Love them or hate them, there’s no denying that trad wives have captured the zeitgeist. Scroll through TikTok or Instagram, and you’re bound to see a beautiful young mother cooking or baking things from scratch—and doing so dressed in couture, if you’re Nara Smith.

But the trad wife phenomenon goes far beyond social media: old-school staples like apron dresses, headscarves, and elbow-length gloves are dominating the runway, while hit reality TV shows like Hulu’s The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives—which has surpassed The Kardashians in ratings—and Fox’s Farmer Wants a Wife depict the far messier reality of modern women trying to operate within the constraints of traditional gender roles.

Now, the literary world is lending its own critical eye to the trad wife craze. A handful of recent books are putting a new spin on the domestic thriller, calling our cultural obsession with these hyperfeminized figures into question. The Housemaid by Freida McFadden and Jo Piazza’s Everyone Is Lying to You are just two recent bestselling examples that reinterpret tropes from classics like Ira Levin’s The Stepford Wives or Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca.

In 2026, the trend reaches a fever pitch, with three more novelists entering the discourse. Saratoga Schaefer’s USA Today Bestseller Trad Wife, released in February, follows wannabe influencer Camille Deming, who spawns with a demon à la Levin's Rosemary’s Baby. TikTok-famous cultural commentator Caro Claire Burke’s buzzy debut, Yesteryear, out this week, tells the story of viral sensation Natalie Heller Mills, who is transported back to the pioneer era she yearns for. (Anne Hathaway is already attached to star in the feature film adaptation.) Finally, Bram Stoker Award winner Sarah Langan’s Trad Wife, to be released this fall, sees journalist Jenny Kaplan investigate Mia Wright—the “trad wife queen” followed by millions—only to discover the dark truths behind the quaint town that has become her dominion.

Below, Schaefer, Burke, and Langan tell Marie Claire about the inspiration behind their books, social media’s role in the trad wife empire, and how the rise of trad wives correlates with culture and politics at large.

Marie Claire: What initially interested you in writing about trad wives?

Caro Claire Burke, author of Yesteryear: Everything that I’m interested in was things that I felt like I could access very easily through this topic. There are a lot of contradictions within trad wife discourse, like the irony of trying to sell subservience. That has been in women's literature forever—I think about The Stepford Wives, The Handmaid's Tale—so I don't even think it's necessarily new. It's a very established canon, and this felt like such a new way to access all of those same conversations.

Saratoga Schaefer, author of Trad Wife: I'm non-binary, and I wrote a horror book that's about someone who is a woman and who is in a very traditionally feminized role, [and] gets pregnant. That was very interesting for me to explore personally, because that was the horror for me. I like to write about things that confuse me, that I personally maybe don't understand or can't relate to. It’s a way for me to get into the head of somebody who's very different from me. That's what I was trying to do here—figure out the motivation behind the attraction to a lifestyle like this one.

Sarah Langan, author of Trad Wife: I think trad wives are really alluring. They're beautiful. They seem to be able to handle domestic life in ways that are really difficult. There's a lot of wish fulfillment in the trad wife algorithm that I think is what people love about them.

They also play into this cultural wave of wanting to put women back in their boxes. Cultural change is really scary, and we’ve had huge upheaval in the 2020s. Some people are really uncomfortable with that, and this makes them feel safe—this trend of exaggerating that existence in ways that are harmful.

I don't have an issue with a woman making a buck. My concern is that the algorithm wants this, just as it wants the manosphere, this exaggerated representation. It all goes back to this idea of trying to pretend that things are back to normal, especially in this post-COVID era, where we're not able to articulate what happened during COVID. Instead, it’s like, ‘Let's just go back to conservatism.’

MC: All three of these books fit into the genres of horror or suspense. Why might those genres speak to the trad wife trend?

CCB: Well, being a woman kind of is horrific. There are so many horror tropes around women, like the witch, the old hag, and gestation is another common theme. There’s something about womanhood where it's like, you can take the perspective of an autonomous person, you can have a protagonist, but they're never fully in control.

SS: The true horror of it, at least for me, comes from this social aspect and this way that we're regressing and putting all of these gendered binaries and boundaries on things like parenting and relationships. Horror is one of the very best genres to do that with because it gives you so much creative freedom and the ability to express these issues we're dealing with as a society.

SL: I think that the monster within is the scariest monster. The fears that I have, and I think are the most relevant ones, are what you don't know, and what you're living inside of and accepting without realizing that it's not okay. In Trad Wife, what I'm trying to do is put some paint on top of these invisible things so we can see them, these unseen assumptions about gender and about our roles in the world.

MC: The concept of trad wives predates social media, but how has social media shaped our perception of them?

CCB: Anything that does well on social media can capture the discourse now, like there is a little bit of the chicken and the egg where we’re stuck within the algorithm. I don't think it's accidental that all of our social media platforms are now owned by men who don't think women should have rights. Twitter was the birthplace of #MeToo, and that would never happen now because Elon Musk owns it. I think about Peter Thiel funding [28, a menstrual cycle-tracking app created by the founders of the conservative women’s magazine] Evie. I think of Mark Zuckerberg, who runs Meta and therefore Instagram and Facebook, and he talks openly about the need for a return to masculinity. These people are perfectly comfortable warping young women’s understanding of themselves.

SS: Social media has given us the ability to put ourselves inside of other people's homes, inside their lives, inside their families, and that’s something relatively new in terms of the human experience. That takes things to a very intense level that we haven't really seen before.

L: There’s value in being the person who runs the home. They're not just the glue for their children and their spouse. They're the glue for their community and extended families. Their full-time job is to love other people. I think we've lost that, or we perceive having lost that, because there's a necessity for two incomes now. It feels good to watch a stylized version of that on TikTok and think, ‘I could do that. I could be home, and I would give love, and I would be loved, and it would be amazing.’ Obviously, the issue is that these [influencers] are encouraging others to stay home, but they're working full-time to make this money. So it's a little bit of a pyramid scheme.

MC: Themes of performance, parasocial relationships, and agency were common threads in all of these stories. Why did these concepts feel important to explore?

CCB: The performance aspect is so interesting because with trad wives, you see elements of that both in religion and on social media. These women are trained to perform. You're performing for the Lord. You're performing for everyone around you. You're raised to believe that how you present as a woman not just impacts you, but impacts everyone around you. I think we all relate to this feeling of carrying so many different versions of ourselves and how exhausting that is.

SS: I think it all goes back to social media, which highlights this concept of performing and also selling, because we have these huge trad wife accounts that are monetized. There’s maybe a lack of transparency from those bigger accounts, of how they got there and what they're doing. Do they have generational wealth or not? Do they have other jobs or not? We are not being given the entirety of the truth. I think all of that ties into this intense whirlwind of emotions and reactions to trad wives, where it gets really unhealthy quickly.

