26 Most Anticipated Horror Movies of 2025 (March 2025 Update)

Director: Leigh Whannell
Starring: Julia Garner, Christopher Abbott, Matilda Firth

With Wolf Man, co-writer and director Leigh Whannell is tackling another iconic Universal monster. His adaptation of The Invisible Man (2020) was a box office hit even though it was only shown at drive-ins and had an early VOD/Digital release once the COVID lockdown began. Whannell’s Wolf Man will undoubtedly also draw moviegoers.

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Synopsis: Blake (Christopher Abbott) and his family are attacked by an unseen animal and, in a desperate escape, barricade themselves inside a farmhouse as the creature prowls the perimeter. However, as the night stretches on, Blake begins to behave strangely, transforming into something unrecognizable that soon jeopardizes his wife (Julia Garner) and daughter (Matilda Firth).

Check out the trailer here.

Director: Drew Hancock
Starring: Sophie Thatcher, Jack Quaid, Lukas Gage, Megan Suri, Harvey Guillén, Rupert Friend

“From the studio that brought you The Notebook and the creators of Barbarian,” Companion invites audiences “to experience a new kind of love story.” Expect plenty of twists and turns in what will likely become another modern Valentine’s Day classic. We also couldn’t ask for a better cast, which includes Sophie Thatcher (Heretic, Yellowjackets), Jack Quaid (The Boys, Scream), Harvey Guillén (What We Do In the Shadows), and Lukas Gage (Smile 2, You).

Synopsis: A billionaire’s death sets off a chain of events for Iris and her friends during a weekend trip to his lakeside estate.

Check out the trailer here.

Director: Josh Ruben
Starring: Olivia Holt, Mason Gooding, Gigi Zumbado, Michaela Watkins, Devon Sawa, Jordana Brewster, Chris Parker, Latham Gaines

The slasher Heart Eyes, produced by the team behind Scream (2022) and Scream VI (2023), will be released a week before Valentine’s Day. Josh Ruben (Werewolves Within, Scare Me) directs the film, which was scripted by Phillip Murphy and Freaky (2020) collaborators Christopher Landon and Michael Kennedy.

Synopsis: For the past several years, the “Heart Eyes Killer” has wreaked havoc on Valentine’s Day by stalking and murdering romantic couples. This Valentine’s Day, no couple is safe.

Check out the trailer here.

Director: Osgood Perkins
Starring: Theo James, Christian Convery, Tatiana Maslany, Elijah Wood, Colin O’Brien, Rohan Campbell, Sarah Levy, Osgood Perkins

Following this year’s Longlegs, Oz Perkins will adapt Stephen King’s short story “The Monkey,” which was published in Skeleton Crew (1985). Neon will release the Atomic Monster-produced film following a heated bidding war for domestic distribution rights earlier this year.

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Synopsis: When twin brothers Hal and Bill (both played by Theo James) discover their father’s old monkey toy in the attic, a series of gruesome deaths start occurring all around them. The brothers decide to throw the monkey away and move on with their lives, growing apart over the years. But when the mysterious deaths begin again, the brothers must reunite to find a way to destroy the monkey for good before it takes the lives of everyone close to them.

The Monkey is definitely on our list of most-anticipated horror movies of 2025.

Check out the trailer here.

Director: Jaume Collet-Serra
Starring: Danielle Deadwyler, Okwui Okpokwasili, Russell Hornsby, Peyton Jackson, Estella Kahiha

Not much of The Woman in the Yard’s plot has been officially revealed. According to Wikipedia, “A woman in black appears on a family’s front lawn and delivers a chilling warning. No one knows where she came from, what she wants, or when she will leave.” Since there are no citations, this could change as additional information becomes available.

However, the primary cast and crew have been announced. Jaume Collet-Serra will direct the Sam Stefanak-written film. This will be Stefanak’s debut feature, whereas Collet-Serra has made House of Wax (2005), Orphan (2009), The Shallows (2016), Jungle Cruise (2021), Black Adam (2022), Carry-On (2024), and others.

Danielle Deadwyler (I Saw the TV Glow, Carry-On), Okwui Okpokwasili (Agatha All Along, The Exorcist: Believer), and Russell Hornsby (Grimm, Creed II) are leading the project.

