Movies
Madison County
“That’s a testament to England’s skill (with an obvious debt owed to his editor Levi Blue) as an invigorating visual storyteller who, if given a decent script, I can see making a truly good film and not just – and this is what ‘Madison County’ ultimately boils down to – a convincing demonstration of his aesthetic strengths.”
There have been hundreds of movies just like “Madison County” since the slasher boom hit in the early 1980s – collection of attractive young people venture into a place where they shouldn’t be, mysterious killer begins bumping them off one-by-one, most perceptive/down-to-earth guy or gal (but usually gal) manages to barely escape with his/her life.
What sets “Madison County” apart from many of its ultra-low-budget forebears is the clear amount of care director Eric England has utilized in constructing the film’s handsomely-articulated visual landscape. At only 23 years old, the helmer has a keen, sophisticated cinematographic eye (employed alongside director of photography David Starks) that makes him more than worthy of securing a spot on our collective radars.
All of that said, “Madison County” is far from a perfect film, and the majority of its failings can be attributed to England’s banal, largely unconvincing script – though as I will argue later, considerations such as plot and dialogue seem almost besides the point in what essentially amounts to an above-average directing sample.
In a nutshell, the film centers on a group of five college-age friends – wiry, intelligent Will (Matt Mercer) and his girlfriend Brooke (Joanna Sotamura); Brooke’s overprotective older brother Kyle (Ace Marrero); and a pair of flirtatious friends, Jenna (Natalie Scheetz) and James (Colley Bailey) – as they travel to the rural county of the title to track down the author of a tell-all book which recounts several local murders.
Problem is, when the kids arrive in town the author is nowhere to be found; and what’s more, the glowering locals claim not to have seen him in years. I don’t think it’s giving anything away (if you’ve seen the poster, you know this) that a silent killer wearing a pig’s mask subsequently begins stalking the group to keep them from finding out…well, what, exactly?
Given the relative simplicity of the plot, it’s hard not to see “Madison County” as anything but a purely stylistic exercise – a way for England to demonstrate his bona fides as a formalist. And in that more limited sense, it mostly succeeds; the film contains a number of shots that struck me with their compositional beauty and refinement. In this age of found-footage shaky-cam horror cinema – believe me, with the monstrous success of “The Devil Inside” last weekend we’ll be seeing plenty more of that – considerations of formal elegance are becoming increasingly more rare, and that’s unfortunate.
By contrast, England has concerned himself with following in the footsteps of the old genre masters (Tobe Hooper’s “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” is an obvious influence), and if he doesn’t quite transcend mere mimicry in that regard, he has a clear gift for wringing the maximum amount of production value out of severely limited resources (IMDB lists the film’s budget at a teensy $70,000). Truly, it’s amazing what the a simple dolly shot can do to at least momentarily paper over a film’s starved financial realities.
The acting here is pretty much what you’d expect from a low-budget slasher, though the main cast of young performers seem to have been given a bit more improvisational license than usual, which actually helps to give the dialogue scenes (particularly those between Mercer and Sotamura) a refreshing sense of play. While I can’t say I actually felt anything for any of England’s young victims, I still respected his intermittently successful attempts at giving them actual personalities. In some sense, the slow build employed here reminded me of Sean S. Cunningham’s “Friday the 13th”, particularly in the way we’re given brief glimpses into the characters’ inner lives (“It just keeps getting louder and louder, and then the rain turns to blood…”) before the shit truly hits the proverbial fan.
Hardcore slasher fans will probably bemoan “Madison County”‘s relatively low gore quotient, and it’s true that some of the kills here feel far too obligatory and unimaginative (one murder that takes place at a swimming hole receives a nifty setup and a comparatively lousy payoff, for instance). And I’m sorry to report that the minimal practical effects work, worked up by Robert Hall’s Almost Human studio (which also created the pig mask worn by the killer), is also relatively sub-par, failing to convince in the near-seamless fashion modern horror fans have come to expect.