I also thought it was interesting to explore this conscious choice to give up some power or agency (which in itself maybe is its own agency) to portray a certain role in your life or your family's life. In Camille's case, it's because this is how she was raised. She's raised to be this supportive, feminine presence in the life of her father, and then her husband. It’s also due to her need for validation, so she knows she is important to the people in her life, which I think a lot of people can relate to.

SL: I'm innately very uncomfortable with the idea of making money through your brand online. When you go online and say, I'm this, this is who I am, it becomes a mask, and now you have to be consistent with that mask. And for whom? The people behind these platforms are ultimately the ones who win, and then the mask kind of eats the face.

I also think it's scary to become a woman. Any time a woman comes of age, she notices eyes on her. The idea of becoming a trad wife maybe allows women to feel safe and protected, like it’s a way that they can bypass this entire system that seems to want to peg you and have eyes on you. They think, ‘I'll get the agency I can through this if I can't get equal pay.’

MC: What about trad wives do you think are so captivating, and what does our obsession with them (whether positive or negative) say about our current cultural moment?

CCB: I'm not convinced that people are following the path. I don't think there's really any evidence that people are becoming this. The women who have dropped out of the workforce are not making bread homemade. I think it's purely a tool of propaganda that people can use to argue over, which isn't nothing.

There's also a certain reality where I'm like, ‘You could also not follow them. You don't have to think about them.’ Natalie provides fury and entertainment and comfort, and all of these emotions to people who don't know her, and then people who don't know her provide engagement. Wouldn't your ultimate condemnation of them be not giving them any attention?

SS: I don't think it hurts that a lot of these trad wives are attractive white women with a host of children. That's the whole basis, really, of the trad wife movement: It's steeped in things like white supremacy and sexism.

Regardless of whether or not I have personal opinions about trad wives, the fact is, you are doing a lot of work. You are doing a lot of work on the home front. You're doing a lot on the emotional front because you are taking care of your family and your partner in a way that really puts them before you. And then, especially if you’re online, you're doing a social media marketing job. But when people look at it from the outside, it's like, ‘That's so great. You get to sit at home all day, you do whatever you want, you take pretty pictures for social media, and you get paid for it.’

That doesn't take away from the fact that it is work, and I think we need to recognize that. That kind of thankless labor can lead to burnout and mental health issues, and that's the stuff that we don't put online, because it's not pretty.

SL: I don’t know how many people are realistically thinking, ‘I want to dress like it’s the 1950s and work a farm and have seven kids.’ I don't think a ton, but I think the algorithm really likes it, which is corrupting. The more extreme you make something, the more clicks it’s going to have, and the more distorted our reality becomes.

I wanted to be considerate of these women in the book because the point I was trying to make was, we’ve got our arrows pointed at each other. It's all these people just trying to make ends meet and get their bills paid at the end of the month, shouting at each other, while the people running these platforms are getting rich and taking everything.

This story contains extensive spoilers about The Drama and Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen, including their endings.

It's a really strange sensation to watch The Drama when you're planning your own wedding.

In the movie, Zendaya and Robert Pattinson play Emma Harwood and Charlie Thompson, a couple in the midst of prepping for their own nuptials. While doing a (way-too-late) tasting at their venue to finalize the menu just a few days before the wedding, a conversation with their friends turns into a party game of sorts: What is the worst thing you've ever done? Charlie can't think of anything all that significant. Emma's is a doozy.

Here's where spoilers kick in: When she was a teenager, she planned, but didn't execute, a school shooting. It's a horrifying revelation that acts as a comment on the pervasiveness of gun violence in American society. But more than that, it's a jumping-off point to explore the anxieties associated with commitment. The anti-rom-com, written and directed by Kristoffer Borgli, asks, if you found out your partner contemplated something genuinely monstrous, would you still tie the knot?

Now let's make this clear: I myself am remarkably chill about my upcoming event. Movies and TV shows are trying to make me less so.

In addition to The Drama, this spring has seen the arrival of the Netflix limited horror series Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen. The show follows Rachel Harkin (Camila Morrone), who travels with her fiancé, Nicky Cunningham (Adam DiMarco), to his brood's remote vacation house for what she thinks will be their intimate wedding. Immediately, she is struck by a strong sense of foreboding. At first, she suspects her partner's weird family is going to murder her in some satanic ritual, but her plight ends up being a lot more existential. She is cursed, and if the man she marries is not her one, true soulmate, she will die on her wedding day. If they don't walk down the aisle, the curse will spread to his bloodline. That means she's forced to question whether the guy she loves is truly the only person for her because both of their lives are at stake.

Tonally, The Drama and Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen are vastly different. The Drama is ultimately a relationship saga that's almost too real. Meanwhile, the longer you watch Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen, the more it leans into its supernatural flourishes before its Grand Guignol ending, where faces start oozing rivers of red liquid. But both, at their core, are about how choosing to say "I do" can be a recipe for disaster.

These days, marriage is looking less and less appealing. A recent report in The New York Times found that the U.S. marriage rate hit a 140-year low in 2019. It has risen a little since then, but not in a truly significant way. At the same time, the marriage industrial complex is still going strong—especially in the age of oversharing on social media, when bridal showers and bachelorette parties are more curated (and friendship-testing) than ever, and fashionable brides are desperate to get their ceremonies into Vogue. The Drama and Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen speak to those twin trends: As more people ask, "Why even get married?" the business of getting married can feel overwhelming.

Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen leans into this by centering the episodes on different traditions, such as the bachelorette party or the ceremony. Rachel only wants to deal with the whole curse thing, while her nattering to-be-sister-in-law Portia (Gus Birney) demands she have fun with the girls. Similarly, in The Drama, Charlie and Emma are overwhelmed by an instructor (Celia Rowlson-Hall) coaching them on their wedding dance, who takes everything way too seriously. Also, the very conversation that yields Emma's confession starts because Emma and Charlie think they walk by their wedding DJ doing heroin on the street and wonder whether it’s a momentary lapse in judgment or the kind of thing that could ruin their celebration. After Charlie learns what Emma nearly did, they still go around meeting with their vendors, like the cheery photographer (Zoë Winters) who can't understand why they suddenly look so uncomfortable around each other. In each piece of entertainment, the show must go on. After all, there's time and money invested in making sure everything is just right.

Through these sequences, we see how the pomp and circumstance of marriage is the enemy of honest discussion. That's especially evident in Something Very Bad's rehearsal dinner episode, where Rachel placates her nerves by repeating the cute story of how she and Nicky met until she learns that something about her telling doesn't add up. Charlie spirals in The Drama without truly listening to what Emma has to say or realizing the pain these memories have brought up for her. He makes her drama all about him.