Check out the trailer here.

Director: Alex Scharfman
Starring: Paul Rudd, Jenna Ortega, Will Poulter, Téa Leoni, Richard E. Grant

A24’s upcoming dark comedy Death of a Unicorn has an all-star cast that includes Paul Rudd, Jenna Ortega, Richard E. Grant, Will Poulter, and Téa Leoni. If that isn’t enough to excite you, it will feature music by John Carpenter, Cody Carpenter, and Daniel Davies. Expect a bit of (hopefully justified) hype over this one.

Synopsis: A father (Paul Rudd) and daughter (Jenna Ortega) accidentally hit and kill a unicorn while en route to a weekend retreat, where his billionaire boss (Richard E. Grant) seeks to exploit the creature’s miraculous curative properties.

Check out the trailer here.

Director: Christopher Landon
Starring: Meghann Fahy, Brandon Sklenar, Jeffery Self, Gabrielle Ryan Spring, Violett Beane, Jacob Robinson, Ed Weeks

Christopher Landon, the director of Happy Death Day (2017), Happy Death Day 2U (2019), and Freaky (2020), among others, is behind two horror movies of 2025, and we’re here for it. Along with producing and writing Heart Eyes, Landon will direct Drop, which has a screenplay by Jillian Jacobs and Chris Roach.

The film is produced by Michael Bay’s Platinum Dunes and Blumhouse.

Synopsis: Violet, a widowed mother on her first date in years, arrives at an upscale restaurant where she is relieved that her date, Henry, is more charming and handsome than she expected. But their chemistry begins to curdle as Violet becomes irritated and then terrorized by a series of anonymous drops to her phone.

She is instructed to tell nobody and follow instructions, or the hooded figure she sees on her home security cameras will kill Violet’s young son and babysitting sister. Violet must do exactly as directed, or everyone she loves will die. Her unseen tormentor’s final directive? Kill Henry.

Check out the trailer here.

Director: Ryan Coogler
Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Jack O’Connell, Wunmi Mosaku, Jayme Lawson, Omar Benson Miller, Delroy Lindo

Ryan Coogler’s Sinners shares some similarities with Oz Perkins’ The Monkey. Both films feature the lead actors in dual roles, and both had studios fighting for rights. In this case, Warner Bros. Pictures won the deal. Coogler and Michael B. Jordan previously worked together on the Creed franchise and Black Panther (2018). This successful partnership undoubtedly sparked the bidding war.

Synopsis: Trying to leave their troubled lives behind, twin brothers (Jordan) return to their hometown to start again, only to discover that an even greater evil is waiting to welcome them back.

Check out the trailer here.

Director: David F. Sandberg
Starring: Ella Rubin, Michael Cimino, Ji-young Yoo, Odessa A’zion, Peter Stormare

A live-action adaptation of Sony’s 2015 video game Until Dawn will be released this spring. It will be directed by David F. Sandberg (Annabelle: Creation, Lights Out) and written by Gary Dauberman (IT Chapters 1 and 2, Annabelle franchise). The studio, Screen Gems, has stated that it will be an “R-rated love letter to the horror genre, centering on an ensemble cast.”

Synopsis: One year after her sister Melanie mysteriously disappeared, Clover and her friends head into the remote valley where she vanished in search of answers. Exploring an abandoned visitor center, they find themselves stalked by a masked killer and horrifically murdered one by one…only to wake up and find themselves back at the beginning of the same evening.

Trapped in the valley, they’re forced to relive the nightmare again and again—only each time, the killer threat is different, each more terrifying than the last. Hope dwindling, the group soon realizes they have a limited number of deaths left, and the only way to escape is to survive until dawn.

Check out the trailer here.

Director: Eli Craig
Starring: Katie Douglas, Carson MacCormac, Aaron Abrams, Will Sasso, Kevin Durand

The much-anticipated adaptation of Adam Cesare’s 2020 novel is coming to theaters this May. Tucker & Dale vs. Evil writer-director Eli Craig wrote and directed the film, which was co-written by Carter Blanchard.

