While 2024 will be loaded with high-profile horror prequels, sequels, and remakes, it will also feature a bevy of completely original fright-inducing films that have already begun to generate excitement. The 2024 movie release schedule includes a number of new chapters in existing franchises, including Smile 2, the ultra-gory Terrifier 3, and the prequel The First Omen. Vampiric remakes will also be all the rage, as new iterations of both Salem’s Lot and Nosferatu are on the way. However, many of the low-budget, high-concept horror movies coming in 2024 carry much more intrigue than simple continuations of familiar stories.
The horror genre has been on the rise recently thanks to a new generation of writers, directors, and stars putting forward unique ideas and performances. Production companies like A24 have brought high-quality horror movies to the big screen, often producing massive box office returns thanks to their lower budgets. That trend will continue in 2024, as new and veteran directors will terrify the masses with original horror stories–many of which will feature established Hollywood stars as opposed to relative unknowns.
10 Horror Movies That Totally Redefined The Genre
The horror genre is what it now is thanks to some movies that push the genre’s boundaries, mixed with other genres, and shocked the audience.
13 Immaculate – March 22nd
A new religious horror movie will star Sydney Sweeney.
There are few actresses rising in prominence as swiftly as Sydney Sweeney, and she’ll try her hand as a scream queen in Immaculate, the religious horror film by Michael Mohan. Sweeney will star as a devout nun who is enticed into a pristine Italian convent, only to discover that her new home is a nightmarish prison. The film will make its debut at South by Southwest on March 12th before its wide release on March 22nd.
12 Infested – April 26th
The festival darling French horror film will ignite any arachnophobia a viewer might have.
Titled Vermines in the original French, this creature feature set in an apartment building in the French projects is being hailed as perhaps the best spider-based horror movie ever. Director Sébastien Vaniček builds suspense and terror in a setting that’s fairly similar to horror classics Rec and Evil Dead Rise. Early Rotten Tomatoes reviews praised the creature effects and character development, neither of which is ever a given in modern horror. Infested will also make its streaming debut on AMC Plus.
11 I Saw the TV Glow – May 3rd
The latest A24 horror film received rave reviews at Sundance for its originality.
Whenever A24 puts out a horror film, people stand up and take notice. The latest from the storied production company is I Saw the TV Glow, which has already gotten rave reviews at 2024’s Sundance Film Festival. Starring Justice Smith and Brigette Lundy-Paine, the 90s nostalgia-laced horror thriller follows two teens who bond over a TV show which begins to bleed into their reality after it is mysteriously canceled. Emma Stone and Dave McCary will act as producers, and a number of famous musicians will be featured in supporting roles, including Phoebe Bridgers and Fred Durst.
A24’s Top Ten Horror Movies By Tomatometer Score | |
|---|---|
The Hole in the Ground (2019) | 83% |
Midsommar (2019) | 83% |
Lamb (2021) | 86% |
It Comes At Night (2017) | 87% |
Hereditary (2018) | 89% |
The Witch (2015) | 90% |
Green Room (2015) | 90% |
In Fabric (2018) | 91% |
Saint Maud (2019) | 93% |
X (2022) | 96% |
10 Dust Bunny – Release Date Unknown
Bryan Fuller makes his feature directorial debut with a horror thriller featuring Sigourney Weaver.
TV writer and producer Bryan Fuller (Hannibal, American Gods) will make the jump to features with 2024’s Dust Bunny, which will involve a young girl seeking help from her neighbor with a monster she thinks ate her family. The film will star three horror veterans in Sigourney Weaver (Alien), David Dastmalchian (The Boogeyman) and Mads Mikkelsen, who collaborated with Fuller on Hannibal, which should give the film plenty of gravitas despite its child-driven story. Little else is known about the movie thus far, but it is expected to debut in 2024.
9 Cuckoo – May 3rd
Hunter Schafer leads a star-studded cast in a stylish psychological horror movie from Tilman Singer.
Hunter Schafer (Euphoria) will headline the latest horror film from Neon, which will also feature Dan Stevens (Legion), Jessica Henwick (Game of Thrones) and Marton Csokas (Lord of the Rings). The movie follows a teenager (Schafer) who follows her father and his new family to live in the German Alps. As is typical of a psychological horror movie, Schafer’s character Gretchen is plagued by terrifying visions as she steadily discovers sinister secrets about her own family. Cuckoo will get a wide release in theaters on May 3rd.
8 Tarot – May 10th
Jacob Batalon and other college students violate the rules of a deck of Tarot cards with disastrous results.