The ultimate question in both cases, as it is in any wedding, is whether these two people are meant to be together. And this, again, is where they diverge. At the outset of the finale of Something Very Bad, Rachel decides she's committed to believing she and Nicky are soulmates, but after her heartfelt vows, he is the one who has trouble sealing the deal. He thinks the best solution is to call the whole thing off. Given the curse, that is not an option, and she realizes he never truly believed her very justified fears. In the end, through a magic twist of fate, she gets to leave him behind, and thank goodness for that. She just has to serve as witness to every Cunningham marriage, as the human manifestation of the curse they now have.

The Drama, on the other hand, ends with Charlie and Emma together. They get married, but the reception is a hot mess with an angry, drunken bridesmaid (Alana Haim, genius in the role) and an admission of infidelity on Charlie's part. But after blood has been spilled and her dress has been ruined, they both land at the same diner, where they tentatively start over. Maybe they are choosing to ignore each other's flaws. Or maybe they are just recognizing that nobody's perfect.

I think I weirdly find The Drama's version of romance more comforting. Yes, Something Very Bad has a you-go-girl ending where Rachel drives off, grinning, smoking, and looking like a badass. But she's also condemned to a life of bearing witness to other people's misery.

It's The Drama that has a bizarre optimism for its central pair. Sure, they may be deeply messed up, but they are now married, and they are going to try to make it work. They always thought they'd conclude their night at the diner. Now they are doing just that, a little worse for wear, but together nonetheless.

At this point, I think I know my partner pretty well. We've been together for over 10 years. He's my best friend. But you can never truly know another person. There will be thoughts that will always be mysterious. Moods that you can't interpret. You just have to hope that you can meet at your version of a diner, willing to forgive.

Netflix's new limited series Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen may center on a picture-perfect couple, but there's something sinister (and supernatural) lurking underneath. From creator Haley Z. Boston and the team behind Stranger Things, the horror show is set amid the five-day countdown to the wedding between Rachel (Camila Morrone) and her wealthy fiancé Nicky (Adam DiMarco). As strange behavior from Nicky's family stokes Rachel's growing paranoia, the bride-to-be has to confront the dread of possibly marrying the wrong person.

In honor of the show's release, Morrone and DiMarco sat down with Marie Claire to test their friendship with a game of How Well Do You Know Your Co-Star?. As they guessed each other's first jobs, love languages, favorite snacks, and pizza toppings, it was clear that the pair built an easy friendship while filming the bloody series. Though they agreed on certain topics (their love of Italy) and disagreed on others (eggs are a divisive food), they're close enough to keep in touch through "very curated" Instagram Reels. (We'd love to join DiMarco, Kaia Gerber, Suki Waterhouse, and Cole Bennett in her Reels rotation.)

Watch the full challenge above, then head to Netflix to watch Something Very Bad is Going to Happen streaming now.

When you call a show Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen, well… you don’t have to guess where things are going. As the title promises, something very bad does happen in this Netflix horror-thriller series, which comes from creator and showrunner Haley Z. Boston and is produced by Stranger Things masterminds The Duffer Brothers. But finding out what that bad thing is, and who it happens to, is part of the show’s twisty ride—one that marries relationship anxieties, family drama, and supernatural curses. Oh, and there’s a wedding in there, too!

You’re cordially invited to attend our breakdown of all the biggest and most surprising things that happen across Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen’s eight episodes, including the ending. We’ll consider this your RSVP.

What's the very bad thing that's going to happen in 'Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen?'

Are we stopping at just one? The leadup to Rachel (Camila Morrone) and Nicky’s (Adam DiMarco) wedding is filled with all sorts of ominous issues—from the creepy man Rachel encounters at a roadside bar that asks if she’s sure she’s marrying the right person, to the not-exactly-warm welcome she receives from Nicky’s family and their strange behavior in the days leading up to the ceremony.

The biggest looming “bad” though, as it were, is that a curse has plagued Rachel’s family for generations—a fact she only finds out in the days before the wedding. If Nicky is truly her soulmate, there’s nothing to worry about; the wedding will go off without a hitch, at least not any of the supernatural kind. But if he’s not, she’ll die that same day at sundown. And if she bolts, the curse passes to Nicky’s entire bloodline. The only way to escape the curse altogether is never getting engaged because once you do, there’s no turning back.

So, Rachel has some soul searching to do: Is Nicky truly her perfect match? And how sure is she?

Do Rachel and Nicky get married in 'Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen?'

After trying to calculate how she is down to a percentage point, contacting a deceased ancestor via a seance, and concocting a magic potion (more on that later), Rachel decides to put her faith in Nicky and go through with the wedding. After all, she did love him enough to say yes in the first place when he proposed.

But after the walk down the aisle and sharing their handwritten vows, it’s Nicky who pulls the plug. Rocked by the events of the past week, including learning about the curse, that his mother is dying, and that his parents’s marriage isn’t as picture-perfect as he’d always been led to believe, he’s the one who doesn’t think they should go through with it.

The ceremony goes on hold, and guests enjoy the reception while the two of them go off separately to talk it out. Rachel initially hadn’t wanted to get married, Nicky reminds her, and by calling off the wedding, he thinks he’s saving them from the “curses” of their families’s respective traumas. Rachel, meanwhile, reminds him of the very real curse hanging over them, but also that she agreed to get married because she knew what that meant for him. Nicky was the only person who could have gotten her up the aisle, and she went through a lot over the past week (to put it lightly!) to meet him at the altar with confidence.

Ultimately, what it comes down to is he doesn’t believe her about the curse, or that she’ll die if they’re not soulmates—and because he doesn't believe her, then he never was her soulmate. As Rachel comes to this heartbreaking revelation, the sun goes down, and the curse begins taking hold of Nicky’s family: his mother, Victoria (Jennifer Jason Leigh), begins hemorrhaging, as does his sister, Portia (Gus Birney), who had an impulsive Vegas wedding.

Now that guests are collapsing all over the reception, Nicky suddenly believes her (no kidding!) and, in a last-ditch effort to save himself and his family, shoves a ring on her finger as his father (Ted Levine) pronounces them husband and wife. Does this rebound the curse back to her? Initially, it seems that way—she begins bleeding profusely in the same way the others did, and collapses in the house’s snowy courtyard, covered in blood. But the next morning, she comes back to life as the new immortal “witness” who will watch over Nicky’s family, warn them about marrying the wrong person, and attend all their future weddings.

What happened to Rachel's mother in 'Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen?'