Synopsis: Quinn and her father have just moved to the quiet town of Kettle Springs, hoping for a fresh start. Instead, she discovers a fractured community that has fallen on hard times after the treasured Baypen Corn Syrup Factory burned down. As the locals bicker amongst themselves and tensions boil over, a sinister, grinning figure emerges from the cornfields to cleanse the town of its burdens, one bloody victim at a time.

Welcome to Kettle Springs. The real fun starts when Frendo the Clown comes out to play.

Check out the trailer here.

Directors: Zach Lipovsky, Adam Stein
Starring: Tony Todd, Brec Bassinger, Teo Briones, Kaitlyn Santa Juana, Richard Harmon, Anna Lore, Owen Patrick Joyner, Max Lloyd-Jones, Rya Kihlstedt, Tinpo Lee

The sixth installment of the Final Destination series will be bittersweet. While we’re looking forward to the first franchise release in 14 years, this will be Tony Todd’s final performance as the mysterious William Bludworth. Todd passed away in November 2024.

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While plot details have yet to be revealed, producer Craig Perry told Digital Spy in 2020, “We’re toying with having it take place in the world of first responders: EMTs, firemen, and police. These people deal with death on the front lines every day and make choices that can cause people to live or die.”

Check out the teaser trailer here.

Director: Matt Palmer
Starring: India Fowler, Suzanna Son, Fina Strazza, David Iacono, Ella Rubin, Chris Klein, Ariana Greenblatt, Lili Taylor, Katherine Waterston

Co-writer and director Matt Palmer and writer Donald McLeary will adapt R. L. Stine’s 1992 book Prom Queen. This is the first Fear Street film to be adapted from a single novel and will be the fourth installment from Netflix. In 2021, the streaming service released the Fear Street trilogy, which consists of Part One: 1994, Part Two: 1978, and Part Three: 1666.

Synopsis: Welcome back to Shadyside. Prom season at Shadyside High is underway, and the school’s wolfpack of It Girls is busy with its usual sweet and vicious campaigns for the crown. But when a gutsy outsider is unexpectedly nominated to the court, and the other girls start mysteriously disappearing, the class of ’88 is suddenly in for one hell of a prom night.

Check out the date announcement here.

Director: Danny Boyle
Starring: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jodie Comer, Ralph Fiennes, Jack O’Connell

The 28 Days sequel is being released more than two decades after the first film. Fans are excited that 28 Days Later (2002) director Danny Boyle, writer Alex Garland, and cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle have returned. Original star Cillian Murphy will also serve as executive producer.

Synopsis: It’s been almost three decades since the rage virus escaped a biological weapons laboratory, and now, still in a ruthlessly enforced quarantine, some have found ways to exist amidst the infected.

One such group of survivors lives on a small island connected to the mainland by a single, heavily-defended causeway. When one of the group leaves the island on a mission into the dark heart of the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors as well.

28 Years Later is undoubtedly one of the most anticipated horror movies of 2025.

Check out the trailer here.

Director: Gerard Johnstone
Starring: Allison Williams, Jenna Davis, Violet McGraw, Amie Donald

Given the success of M3GAN (2022), it is not surprising that Blumhouse announced a sequel right away. The majority of the core cast, including Allison Williams as Gemma, Violet McGraw as Cady, Amie Donald as M3GAN, Jenna Davis as M3GAN’s voice, Brian Jordan Alvarez as Cole, and Jen Van Epps as Tess, are returning, along with director Gerard Johnstone and writer Akela Cooper.

While plot details are still under wraps, we can expect more deadly antics from the self-aware AI doll.

Check out the teaser trailer here.

Director: Jennifer Kaytin Robinson
Starring: Jennifer Love Hewitt, Freddie Prinze Jr., Madelyn Cline, Sarah Pidgeon, Tyriq Withers, Jonah Hauer-King, Chase Sui Wonders, Billy Campbell, Lola Tung, Nicholas Alexander Chavez, Austin Nichols, Gabbriette

I’ll Always Know What You Did Last Summer, released direct-to-video in 2006, made little progress in the slasher franchise. Aside from production issues, critics and audiences lambasted it, which may explain why the untitled fourth installment is a direct sequel to I Still Know What You Did Last Summer.