In fact, the best kills in the film work because of what you don’t see, particularly a vicious outdoor stabbing in the final reel that owes more than a small debt to the famed Janet Leigh shower murder in “Psycho” (an observation I can’t credit to myself, though it’s one I wholly agree with in hindsight) in the way it utilizes a succession of rapid edits to suggest far more brutality than it actually shows. That’s a testament to England’s skill (with an obvious debt owed to his editor Levi Blue) as an invigorating visual storyteller who, if given a decent script, I can see making a truly good film and not just – and this is what “Madison County” ultimately boils down to – a convincing demonstration of his aesthetic strengths.
Horror may be off to an extremely strong start in 2026, but it’s only getting warmed up.
Summer blockbuster season is now in full swing, bringing one of the year’s most anticipated horror releases to the big screen this week with Evil Dead Burn. But horror’s biggest time to shine, of course, is the Halloween season, and Fall is packed.
After catching up on 2026’s best horror movies, games, and books so far, let’s look ahead at all the exciting theatrical releases still on the horizon. Highly anticipated originals, sequels, and restorations of contemporary classics are all headed to the big screen in 2026.
Here are 20 theatrical horror movies we can’t wait to see in the second half of 2026.
Evil Dead Burn – July 10
A visit with the in-laws in the wake of her husband’s passing instead turns into a harrowing fight for a young woman’s soul when Deadites arrive. Souheila Yacoub, Tandi Wright, and Hunter Doohan lead the cast of the brand new Evil Dead movie alongside Luciane Buchanan, Errol Shand and Maude Davey. After shattering nerves with spider creature feature Infested, director Sébastien Vaniček will unleash Deadite carnage in what might be a continuation of Evil Dead Rise.
Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma – August 7
An enthusiastic young director eager to remake a classic slasher instead falls head first into bloodsoaked delirium when she meets the slasher’s original star. Hannah Einbinder (“Hacks”) and Gillian Anderson (“The X-Files”) star in the newest vision by Jane Schoenbrun (I Saw the TV Glow). Amanda Fix (Lowlifes), Arthur Conti (Beetlejuice Beetlejuice), Eva Victor (Sorry Baby), Zach Cherry (“Severance”), Sarah Sherman (“Saturday Night Live”), Patrick Fischler (“Twin Peaks”), Dylan Baker (Trick ‘r Treat), Jasmin Savoy Brown (Scream), Kevin McDonald (“The Kids in the Hall”), and Quintessa Swindell (Black Adam) round out the cast. Check out the trailer here.
Insidious: Out of the Further – August 21
A young woman discovers the hard way that she can bring the denizens of the Further out into our world in the sixth entry in the franchise. Franchise star Lin Shaye reprises her role as Elise Rainier alongside Amelia Eve (“The Haunting of Bly Manor”) and Brandon Perea (Nope). Island Austin, Sam Spruell (“Fargo”), and Maisie Richardson-Sellers (“Legends of Tomorrow”) round out the cast. Jacob Chase (Come Play) writes and directs, sharing story credit with David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick (The Conjuring: Last Rites, Orphan). Watch the trailer.
Colony – August 28
South Korean filmmaker Yeon Sang-ho (Train to Busan, “Human Vapor“) is back this summer with a new outbreak nightmare that sees a biotech conference quarantined when a mutating virus gets unleashed. Colony marks Gianna Jun’s (Blood: The Last Vampire, “My Sassy Girl”) first feature film since 2015’s Assassination. She stars alongside Koo Kyo-hwan (Peninsula, Escape from Mogadishu). Watch the trailer here and plan to double feature this with the re-release of Train to Busan, remastered for theaters.
The Dog Stars – August 28
Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein), Josh Brolin (Weapons), and Margaret Qualley (The Substance) seek hope and humanity at the end of the world in Ridley Scott‘s post-apocalyptic thriller. The film is based on Peter Heller’s bestselling novel and written by Mark L. Smith (Overlord, The Revenant). Watch the trailer here.