Rachel always knew her mother, Alexandra (Victoria Pedretti), died when she was a baby—but the violent circumstances of it were unknown to her until the days leading up to her own wedding, thanks to an old home video. It turns out her mother and father (played by Logan Miller in the past and Josh Hamilton in the present) got married in the same snowy countryside where Nicky’s family lives, and it also turned out that her husband was, in fact, not her true soulmate.

On their wedding night, as they’re celebrating back at a rented cabin, a very pregnant Alexandra begins to bleed and convulse, falling victim to the curse on her new husband’s family. As she bleeds out, her distraught husband decides to cut the baby—Rachel—out of her dying mother’s body.

And who was the "Sorry Man" in 'Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen?'

Nicky’s family lore included the “Sorry Man,” a depraved killer that his older brother, Jules (Jeff Wilbusch), apparently encountered as a young boy after wandering off into the woods. But it’s not a ghost, nor is it a roaming serial killer targeting brides: the gruesome scene the young boy witnessed was actually the death of Rachel’s mother on her wedding night. He was hiding under the bed in the cabin as the chaos started, and the “I’m sorry” he heard over and over was Rachel’s father apologizing as he cut open his dying wife to save their child

Alexandra noticed the young boy under the bed, and with her dying breaths, made him promise to look after the baby, which is why present-day Jules tries to keep Rachel safe, at least until the curse threatens his own family and the future of his young son, Jude (Sawyer Fraser).

And who was that mysterious man at the bar in 'Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen?'

That old man (Zlatko Burić) who asked Rachel if she was sure she was marrying the right person wasn’t just being a creep—he had a vested interest in warning her. And it turns out he’s the reason Rachel is in this whole crazy situation in the first place.

His family was the one initially cursed with this matrimonial burden: all descendants must find their soulmate in marriage, or they’ll die. On the day of his own wedding, a mysterious man came to him and told him this same story—and, like a coward, he left his wife-to-be at the altar. The curse then spread to Marianne, who married a man named Thomas Harkin, and their children—Rachel’s ancestors—all faced the same fate.

And because he didn’t marry Marianne, he became immortal. His only job now is to witness all the weddings in her bloodline—including that of her parents—but he likes to throw a little warning in for good measure. It’s also why he’s at Rachel’s wedding, and signs the marriage certificate as soon as Nicky tries to trap her in their cursed union.

How does Rachel try to break the curse in 'Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen?'

Part detective work, part magic, part magical thinking. After researching her doomed family tree at the county clerk’s office with Jules’s wife, Nell (Karla Crome), Rachel discovers one ancestor who did apparently marry her soulmate—or, at the very least, this bride didn’t die on her wedding night. She tries to summon this woman with a makeshift Ouija board during her bachelorette party, and it actually works: Portia becomes possessed and recites a haunted version of the famous rhyme about what brides wear to weddings: “something living, something dead, something stolen, something red.”

It turns out that rhyme is also a recipe in a mysterious book of rituals Portia had in her room: something living from the groom, something dead from the bride, something stolen from the mother-in-law, something red from an adversary. Mix those things, drink it up, and Nicky will become her soulmate, if he wasn’t already. So Rachel collects the ingredients: blood from the witness, hair stolen from Victoria, semen from Nicky, and…her own pinky toe, cut off by Jules in the final hours before the ceremony.

She drops them all into a glass of champagne, but we don’t find out until later that she never actually drank the concoction (which also means she cut off a toe for nothing). Rachel ultimately decided to trust in her own faith in Nicky, thinking her belief that he was her soulmate would be enough—and it might have been, but then he ruined it.

What happens at the end of 'Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen?'

The last-ditch “I do” that Nicky’s family tries to pull off fails, so now his family is the one bearing the curse. This, hopefully, means Nicky will choose his next partner very carefully. It also means a large portion of his family, the ones who didn’t marry their soulmates, died at the wedding once the sun went down. Despite talking about divorce, Jules and Nell survive the night, meaning they’re better suited for one another than they might have initially realized.

The witness begins taking items of value off the dead, but stops when he feels an invisible presence: It’s Death, finally coming for him this time, because Rachel has taken his place to watch over Nicky’s family.

And Rachel comes to in the courtyard, immediately understanding her new role as a forever wedding guest. When she sees young Jude in the hallway, she tells him she’s sorry this happened to him, but not to forget that it did happen. She then gives him a well-placed warning: He should be very careful who he chooses to marry. And whenever he does get married, she’ll be there to witness it.

With that out of the way, she has no more business at the family home—at least until there’s another wedding to attend. So she swaps her blood-soaked bridal gown for a suit, takes her mother’s bracelet off the dead witness’s wrist, and drives off in a pickup truck with “Just Married” painted on the back.

There’s nothing quite like sitting in a dark movie theater and feeling a chill run down your spine. The best horror movies can transport us to terrifying yet enticing new worlds, introduce iconic characters, and even reflect the terrors of our own reality back at us in thrilling ways. Plus, with the advent of subgenres like horror-comedy, movie lovers can enjoy several different films within one!

2026 in particular is shaping up to be a promising year for horror film buffs. Beloved franchises like Resident Evil and Evil Dead are returning, and horror icons like the Bride of Frankenstein are being reimagined in bold new ways. Meanwhile, new original horror films are exploring everything from Irish witches to medieval werewolves. To help you get your spine-tingling watchlist in order, we’ve rounded up some of the most exciting horror films of 2026, including what’s coming soon. (And if you’re interested in watching something right now, here’s our list of the best horror movies of 2025).

The Best Horror Movies of 2026 So Far

'28 Years Later: The Bone Temple'

Release date: January 16

Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Jack O'Connell, Alfie Williams, Erin Kellyman, and Chi Lewis-Parry

Why it's worth seeing: When Nia DaCosta releases a thriller or horror movie, you see it. The Candyman filmmaker took the reins on this movie in the 28 Days Later series, which marks the second in the past two years. In 2025, the series returned with the first movie's original screenwriter, Alex Garland (Ex Machina, Civil War), penning the first of three new sequels. DaCosta put her own stamp on the gory zombie franchise, upping the dread as Spike (Alfie Williams) navigates falling into the sadistic Jimmy Crystal's (Jack O'Connell) cult and Dr. Kelson (Ralph Fiennes) continues looking for a cure.

WATCH IT

'Iron Lung'

Release date: January 30

Starring: Markiplier, Caroline Rose Kaplan, Troy Baker, and Elsie Lovelock

Why it's worth seeing: 2026 is being hailed as the year of YouTuber-made horror. Even so, content creator-turned-director Markiplier’s Iron Lung stands alone as an indie movie that made a whopping $51 million without a major studio behind it. Based on the video game of the same name, the film takes place in the aftermath of an apocalyptic “rapture” as a convict (also played by Markiplier) attempts to steer a submarine through an ocean of blood. Oh, and it’s on the moon! Apart from its unique premise, Iron Lung is a fascinating case study of the non-traditional movie opportunities that an online following could grant creators access to moving forward.

