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Recent years have been good for people wanting some scares and thrills. As we move away from 2023’s great run of horror movies like Talk to Me and Evil Dead Rise, we look toward the future for nightmare-inducing terror. No matter what your tastes are in horror, we have some of the most anticipated movies releasing in 2024. If you want killers or monsters, sequels to your favorite franchises or original ideas, we have something for you to put on the calendar.
10. Night Swim – January 5
If you always wanted a pool, then watch what you wish for. Night Swim follows a family moving into a new house with an idyllic swimming spot. As exciting as it sounds, the pool holds an evil spirit with malicious plans for the family. It will splash us with all our pool-related fears, from being alone at night during a swim to being dragged to the bottom. From the trailers, it hits familiar territory from other stories while giving a refreshing dive into something new.
9. A Quiet Place: Day One – June 28
John Krasinski is stepping out as Pig director Michael Sarnoski takes over for A Quiet Place universe, which is all we need to put it as one of our most anticipated horror movies to be released in 2024. As the name suggests, we will be settling in on the first day the alien invasion happened. The sequel of the Emily Blunt-led film had a memorable, exciting scene that showed the initial attack. This time around, new characters will let us take in more of that first day of what would eventually lead to the first two movies. If you love world-building, then this spinoff will hopefully feed you more interesting questions and answers about the apocalyptic attack.
8. The Strangers: Chapter 1 – May 17
The Strangers is a cult classic in the home invasion subgenre. After a disappointing sequel that came years too late, we are getting a remake that will spin itself into a trilogy all within 2024. The sequels don’t matter unless the first movie, coming out on May 17, sticks the landing. This time around, the couple who must survive a night against the masked invaders will go on an emotional journey. While we can expect something similar to the original 2008 film, the sequels will expand upon the trauma someone would face after an attack like this.
7. Alien: Romulus – August 16
The last proper Alien movie was released in 2017. Depending on who you ask, people may say it has been longer since we had a good Alien installment. Romulus holds plenty of promise to give us hope and make it one of our most anticipated horror movies in 2024. Much of that comes from the fact that the Evil Dead 2013 director Fede Alvarez will be helming the long-awaited entry to the franchise, which is pretty exciting.
Set between the first two films, we will have something that is reminiscent of what Alvarez has done rather than other installments. This time around, we will have a group of young people in a colony on a distant planet trying to survive the Xenomorph, unlike previous movies that have military and scientific personnel.
6. Saw XI – September 27
Saw sat rotting away from bad sequels until Saw X rejuvenated the franchise and its fans with a higher-quality film that focused back on John Kramer (Tobin Bell) and Amanda Young (Shawnee Smith). With that new-found energy, we will be going into next year looking forward to even more nefarious traps from Saw XI. Based on the few details we know, it could either continue with what worked and stick to the past to focus on legacy characters, or perhaps go in the direction of Chris Rock’s Spiral. We’re hoping it’s not the latter!
5. Smile 2 – October 18
Smile was a runaway hit in 2022 that brought a larger production to a premise that gave similar vibes to the A24 classic It Follows. Parker Scott is back to write and direct the sequel, which is not really a surprise thanks to the quality and success of the first film. Not much is known about the film beyond confirmation of its lead: Aladdin star Naomi Scott. The 2022 film had plenty of lore on the curse and entity, so there is plenty of room for expansion to the world while giving us more creepy smiling people.
4. Return to Silent Hill – TBA 2024
Video game adaptations have largely fixed the narrative about the quality of the genre. Silent Hill was a dormant franchise that is making a return across video games and film. These factors make us unable to help ourselves but put Return to Silent Hill as one of our most anticipated horror movies coming in 2024. It will be a follow-up to arguably the best game in the franchise, Silent Hill 2. Bringing the characters to life will include Jeremy Irvine (Treadstone), who will play James, and his wife, who will be played by Hannah Emily Anderson (Dark Phoenix).
3. Terrifier 3 – October 25
Watch out, that is not Santa Claus… it’s Art the Clown. For viewers with a bloodlust, this should satisfy you more than anything else. Terrifier 3 will see Lauren LaVera back as Sienna to go against David Howerton Thornton’s supernatural killer clown. This time around, it will be with bloody Christmas cheer.
Unlike the second film, it will harken back to the first film’s lack of the supernatural and be more of a Grindhouse slasher. Terrifier 2 was also too long, so one of the other amendments will be that the next film will aim to be less than two hours while not diminishing the amount of gore that we are hoping to see.
2. Nosferatu – December 25
Few things make for a better Christmas gift to horror fans than a new Robert Eggers movie. The Witch and The Lighthouse director is back in the horror underworld after a Viking adventure to deliver his Nosferatu remake. It star, Bill Skarsgård, is back as a monster as the remake’s vampire, Count Orlok, who becomes infatuated with a woman (Lily-Rose Depp).
The director has described the film as “an old-school Gothic movie that’s actually scary.” The horror genre has had plenty of vampires in recent years and some Gothic inspirations, but none that quite hit where Eggers is thinking. If all goes well, then hopefully, we can get some real scares from this unique remake of a 100-year-old film.
1. MaXXXine – TBA 2024
Ti West greatly impressed viewers with X and then surprised audiences with a prequel, Pearl. The trilogy will end next year with MaXXXine, a sequel that follows Mia Goth as Maxine. The previous films have been significantly different from one another while still focusing on themes of fame and sex. We have gone from a sexy Texas Chainsaw Massacre to Psycho meets The Wizard of Oz. Whatever West has in mind, we are in for a sexy, gory good time.
Set in 1980s Los Angeles, the titular character is seeking stardom. The first two films have focused on themes of sex and fame that end up in gory deaths. If Maxine wants to be a star, she will need to survive whatever threats await her in L.A. What will be on her side is the experience of fighting back after her previous encounter with Pearl.