Tarot is actually based off the 1992 novel Horrorscope by Nicholas Adams. Starring Jacob Batalon (Spider-Man: No Way Home) Harriet Slater (Pennyworth), and Avantika (Mean Girls), the supernatural horror movie follows a group of college students who don’t play by the rules of a deck of Tarot cards, and one-by-one are killed by entities that align with their fates revealed by the cards. The film was originally pegged to release in June before being moved up to May 10th, when it will get a wide release from Sony.
7 Weapons – Release Date Unknown
The second movie from Barbarian director Zach Cregger is supposedly a “horror epic.”
Barbarian was the surprise horror hit of 2022, with comedian Zach Cregger receiving high praise in his directorial debut. The mysterious Weapons will give Cregger the opportunity to work with a far bigger budget, as his “interrelated, multi-story horror epic” will reportedly feature Josh Brolin in the lead role. Following its film festival debut, New Line Cinema won a fierce bidding war against Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw production company, so expectations are justifiably high. As of this writing, the movie is due to arrive in theaters in autumn 2024, although it’s possible it gets pushed to 2025.
6 Don’t Move – Release Date Unknown
The Sam Raimi-produced horror thriller stars American Horror Story’s Finn Wittrock and Yellowstone’s Kelsey Asbille.
Sam Raimi won’t be behind the camera, but he will be heavily involved as a producer on the horror thriller Don’t Move. American Horror Story alum Finn Wittrock will star alongside Kelsey Asbille (Yellowstone) in a tense tale about a serial killer who injects a woman with a paralytic agent. As the movie’s official synopsis reads, “…she must then run, fight and hide before her body completely shuts down.” As of now there is no release date for the movie, which will be Asbille’s first true lead role in a movie, but it is expected in 2024.
5 The Watchers – June 7th
Expectations around the directorial debut of Ishana Night Shymalan are understandably high.
Ishana Night Shyamalan will make her directorial debut with a wide-release film adaptation of the 2022 horror novel The Watchers. The twisted horror film stars Dakota Fanning (The Equalizer 3) and Georgina Campbell (Barbarian) as part of a group of strangers who are held captive by mysterious creatures who observe their actions every night. The director’s father, veteran horror director M. Night Shyamalan, will be a producer on the show, so one of the most interesting aspects of the movie will be seeing if Ishana Night Shyamalan can achieve what her father trying to do for 20 years.
4 Presence – Release Date Unknown
Steven Soderbergh brings a simple yet unique concept to the horror genre.
The pioneering camera master Steven Soderbergh will bring his unique directorial style to the horror genre with Presence in 2024. The simple yet original concept will rely heavily on Soderbergh’s camera skills, as the movie features a ghost story from the point of view of the ghost. A strong story and character development is almost guaranteed given that the movie, which will star Lucy Liu and Julia Fox, will be written by David Koepp (Jurassic Park, Panic Room, Spider-Man). Presence should get a wide release upon its debut given the prestige of the creators and cast.
3 Little Bites (unknown)
Cher is executive producing with a cast loaded with horror royalty.
Little Bites will feature an all-star roster of legendary scream queens in a story about a young mother who protects her daughter by allowing a flesh-eating monster to slowly feast on her body. While the movie will star Krsy Fox (Bury the Bride), it will feature three horror icons in Heather Langenkamp (A Nightmare on Elm Street), Barbara Crampton (Re-Animator) and Bonnie Aarons (The Nun). As if that wasn’t enough to intrigue the horror industry faithful, the one and only Cher is executive producing. There is no release info available yet, but the project is due out in 2024.
2 Longlegs – July 12th
Maika Monroe continues her horror/thriller domination alongside the legendary Nicolas Cage.
Maika Monroe has been a staple of the genre since her celebrated horror debut in 2014 with It Follows, and she’ll lead the way yet again in Longlegs as an FBI agent chasing a serial killer before he strikes again. The serial killer will be played by none other than Nicolas Cage, which certainly ups the anticipation for the new film from the distribution company Neon. Alicia Witt (Fun) and Blair Underwood (The Event) will have supporting roles. The film should get a wide release in the United States when it debuts in July.
1 In a Violent Nature – Release Date Unknown
The “slow cinema” Canadian film offers a new perspective on the traditional slasher film.
In a Violent Nature offers a fresh take on the slasher genre, as it follows a mute killer as he stalks a group of teens in the forests of Ontario. The unique element is that much of the movie is seen from the killer’s perspective as opposed to following around the victims. As a by-product of that function, the movie includes a number of long takes that should make it an interesting watch from a filmmaking perspective. In a Violent Nature will debut on the streaming service Shudder at some point in 2024.