WATCH THE TRAILER

'The Bride!'

Release date: March 6

Starring: Jessie Buckley, Christian Bale, Jake Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, Penélope Cruz, and Annette Bening

Why it’s worth seeing: Despite having less than 10 minutes of screentime in her titular 1935 film Bride of Frankenstein, the monster’s Bride has nevertheless become a horror icon. Now, she finally takes center stage in The Bride!, Maggie Gyllenhaal’s bold, punk-inspired reimagining. Set in 1930s Chicago, the film stars Hamnet’s Jessie Buckley as a murdered woman resurrected by mad scientist Dr. Euphronius (Annette Bening) to be a companion for Frankenstein’s monster (Christian Bale). Naturally, chaos ensues.

WATCH IT

'Ready or Not 2: Here I Come'

Release date: March 27

Starring: Samara Weaving, Kathryn Newton, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Shawn Hatosy, Néstor Carbonell, Kevin Durand, Olivia Cheng, Nadeem Umar-Khitab, David Cronenberg, and Elijah Wood

Why it's worth seeing: We may not get to see Radio Silence's complete Scream series, but thankfully, we got a sequel to Ready or Not. The hunt-to-the-death movie was nasty fun when it became a surprise blockbuster in 2019, and the second film has its own tricks up its sleeves. Just when Grace (Samara Weaving) thought she had it rough on her wedding night, she finds out that the ultra-wealthy still have it out for her—as well as her younger sister (Kathryn Newton). And they're upping the ante: Now she has to survive a disturbing game brought up by not just one affluent family, but several of the richest from across the globe.

WATCH IT

'They Will Kill You'

Release date: March 27

Starring: Zazie Beetz, Tom Felton, Patricia Arquette, Myha’la, and Heather Graham

Why it’s worth seeing: They Will Kill You puts a comedic spin on the cultish-apartment-neighbors archetype popularized by Rosemary’s Baby. Blending humor, horror, and thriller elements, the film follows a young woman (Zazie Beetz) who takes a housekeeping job at a N.Y.C. high-rise. After learning that the building has seen several disappearances, she’s forced to confront the fact that (gasp!) her new employers are a demonic cult.

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'Exit 8'

Release date: May 15

Starring: Kazunari Ninomiya, Yamato Kochi, Nana Komatsu, Naru Asanuma, and Kotone Hanase

Why it’s worth seeing: An ordinary subway commute turns into a deadly puzzle in Exit 8, Japanese filmmaker Genki Kawamura’s reimagining of the 2023 video game of the same name. Just after he receives life-changing news from his ex-girlfriend, a down-on-his-luck man (Kazunari Ninomiya) finds himself trapped in an endlessly looping subway tunnel. While Exit 8 follows in the footsteps of horror game adaptations like The Last of Us and Resident Evil, its embrace of psychological horror sets it apart from its peers.

WATCH IT

'Hokum'

Release date: May 1

Starring: Adam Scott, David Wilmot, Austin Amelio, Peter Coonan, Florence Ordesh, and Will O’Connell

Why it’s worth seeing: Hokum is a spooky new Adam Scott movie to help tide us over during the long wait for Severance season 3. Scott plays a horror novelist who arrives at a rural Irish inn to spread his late parents’ ashes. This time around, his grief is compounded not by experimental brain surgery, but by a vengeful, ancient witch.

WATCH IT

'Obsession'

Release date: May 15

Starring: Michael Johnston, Inde Navarrette, Cooper Tomlinson, Megan Lawless, and Andy Richter

Why it’s worth seeing: YouTuber Curry Barker entered the horror scene with the full, stylish genre treatment. In Obsession, a music clerk uses a novelty wishing toy to get exactly what he thinks he wants: the woman (Inde Navarrette) he has a crush on. Inevitably, his wish takes an ominous turn—resulting in a star-making performance by new scream queen Navarrette and a smart, eerie commentary on modern dating.

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'Backrooms'

Release date: May 29

Starring: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve, Mark Duplass, Finn Bennett, and Lukita Maxwell

Why it’s worth seeing: Liminal space horror has blown up in recent years, thanks in no small part to 21-year-old Kane Parsons’ spine-tingling Backrooms YouTube series. Now, the horror wunderkind has leaped from unsettling short-form content to feature filmmaking with a Backrooms movie that pays homage to the original series’ lore, all while evoking a Lynchian sense of disorienting surrealism. Chiwetel Ejiofor stars as Clark, a struggling furniture store owner who discovers another dimension full of interconnected, slightly uncanny empty rooms.

WATCH THE TRAILER

The Best Horror Movies Coming in Summer 2026

'Evil Dead Burn'

Release date: July 10

Starring: Souheila Yacoub, Hunter Doohan, Luciane Buchanan, Tandi Wright, and George Pullar

Why it’s worth seeing: Part of the fun of the Evil Dead franchise is its capacity for reinvention. Whereas the original Evil Dead told a fairly gory, straightforward tale of college kids accidentally summoning demons in the woods, Evil Dead II leaned into fully gonzo comedy horror. As recently as 2023, Evil Dead Rise played with format once again, introducing a haunted vinyl into a terrifying apartment complex. Although details about the latest entry are scarce outside of director Sébastien Vaniček’s promise that it will be “a film that hurts,” there are endless out-of-the-box possibilities for where the series could go next.

WATCH THE TRAILER

'Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma'

Release date: August 7

Starring: Gillian Anderson, Hannah Einbinder, Patrick Fischler, Hunter Dillon, and Jordana Summer

Why it’s worth seeing: Fresh off their beloved 2024 film I Saw The TV Glow, director Jane Schoenbrun is taking on a beloved horror subgenre: the slasher. Hacks star Hannah Einbinder leads Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, playing a young film director mounting a reboot of a Friday the 13th-style slasher franchise. In the process, she becomes obsessed with tracking down the franchise’s elusive original star (played by Gilligan Anderson), with whom she becomes embroiled in a campy, homoerotic encounter. Schoenbrun is a master at nostalgic, cerebral genre moviemaking, and Camp Miasma is no exception.

WATCH THE TRAILER

The Best Horror Movies Coming in Fall 2026

'Resident Evil'

Release date: September 18

Starring: Austin Abrams, Paul Walter Hauser, Kali Reis, and Zach Cherry

Why it’s worth seeing: With Barbarian and last year’s viral sensation Weapons, comedian-turned-filmmaker Zach Cregger has proven himself as a horror director to watch. While his first two films were out-of-the-box originals that played with structure and tone, this year’s Resident Evil marks his first foray into franchise filmmaking. Maybe Raccoon City will get one of Cregger’s trademark creepy basements, too!

