response. It seems that we all have our own favorite characters and stories that we think deserve another chance on the big screen, so I decided to make a follow-up of my own with another round of overdue sequels!
Many of these choices were inspired by your comments, while others are movies that just didn’t make the cut in the previous list. Either way, I feel like they all still have untapped storytelling potential. Again, no movie really needs a sequel, and we should always try to support up-and-coming filmmakers by valuing original ideas in Hollywood. However, if we’re going to have sequels, they might as well be good!
Like last time, some of these films are part of a franchise, having already been graced with another installment, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they (or we) wouldn’t benefit from a new movie. Others already have a sequel in the works, and production is just going through a period of development hell.
With that in mind, let’s begin!
The Crazies
This remake of a lesser-known George Romero movie had everything against it, and yet director Breck Eisner somehow managed to give us an incredibly entertaining look at a small-town apocalypse. I personally find this film to be better than Romero’s original, with loads of creative kills, a compelling cast and a great setting.
In a world filled with generic zombie/infection movies, it takes quite a bit of talent to make something this good. If the same team returned for a sequel, the result would almost certainly be worth a watch. Romero himself has actually claimed to be interested in producing a sequel, though it seems that the film simply isn’t popular enough to garner studio interest.
Bubba Ho-Tep
Another Don Coscarelli horror comedy, 2002’s Bubba Ho-Tep fits every definition of a cult classic. Starring Bruce Campbell as a senior Elvis Presley (or at least a confused impersonator of his), the film revolves around an ancient mummy terrorizing a retirement home as Elvis deals with his advanced age and the skepticism of those around him regarding his true identity.
This adaptation of a Joe R. Lansdale novella is incredibly entertaining, and everyone involved in the production has at one point expressed interest in making another one. In fact, the end credits even tease a sequel titled Bubba Nosferatu: Curse of the She-Vampires. Sadly, due to a series of disagreements between Campbell and Coscarelli, not to mention the lack of funding, this sequel has yet to materialize.
That being said, fans of Bubba Ho-Tep can still pre-order Lansdale’s new prequel novel Bubba and the Cosmic Blood-Suckers!
The Cabin in the Woods
Who could have predicted that a love-letter to the horror genre penned by Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard would have turned out to be a modern classic? Literally anyone familiar with their work, actually. Either way, Cabin in the Woods is a kick-ass horror comedy, and it’s a miracle that we got to see this film get made in the first place.
This loving satire was actually a sleeper hit, and back in 2015 Goddard actually claimed that the studio was clamoring for a sequel. Of course, he and Whedon would only make one if they felt they had an interesting enough idea, as they hadn’t planned for a sequel while making the film. That’s not surprising when you consider Cabin In The Woods’ jaw-dropping ending.
Nevertheless, this is a cinematic universe ripe for new and creative ideas, as there are practically no limits to what Whedon and Goddard could come up with. A possible sequel/prequel could go about subverting all sorts of horror sub-genres and tropes, and maybe even sequels themselves!
Splinter
Toby Wilkins’ simple yet elegant monster movie, Splinter, is proof that all you need is perseverance and a good idea to make a great horror film. With a terrifyingly original monster, likable characters and copious amounts of body horror, this is one of those rare horror flicks that even mainstream critics couldn’t help but love.
Although Splinter is a complete film in and of itself (despite teasing that there are still other infected corpses out there), it’s a real shame that we never saw more of those spiny little parasites. It seems that there are many more horrifying stories that could be told featuring these unique monsters.
With a decent budget and some new ideas, the sky is the limit to what Wilkins could do with a sequel. As long as it maintains the charm of the first film, I’d definitely love to watch it.
28 Days Later
At first, the award-winning Danny Boyle may seem like the kind of director who feels above returning for a sequel to one of his earlier films, but with Trainspotting 2, we now know that this far from the truth. This is great news, as if there’s one movie in Boyle’s filmography that truly deserves another installment, it’s 28 Days Later.
This chilling apocalyptic tale is one of my personal favorite films, and I feel that it’s one of Boyle’s most underappreciated projects. The stunning yet frighteningly realistic cinematography and lonely atmosphere easily make this one of the best zombie movies ever made. I even love the controversial third act, which a lot of people seem to have a problem with, for some reason.
Of course, we did get a sequel in 2007 with 28 Weeks Later, which was a good movie in its own right, but it wasn’t helmed by Boyle and had little to do with the original film other than the setting. However, Boyle has repeatedly expressed interest in making a new film set in this same universe, so hopefully this won’t be the last we see of a post-apocalyptic UK.
The Collector
It appears that every modern slasher film is attempting to recapture the glory of the 80s with their derivative killers and nostalgic aesthetics, but few have managed to produce characters as iconic as Jason Voorhees or Freddy Kruger. I believe Marcus Dunstan’s The Collector is one of the exceedingly rare exceptions.
A slasher movie with a compelling protagonist, memorable villain and legitimately scary kills is almost unheard of these days, and yet The Collector pulled it off so well. What was originally meant to be a Saw prequel turned into something new and fresh, and eventually did spawn a sequel entitled The Collection.