Alongside a new cast, original stars Jennifer Love Hewitt and Freddie Prinze Jr. will reprise their roles as Julie James and Ray Bronson. And while the title and plot haven’t been revealed, Leah McKendrick, who drafted the original story, told Collider earlier this year that “it really reckons with some big ideas about hero and villain, right and wrong, how your skeletons come back to haunt you. And in the age of the internet and the age where fame is such a revered concept, the creation of TikTok and social media, who is Julie James in a world where there are no secrets anymore?”

A trailer has yet to be released.

Director: Jeremy Slater
Starring: Mandy Moore, Kumail Nanjiani

Thread: An Insidious Tale is a spin-off of the Insidious film series and stars Mandy Moore and Kumail Nanjianiwill. It will be written and directed by Jeremy Slater. While this is Slater’s feature debut, he has directed episodes of Moon Knight, The Umbrella Academy, and The Exorcist.

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Deadline reports that this “offshoot project” will not be a “continuation of the current series.” It will follow a “husband and wife (Nanjiani and Moore) who enlist the help of a spell to travel back in time, such that they can prevent the death of their young daughter. The consequences, of course, prove to be severe.”

A trailer has yet to be released.

Director: Michael Chaves
Starring: Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Ben Hardy, Mia Tomlinson

Michael Chaves, who previously directed The Curse of La Llorona (2019), The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021), and The Nun II (2023), will direct The Conjuring: Last Rites, the ninth entry in The Conjuring Universe. Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga return to play husband and wife demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren.

The film is a direct sequel to The Devil Made Me Do It and is expected to conclude Ed and Lorraine Warren’s on-screen journey.

A trailer has yet to be released.

Director: Maggie Gyllenhaal
Starring: Christian Bale, Jessie Buckley, Jake Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, Annette Bening, Penelope Cruz, John Magaro

Maggie Gyllenhaal will write, direct, and produce a musical adaption of The Bride of Frankenstein (1935). The Bride! has an all-star cast, including Jessie Buckley (I’m Thinking of Ending Things, Men) as Frankenstein’s bride and Christian Bale (American Psycho, The Dark Knight) as Frankenstein’s monster. Maggie Gyllenhaal has also cast brother Jake Gyllenhaal and husband Peter Sarsgaard.

While speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Sarsgaard commented on the film’s musical nature: “Then Jessie is the most abstract, random, free-flowing, in-the-moment actor you could ever work with. She can also sing and dance by the way—big time. There are big dance numbers and stuff in the movie.”

Synopsis: In 1930s Chicago, Frankenstein asks Dr. Euphronius to help create a companion. They give life to a murdered woman as the Bride, sparking romance, police interest, and radical social change.

A trailer has yet to be released.

Director: Scott Derrickson
Starring: Ethan Hawke, Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw, Jeremy Davies, Miguel Mora

Director Scott Derrickson and writer C. Robert Cargill are working on a sequel to The Black Phone. The main cast will return, with Mason Thames as Finney, Madeleine McGraw as Gwen, Ethan Hawke as The Grabber, Jeremy Davies as Terrence, and Miguel Cazarez Mora as Robin.

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Although the first film did not leave an opening for a sequel, author Joe Hill, whose short story the film is based on, is excited about the idea. During an interview with ComicBook, he stated, “There have been some really, really good conversations about a sequel. And the thing is, as soon as I saw the mask, which was designed by Tom Savini and Jason Baker, as soon as I saw the mask, I thought, “If this film is a hit, there’ll be a sequel,” because the mask is so iconic.”

A trailer has yet to be released.

Director: Stephen Cognetti
Starring: Elizabeth Vermilyea, Searra Sawka, Mike Sutton, Joe Bandelli, Cayla Berejikian, Victoria Andrunik, Gideon Berger, Bridget Rose Perrotta, Destiny Leilani Brown

The fifth installment in the Hell House LLC franchise will hit Shudder just in time for Halloween. While plot details remain undisclosed, the sequel promises “a deeper dive into the back stories of various characters within the franchise while introducing new characters and storylines.”

The Hell House LLC franchise is the terrifying gift that keeps on giving.

Check out the teaser here.