WATCH THE TRAILER

'Other Mommy'

Release date: October 9

Starring: Jessica Chastain, Jay Duplass, Dichen Lachman, Sean Kaufman, and Karen Allen

Why it’s worth seeing: If Paranormal Activity and Insidious taught us anything, it’s that a paranormal presence terrorizing kiddos is a reliable crowd-pleaser at the box office. If you’re looking for more in this subgenre, The Other Mommy is well worth adding to your list. Based on Josh Malerman’s 2024 novel Incidents Around the House, this tale of a sinister entity haunting a young girl’s home has a stacked cast featuring the likes of Jessica Chastain and Severance’s Dichen Lachman.

'Clayface'

Release date: October 23

Starring: Tom Rhys Harries, Naomi Ackie, Max Minghella, and Eddie Marsan

Why it’s worth seeing: Clayface might be set in the same universe as 2025’s cheerful Superman, but this DC film promises to give audiences something we rarely see: a superhero movie that fully embraces horror. Featuring a script penned by Mike Flanagan of Midnight Mass and The Haunting of Hill House fame, DC head James Gunn has teased that the Batman villain’s solo movie will reimagine his origin story as a full-on body-horror tale.

WATCH THE TRAILER

'Werwulf'

Release date: December 25

Starring: Willem Dafoe, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Lily-Rose Depp, Ralph Ineson, and Simon McBurney

Why it’s worth seeing: Nosferatu director Robert Eggers is back for more festive horror this December. This time, he’s swapping vampire lore for the beast at the center of Werwulf, who stalks a medieval British village. Featuring returning Eggers collaborators like Lily-Rose Depp, Willem Dafoe, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, expect plenty of stunning, painstakingly period-accurate bloodshed, just in time for the holidays.

HBO's horror series IT: Welcome to Derry has had Stephen King fans on the edge of their seats for the past several weeks, following a new generation of losers and Derry residents who face the iconic creature, mostly known as Pennywise the Clown. Developed by the same team behind IT and IT: Chapter Two, the eight-episode show takes place 27 years before the film adaptations, as Pennywise reawakens and a mysterious military plot targets the entity.

Welcome to Derry came to an end on December 15, with a finale that brought the prequel in line with the events of the film and gave a hint of what's in store for potential future seasons. Below, read on for what to know about IT: Welcome to Derry season 2, including what that season finale cameo says about the series's future.

Has 'IT: Welcome to Derry' been renewed for season 2?

Nearly two months out from the Welcome to Derry season finale, and HBO has yet to renew the hit horror series. However, network chief Casey Bloys said in a late January interview with Deadline that he's 100 percent on board with more.

He clarified the hold-up by saying the show is "not in limbo at all." Instead, he attributed the lack of renewal to waiting on the story from showrunners Andy and Barbara Muschietti.

"Andy and Barbara are hard at work trying to come up with an idea for a story they’d want to tell for another season. I would happily do it," the CEO said. "One of the challenges is, there’s not a book that you’re basing it on, so it’s invention. They want to make sure that they have a story they’re excited to tell. So it’s not limbo other than they need to land on something they’re excited by creatively. We’ll be there."

Considering his comments—and how the show is among the most popular debuts on HBO Max, behind only The Last of Us and House of the Dragon, since the streamer launched—more episodes seem very likely.

That's not to mention that co-creator Andy Muschietti has been vocal about his three-season plan for the series since he first teased the show last January. Hopefully the team behind the series will get their ideas over to HBO Max soon, and the streamer will bring it to fruition. (Whether it's before or after WBD's fate is sealed is anyone's guess.)

When would 'IT: Welcome to Derry' season 2 come out?

Fans of genre shows are used to waiting a while for new seasons, and IT: Welcome to Derry will likely follow the trend. However, season 2 is guaranteed to have a shorter production schedule than season 1, which began filming in May 2023 and had to pause during the Hollywood strikes before production eventually wrapped in August 2024. Depending on how fast work resumes on the show, season 2 could return by late 2027 or early 2028.

Which of the cast members would return for 'IT: Welcome to Derry' season 2?

Based on what we know about Welcome to Derry season 2 so far, the only cast member guaranteed to return is the man behind the entity IT himself, Bill Skårsgard. However, there are a couple of characters who could return based on the revelations from the season 1 finale (and the Beverly Marsh cameo). My best guesses are that Dick Hallorann (Chris Chalk) or Marge Truman (Matilda Lawler) could show up at some point.

What would 'IT: Welcome to Derry' season 2 be about?

According to Muschietti, seasons 2 and 3 of IT: Welcome to Derry would depict earlier feeding cycles in IT/Pennywise's pattern of waking every 27 years. Season 2 would be set in 1935, and presumably depict the lead-up to the Bradley Gang massacre (that cycle's augury, the final tragedy that marks the end of IT's feeding, like 1962's burning of the Black Spot). If season 3 is greenlit, it would be set in 1908 and depict the Kitchener Ironworks fire. (These cycles are based on Mike Hanlon's research into IT's past in the original novel.)

Season 2 will likely be similar to the debut installment, telling an original story laden with both new IT/Pennywise lore and Easter eggs referencing the earlier adaptations. In the season 1 finale, we learned why those Easter eggs were also important to the overall plot. During their foggy face-off, Pennywise reveals to Marge that it sees time nonlinearly, so it knows that then-13-year-old Marge would go on to give birth to Richie Tozier (played by Finn Wolfhard and Bill Hader in the movies), and that Richie and the Losers would eventually kill him. (This also means that Marge named her eventual kid after her late love, Rich, and now I'm sobbing.)

After the '62 Losers send IT back to sleep, Marge speculates that IT could go back in time and target their ancestors, in an effort to stop the kids who would eventually defeat him from being born. With this setup, it seems that IT targeted Marge and Will Hanlon specifically because of their eventual offspring, so expect more generational connections with next season's kids. It's unclear now whether IT could succeed at changing history in later seasons, but it is a good threat to explain the series's reverse-linear timeline.

A bigger question for me as a Stephen King fan is how weird future seasons could go. Will Maturin, the cosmic god-turtle who "once created the universe by barfing it up," finally make it to the screen, or will the show stick with turtle charms and psychedelic roots? Only time will tell.

Time to grab your nail bats and steel yourself for the Upside Down: Stranger Things season 5 is here! Over three years since season 4 and nine years since it became a cultural phenomenon, the Netflix original series began its final season on Wednesday, November 26, 2025. However, as fans who impatiently logged on to Netflix that morning discovered, the release dates and times for season 5 are a bit complicated.