Fall 2: Deadpoint – September 2
Two friends take on new heights in Thailand in this acrophobia-inducing sequel, where unpredictable terrain, extreme exposure, and nowhere to hide push survival further than ever before. Harriet Slater (Tarot) stars alongside Arsema Thomas (“Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story”) and Tom Brittney (Greyhound). Michael & Peter Spierig (Predestination, Jigsaw) direct Fall 2: Deadpoint from a script by Fall writers Scott Mann (who also directed the original) and Jonathan Frank. Catch up on the trailer here.
Onslaught – September 4
The duo behind The Guest, director Adam Wingard and writer Simon Barrett, are re-teaming for a new action horror movie that sees a single mom unleash hell when genetically engineered super soldiers break free in the desert. Adria Arjona leads a cast that includes Rebecca Hall (The Night House, Godzilla x Kong), Dan Stevens (The Guest), Michael Biehn, Reginald VelJohnson, Eric Wareheim, Drew Starkey, and Alex “Poatan” Pereira. Watch the trailer here.
Hope – September 9
The pursuit of a creature in the town of Hope Harbor instead leads to disaster when escalating through human conflict into a tragedy of cosmic proportions. Hwang Jung-min (The Wailing), Zo In-sung (“Moving”), Hoyeon (“Squid Game”), Taylor Russell (Bones and All), Cameron Britton (“The Umbrella Academy”), Alicia Vikander (Ex Machina), and Michael Fassbender (Prometheus) star. The Korean production is written and directed by Na Hong-jin (The Wailing).
Don’t Move – September 11
A church group’s annual retreat turns deadly when they wander into the wrong part of the Ozark wilderness, and something starts picking them off one by one in the feature adaptation of the 2020 novel from co-authors James Murray and Darren Wearmouth. Lyndsy Fonseca (Kick-Ass), Russell “Russ” Vitale, and Tom Cavanagh (The Flash) star alongside Hunter King (Life in Pieces), Rob Riggle (The Hangover), and Joseph Lee Anderson (Young Rock). Expect plenty of cameos including T-Pain, Matt Biedel, and “Impractical Jokers” members James Murray and Brian Quinn. Read our preview here.
Resident Evil – September 18
Austin Abrams (Weapons) stars as Bryan, a medical courier who unwittingly finds himself in a non-stop race for survival as one fateful, horrifying night collapses around him in chaos in director Zach Cregger’s take on the popular game series. Zach Cherry (“Severance”), Kali Reis (“True Detective: Night Country”), Paul Walter Hauser (“Black Bird”), and Johnno Wilson (“Twisted Metal”) round out the cast. Here’s the full details.
Never After Dark – September 25
Moeka Hoshi (“Shogun”) strars as Airi, a wandering medium who guides restless spirits back to where they belong. Hired to cleanse an isolated country house, she comes face to face with a grotesque apparition with powers that defy everything Airi knows about her profession: this time the threat isn’t supernatural. The Japanese horror movie is written and directed by Dave Boyle.
Victorian Psycho – September 25
Maika Monroe (It Follows, Longlegs) stars as an eccentric governess who arrives at a remote gothic manor where strange happenings stir suspicion that she’s not what she seems. Winifred Notty is unleashing her inner Victorian Psycho, rivaling the likes of Patrick Bateman. Thomasin McKenzie (Last Night in Soho), Jason Isaacs (Honey Bunch), Ruth Wilson, Amy De Bruhn, and “Hamnet” breakout Jacobi Jupe also star. Zachary Wigon (Sanctuary) directed the film from a script by author Virginia Feito (Mrs. March), based on her novel of the same name. Find the trailer here.
Other Mommy – October 9
Up next from director Rob Savage (Host) is Other Mommy, an adaptation of Josh Malerman’s (Bird Box) horror novel Incidents Around the House. The story follows 8-year-old Bela, who lives in a home strained by her parents’ troubled marriage, only to see her life further upended by a sinister entity she calls ‘Other Mommy.’ Eight-year-old Arabella Olivia Clark (The Housemaid) is set to lead Other Mommy, with Jessica Chastain (IT: Chapter Two, Crimson Peak), Jay Duplass (“The Creep Tapes“), Dichen Lachman (“Severance”, Jurassic World: Dominion), Sean Kaufman (“The Summer I Turned Pretty”), and Adam Silver (Velvet Buzzsaw) also starring.