Director: Dan Trachtenberg
Starring: Elle Fanning

Following the success of Prey (2022), director Dan Trachtenberg and writer Patrick Aison are working on a new Predator film titled Predator: Badlands. Empire reports this will not be a sequel to Prey but a “future-set tale taking place on an alien planet.” While talking with the publication, Trachtenberg confirms, “The creature is front and centre, leading the charge. He’s still badass, but there’s something there that touches you emotionally, too.”

The director continued to explain that he enjoys “pushing the franchise’s boundaries, letting us root for a hero we rarely get to root for—but in a different way. And that transformed into this big idea of rooting for the Predator.”

It is rumored that Trachtenberg is also working on another Predator film. As of this writing, not much is known. Stay tuned for more news.

A trailer has yet to be released.

Director: Edgar Wright
Starring: Glen Powell, Katy O’Brian, Daniel Ezra, Karl Glusman, Josh Brolin, Lee Pace, Jayme Lawson, Michael Cera, Emilia Jones, William H. Macy

Edgar Wright, director of Shaun of the Dead, is adapting The Running Man, another Stephen King story (written under his pen name Richard Bachman). It was previously adapted in 1987 by director Paul Michael Glaser, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as protagonist Ben Richards. Glen Powell, who has taken Hollywood by storm since Twisters (2024), will play Ben.

Synopsis: A desperate man attempts to win a reality TV game where the only objective is to stay alive.

A trailer has yet to be released.

Director: Guillermo del Toro
Starring: Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth, Christoph Waltz, Felix Kammerer, Lars Mikkelsen, David Bradley, Christian Convery, Charles Dance, Ralph Ineson

Guillermo del Toro, a master of gothic horror, will adapt Mary Shelley’s classic novel Frankenstein (1818). The writer-director’s impressive cast includes Oscar Isaac (Moon Knight, Dune: Part One) as Victor Frankenstein, Jacob Elordi (Priscilla, Euphoria) as Frankenstein’s monster, and Mia Goth as Elizabeth.

In 2007, the film was in the early phases of development through Universal. However, following del Toro’s multi-year contract with Netflix, the streaming provider proceeded with the adaptation.

A trailer has yet to be released.

Director: Emma Tammi
Starring: Elizabeth Lail, Josh Hutcherson, Matthew Lillard, Piper Rubio

Five Nights at Freddy’s (2023) may not have been a critical success, but its contrasting audience score and massive box-office opening left little doubt about a sequel. Emma Tammi, director and co-writer, will return alongside writers Scott Cawthon (the franchise creator) and Seth Cuddeback.

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The main cast will reprise their roles: Josh Hutcherson as Mike Schmidt, Matthew Lillard as William Afton, Elizabeth Lail as Vanessa, and Piper Rubio as Abby.

Plot details are still unknown. However, when discussing a possible sequel, Tammi told The Hollywood Reporter, “We have some loose ends that I think are going to have to come back in a sequel to be tied up.”

While this may not be one of the horror movies of 2025 that every genre fan is excited about, the series will undoubtedly continue to serve as gateway flicks for a new generation.

A trailer has yet to be released.

Director: Tom Gormican
Starring: Paul Rudd, Jack Black, Daniela Melchior

The Anaconda franchise is getting rebooted as a horror-comedy this Christmas. The film will star Paul Rudd and Jack Black, who released an announcement confirming the release date last week. While there is no official plot, Black promises, “There’s gonna be a big fucking snake, and it’s gonna rip.”

The original 1997 film followed a documentary crew forced to hunt an elusive and deadly anaconda in the Amazon rainforest.

Check out the announcement here.

Director: Bryan Bertino
Starring: Dakota Fanning, Kathryn Hunter, Mary McCormack, Rachel Blanchard, Devyn Nekoda, Klea Scott, Emily Mitchell

Bryan Bertino, the writer-director behind The Strangers (2008) and The Dark and the Wicked (2020), is releasing the Dakota Fanning-led horror flick Vicious. The film was initially scheduled for theaters on August 8, 2025. However, production progressed faster than expected, pushing the release date to February.

Synopsis: A woman spends the night fighting for her existence as she slips down a rabbit hole contained inside a gift from a late-night visitor.

A trailer has yet to be released.