To celebrate the end of one of its biggest shows, Netflix seems to want Stranger Things season 5 to dominate our holiday viewing schedules. So, fans who planned to, you know, spend time with family and friends on the most festive days of the year, will have to decide between watching the ball drop or watching the people of Hawkins (hopefully) defeat Vecna once and for all.

Read on for everything you need to know about Stranger Things season 5, from what time the episodes drop to how late fans should expect to stay up watching.

When does each episode of 'Stranger Things' season 5 arrive on Netflix?

Netflix will release Stranger Things season 5 in three parts, with each installment pegged to a major U.S. holiday. The first four episodes arrived on November 26, 2025, the day before Thanksgiving, and the next three will hit the streamer on Christmas Day, December 25, 2025.

The super-sized series finale is set to arrive on New Year's Eve, December 31, 2025.

What time does 'Stranger Things' season 5 arrive on Netflix?

Each installment of Stranger Things season 5 will arrive on Netflix at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT on its respective release day. With this primetime scheduling, the final season eschews Netflix's typical practice of dropping new shows at midnight PT on the day of release. (Tudum has a handy countdown clock for anyone who struggles with time zones.)

Here are the full details of Stranger Things season 5's release schedule:

• Volume 1 (Episodes 1-4): November 26, 2025, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT
• Volume 2 (Episodes 5-7): December 25, 2025, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT
• The Finale (Episode 8): December 31, 2025, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT

How long are the 'Stranger Things' season 5 episodes?

Leading up to season 5, the Duffer Brothers have been clear that the final season of Stranger Things will include longer episodes, similar to season 4. In October, Ross Duffer revealed the runtimes for the first four episodes, dispelling rumors that each episode would be at least 90 minutes long.

Here are the confirmed Stranger Things season 5 episode runtimes and titles:

• Chapter One: The Crawl – 1 hour, 8 minutes
• Chapter Two: The Vanishing of Holly Wheeler – 54 minutes
• Chapter Three: The Turnbow Trap – 1 hour, 6 minutes
• Chapter Four: Sorcerer – 1 hour, 23 minutes
• Chapter Five: Shock Jock – TBC
• Chapter Six: Escape from Camazotz – TBC
• Chapter Seven: The Bridge – TBC
• Chapter Eight: The Rightside Up – 2 hours, 5 minutes

Is the 'Stranger Things' finale going to be in theaters?

Yes! Netflix and the Duffer Brothers are bringing the Stranger Things series finale to select theaters in the U.S. and Canada. The fan screenings will show the final episode in more than 500 theaters on December 31 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT, timed to the finale’s global premiere on Netflix at the same time. If you already have NYE plans, additional screenings will also take place throughout the day on January 1.

The full list of theater locations is now available at ST5finale.com.

"We’re beyond excited that fans will have the chance to experience the final episode of Stranger Things in theaters," series creators Matt and Ross Duffer said. "Getting to see it on the big screen, with incredible sound, picture, and a room full of fans, feels like the perfect…way to celebrate the end of this adventure."

Paranormal fiction is basically a “best of all worlds” situation: It blends the escapism of fantasy with the inspired realism of science fiction, while also dabbling in practically every other literary genre, from horror to romance and everything in between. In a nutshell, the paranormal genre refers to books dealing with concepts or figures that can’t currently be explained by science but could maybe, possibly be one day—think ghosts, psychics, werewolves, and vampires—in contrast to the fantasy and supernatural genres, which encompass topics that operate completely beyond our natural world.

With those parameters in mind, paranormal novels can range from the spine-tinglingly creepy to the sweetly cozy, meaning there’s something for everyone within the genre. Here, we’ve rounded up 15 of the best paranormal fiction books out there, spanning horror, romance, and mystery, from spooky classics like Dracula to a ghostly new love story from Nicholas Sparks and M. Night Shyamalan—with a stop in Forks, Washington, along the way for all the Twihards out there.

The Best Paranormal Horror Books

The Best Paranormal Mystery Books

The Best Paranormal Romance Books

While Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein is a faithful adaptation of Mary Shelley’s classic text, it brings its own point of view to the Gothic-Victorian era. The film, which hit Netflix on November 7, is a feast for the eyes: with a jewel-tone palette that’s a far cry from the morose hues we’ve come to associate with the horror story; an ornate production design; and a unique vision of The Creature (played by Jacob Elordi).

But its most enchanting goth girl moment may be del Toro’s integration of a beloved genre motif: a woman descending a staircase in her nightgown, candelabra in tow. Much like the trope of the desolate yet grandiose estate or the fantasy of paranormal romance, it evokes a certain feeling of the divine feminine and female sexuality.

The scene occurs when Mia Goth’s character, Elizabeth, desperate to see The Creature for herself, sneaks out of her bedroom and into the basement. Her nightgown—teal, sheer, embellished with ruching, and inspired in part by Caravaggio paintings—adds to the movie’s mysticism.

It was important to costume designer and frequent del Toro collaborator Kate Hawley (Pacific Rim, Crimson Peak) that the look be instantly memorable. She explains to Marie Claire that great consideration went into Elizabeth’s nightgown because it’s meant to be the first time both she and The Creature, each misunderstood in their own way, feel truly seen by another.

Hawley says it wasn’t lost on her or del Toro how much this scene would resonate with young women in particular. “There is that natural want to escape to the land of fairy tale, and it's not something to be sniffed at all. I was brought up on the works of the original Grimms’ Fairy Tales or Angela Carter, and there's a deep sensuality within that.” she says over Zoom. “I think Guillermo really taps into that with women. There's a sort of erotica of horror and the sensuality of it. I think women respond to that, and it's part of their deep oral storytelling. It's our witch.”

Here, Hawley breaks down Elizabeth’s naked dressing nightgown moment, as well as more details behind the fashion in Frankenstein.

Marie Claire: What did you want to accomplish with Elizabeth’s look in this moment in Frankenstein?

Kate Hawley: Having done nine or so night dresses for Guillermo on Crimson Peak, it was a moment of like, Oh, my God, what do I do? Because we've done this so much, where do I go with it? And the answer came from Guillermo in the end. He said he wanted something really simple. For that moment, it was all about Mia's hair and being in the moment—being almost as close to naked with the creature and as natural as possible—but still luminous because Mia brings all of that.

I did a nod to the Victorian ‘60s. We'd been echoing that world with her color palette. I'd been in the Tiffany archives looking at all the Louis Comfort Tiffany glass. I’d been looking at Biba because we talked about Oscar [Isaac’s character Victor] hitting that ‘60s horror influence, as well. It found itself through all the characters, but particularly that moment. She definitely has that ‘60s horror femme fatale, coming down the staircase. And Mia herself brings so much to the atmosphere. I was worried that we'd overwhelm her, but she's actually got an amazing presence that comes through everything. That woman can just walk in anywhere and take the room.