While the sequel was a decent flick, it didn’t quite carry the same simple charm as the original. Luckily for us, however, a second sequel is rumored to be on the way, and I couldn’t be more excited to see my favorite modern slasher villain return to the big screen after all this time.
From child-eating witches to village-burning dragons, fairy tales have always had a foot in the horror genre. That’s why it makes sense that, for every The Hobbit and The Chronicles of Narnia, there are also darker and more adult-oriented stories about magical worlds inhabited by ravenous monsters and cruel villains.
Funnily enough, these sinister tales were precisely the ones that I gravitated towards back when I was a kid, and I was reminded of this while watching Netflix’s recently released I Am Frankelda, Mexico’s first ever feature-length stop-motion animation and one hell of an entertaining parable about the intersection between fiction and reality.
In honor of this special kind of horror-adjacent fairy tale, today I’d like to share this list recommending six Dark Fantasy films that horror fans might enjoy.
For the purposes of this list, we’ll be defining Dark Fantasy as fantastical stories that don’t shy away from the more macabre elements that fuel classic fairy tales. That being said, don’t forget to comment below with your own grim favorites if you think we missed a particularly thrilling one.
With that out of the way, onto the list!
6. Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)
I’m fascinated by bizarre attempts at blockbuster filmmaking – especially when the resulting movies are somehow still fun despite their corporate-mandated origins. Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters is precisely one of these strangely compelling studio projects, as this surprisingly successful action-thriller boasts a lot of heart (and tongue-in-cheek humor) for a CGI-heavy creature feature.
Directed by Dead Snow’s Tommy Wirkola, Witch Hunters re-frames the classic fairy tale as an origin story for a duo of badass monster-slayers. Of course, it’s the flick’s anachronistic aesthetic and overall visual flair that make it stand out from other action-horror endeavors from around the same time.
5. The Wolf House (2018)
Made in the tradition of faux cursed films in the same vein as Antrum: The Deadliest Film Ever Made, the eerie backstory to 2018’s Chilean animated flick The Wolf House (La Casa Lobo in the original Spanish) already makes it a nightmarish experience before the flick even really begins.
After all, the movie is presented to us as a faux propaganda film produced by the leader of a death cult (heavily inspired by the real life Colonia Dignidad), with this hybrid animated feature using complex movie magic to simulate a single uninterrupted shot as it tells the story of a lazy young girl who runs away from an isolated colony and encounters a creepy old house in the woods.
4. The Brothers Grimm (2005)
Out of all the Monty Python alumni, Terry Gilliam has had the most interesting career outside of the original comedy group. From fascinating canceled projects (such as his scrapped adaptation of Watchmen) to dystopian parodies that feel more relevant by the minute (1985’s Brazil), even his “lesser” films are still intriguing in their own way.
2005’s The Brothers Grimm is one such project, with this peculiar movie attempting to combine the comedian-turned-filmmaker’s unique visual style with a more blockbuster-oriented plot reimagining the titular brothers as con-artists rather than mere writers. The end result isn’t exactly a masterpiece, but it’s still a legitimately fun ride with plenty of memorable monsters and wonderful performances by both the late, great Heath Ledger and Matt Damon.
3. Dante’s Inferno: An Animated Epic (2010)
2010’s Dante’s Inferno game may have a reputation as something of an unapologetic God of War clone, but I’d argue that the now-obscure game was aesthetically unique enough to deserve a bigger fanbase. However, while the title remains trapped on the seventh console generation, its highly underrated anime adaptation is a lot easier to get a hold of!
Animated by 6 different studios in order to make the 9 circles of hell feel unique from each other, this may not be a completely faithful adaptation of Dante Alighieri’s poem, but it’s still one heck of a great (not to mention gory) time that I’d highly recommend to fans of Netflix’s take on Castlevania.
2. Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (2009)
My personal favorite entry in the Underworld franchise, Rise of the Lycans, is a highly ambitious prequel that actually works better if you haven’t had the story spoiled to you by the previous Underworld films.
While the rest of the series features plenty of urban fantasy elements as the movies combine machine guns and modern environments with gothic storytelling, Patrick Tatopoulos’ prequel fully embraces its fantastical origins and tells a classic tale about a doomed romance between a werewolf and a vampire amid a medieval uprising.
And the best part is that we get a lot more Michael Sheen as the fan-favorite Lucian.
1. Solomon Kane (2011)
One of my personal favorite movies on this list, MJ Basset’s criminally underseen adaptation of Robert E. Howard’s other iconic warrior is thoroughly steeped in horror ambience and features plenty of memorable monsters. However, it’s also a classic origin story for a swashbuckling hero that wouldn’t feel out of place in a tabletop RPG.
While I’ve already written about how the film deftly combines both horror and fantasy elements without breaking the bank, I’ll never pass up an opportunity to recommend the bizarre movie where James Purefoy expertly plays a puritan John Wick.
It’s just too bad that we never got the other films in this intended trilogy.
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