Pan’s Labyrinth – October 9
Guillermo del Toro’s masterpiece is headed back to theaters for the film’s 20th anniversary this Halloween season in 4K, and with versions available in both 3D and HDR by Barco – the dedicated HDR viewing solution offering up to 6 times higher peak luminance. Each version for this re-release has been overseen by the patron saint of monsters himself, Guillermo del Toro. The Academy Award-winning dark fantasy is set in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War and follows a young girl, Ofelia, as she meets an ageless Faun who tells her she’s a princess and that she must prove her worthiness by completing three dangerous tasks.
The Devils – October 16
A holy grail for cinephiles is finally within reach after half a century. Warner Bros. Clockwork will release the restoration of Ken Russell‘s controversial horror moviein theaters globally this fall, in partnership with the British Film Institute (BFI) in the UK. Oliver Reed stars as Grandeur in the film, complete with the sex appeal that has all the ladies swooning, including the hunchbacked Sister Jeanne (Vanessa Redgrave). Jeanne is exceptionally lustful for Grandeur, which pushes over into wrathful jealousy when she learns of his relationship with the young and stunning Madeleine (Gemma Jones). Cue the demonic seduction accusations, and hysteria and chaos ensue.
Whalefall – October 16
Jay Gardiner (Austin Abrams) goes diving off the central Coast of California in search of his father’s remains, only to be swallowed by a Sperm whale. While trapped inside its belly with only one hour of oxygen left, Jay comes to realize that the hard-earned lessons his father imparted may be the key to his escape. Brian Duffield (No One Will Save You) directs 20th Century Studios’ upcoming aquatic survival thriller from a script he co-wrote with Daniel Kraus, based on Kraus’ 2023 novel. Watch the intense teaser here.
Clayface – October 23
Described as DC Studios’ first-ever foray into the genre, Clayface unravels one man’s horrifying descent from rising Hollywood star to revenge-filled monster in a story that explores the loss of one’s identity and humanity, corrosive love, and the dark underbelly of scientific ambition. James Watkins (The Woman in Black, Speak No Evil) directs from a script by Mike Flanagan (“The Haunting of Hill House,” Doctor Sleep) and Hossein Amini (Drive). Naomi Ackie, David Dencik, Max Minghella and Eddie Marsan, as well as Nancy Carroll and Joshua James star. Glimpse the body horror in the teaser.
Godzilla Minus Zero – November 6
Set in 1949 — two years after the events of Godzilla Minus One — Ryunosuke Kamiki and Minami Hamabe reprise their roles as former kamikaze pilot Kōichi Shikishima and his girlfriend Noriko Ōishi. Godzilla Minus One writer-director-VFX artist Takashi Yamazaki is back at the helm for the sequel, which marks Toho’s 34th Godzilla film since 1954. The first teaser shows the revered Kaiju stomping past an American landmark.
Violent Night 2 – December 4
Violent Night
Santa is back to dish out violence upon the naughty this holiday season, and he’s bringing the Mrs. along for the slay ride. David Harbour reprises his role as Santa Claus, joined by Kristen Bell as Mrs. Claus. Tommy Wirkola (Thrash, Dead Snow) is back in the director’s chair, reuniting with Violent Night writers Pat Casey & Josh Miller (Sonic the Hedgehog).
Werwulf – December 25
A mysterious creature stalks the land as local folklore becomes a terrifying reality in 13th-century England in Robert Eggers‘ medieval horror movie. Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Nosferatu) undergoes a bestial metamorphosis in the first teaser. Lily-Rose Depp (Nosferatu), Willem Dafoe (The Lighthouse), Ralph Ineson (The Witch), and Bodhi Rae Breathnach (Hamnet) also star.
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