MC: It’s interesting because there’s a timelessness about that trope and look.

KH: You can name the films, can't you? Whenever we look at all the references, we look at them, but we don't copy and paste. We put it into the language of our film. [del Toro] likes to work with lots of artists, and he likes to see interpretation in the work. We draw, we explore, we reinterpret. And that's how the costumes evolved.

MC: You said Elizabeth was meant to look as naked as possible. What did you see as the significance of this?

KH: When Victor meets his creature for the first time, it's a narcissistic mirror image of seeing man in his own image. It's all these religious themes, but the way he peels his gloves off to show the creature he's real, then that's echoed when the creature peels [Elizabeth’s] gloves off in the very first time they meet in the cell. So you're aware of how the visual language is developing; Guillermo's always weaving repetition through it all.

MC: Why did you decide to make the nightgown blue?

KH: [del Toro] wants his horror to have color. He didn't want a sea of black. So, the first thing was, How do I make color sing in a way that still is evocative of the atmosphere, which is melancholy and loneliness? And how do we do color that's intense but not flat and bright that still answers the tone? The blues and greens are a really important part of it.

[The nightgown] echoes how we first see her in blue when Victor sees her, where she’s [likened to] Madonna. It was a softer version of that, like moonlight. Elizabeth is always, in Victor's story, seen through his eyes in the more abstract form of mother. When we get to this creature’s story, she's reflecting the creature and his version of the world. So she's all these women: She's Madonna, she's mother, all of these things. They're fleeting images, they’re part of the dream world, they're memories. I love that within Guillermo's script, too, the creature talks about memories and wearing them, or that there are memories within him that he can grasp elements of things. When he puts on a dead man's coat in the forest, it's almost like he's putting on the memory of another man's skin. There are all these images throughout.

MC: The nighgtown is hardly the only sheer piece. Victor’s mother is always covered in it, Elizabeth frequently wears a veil, and it’s prominently featured in the design in the funeral and wedding scenes. Why was sheer so important?

KH: It helped us get into the more ethereal language that Guillermo wanted. It also helped me translate color in a way that felt more part of the dream world. If I just put lots of flat fabrics in there, it would've had a very different tonal quality, but because we used the veils in terms of color and the fabric we used, it's almost like a more painterly approach, which is very Guillermo. It becomes part of the brush strokes of the landscape. It was trying to find that dreamlike quality—faces blurred so they felt like memories. We were trying to evoke a mood and tone by using color. It layers through—almost a constant metamorphosis of color.

MC: There’s a lot of debate around historical accuracy in period piece costuming. Do you think it’s a challenge or does it allow you to be more playful when you don’t go for 100% accuracy?

KH: First of all, [del Toro] changed the time period from the book [published in 1818] to the 1850s, which made sense for a more modern world. We have the Industrial Revolution in full swing, the Crimean War in the background. And he always said that he wanted a modern edge to the costumes. There's also the tone of gothic, and how do we do that in a Victorian world?

Because we were still defined by the silhouette, that creates one rule that you can accept; some of the details within the period actually help you tell the story. I go deep into research, then I let it go and go deep into the thematics and the dream of the world. And then at some point, those two things meet.

Even if you look back in time, we all invest the past with a kind of grandeur or correctness or rules that it didn't have. Someone in their 50s might still dress as they did in their 30s, or never could never have afforded clothes. There's stories behind everything. Nobody wears a uniform.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

On the Sunday before Halloween, It: Welcome to Derry arrived on HBO to extend Spooky Season into the holidays. Developed by the minds behind It and It: Chapter Two, HBO's original prequel series returns viewers to Derry, Maine, 27 years before the events of the 2017 and 2019 film adaptations of Stephen King's iconic novel. Set in 1962, Welcome to Derry takes place during an earlier active cycle where IT (the shapeshifting evil that sometimes appears as Pennywise) awakens to terrorize and feed on the town's children.

Ahead of Welcome to Derry's debut on October 26, 2025, HBO kept character and plot details under wraps, to hide the new series's extensive connections to both IT and King's other novels. With the season finale airing on December 14, it's time to learn more about the kids and adults who take on the entity in the horror series. Below, read on for everything we know about the cast of It: Welcome to Derry.

Miles Ekhardt as Matthew "Matty" Clements

It: Welcome to Derry kicks off with the disappearance of Matty, a 12-year-old boy who still uses a pacifier and likes to sneak into movie screenings. Fleeing a difficult home life, Matty comes across trouble as he tries to run away from his deadly hometown.

Miles Ekhardt is a child actor who made his professional debut last year, with his role as Davis's younger brother Noah in the film adaptation of YA author John Green's Turtles All the Way Down.

Clara Stack as Lilly Bainbridge

Lilly, a friend of Matty's, is known by the moniker "Loony," as she previously spent time in the Juniper Hill Asylum following her father's tragic death. She's the first to get an unbelievable, terrifying vision.

At 4-years-old, Clara Stack began acting in local theater productions, including Annie and The Music Man. Before Welcome to Derry, she appeared in episodes of Madam Secretary, Bull, Almost Family, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. After playing young Kate Bishop in the Disney+/Marvel series Hawkeye, she appeared in the Disney original Christmas movie The Naughty Nine.

Mikkal Karim-Fidler as Teddy Uris

Teddy (above, right) was also friends with Matty; he, Phil, and Matty seemed to make up a proto-Losers Club before Matty's disappearance. While it hasn't been confirmed, Teddy is likely related to It's Stanley Uris.

Before Welcome to Derry, Mikkal Karim-Fidler had small roles in shows including Six, 50 States of Fright, and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. He also appeared in the 2023 Lifetime movie Boy in the Walls.

Jack Molloy Legault as Phil Malkin

Phil (above, right) is a nerdy, chatty kid who's obsessed with aliens and may remind viewers of IT's Richie Tozier. As the kids investigate Lilly's vision, Phil's younger sister Susie tags along.

Jack Molloy Legault, 15, made his screen debut in 2020 with the Lifetime movie Christmas Ever After. He previously appeared in the Prime Video mystery-thriller Three Pines, and he voiced Slippy in the animated series Interstellar Ella.

Fun fact: Susie Malkin is played by Jack's real-life sister Matilda Legault, who played young Maxine in Ginny & Georgia season 3.

Amanda Christine as Veronica “Ronnie” Grogan

Ronnie spends her free time helping her dad, Hank Grogan, run Derry's movie theater. She was one of the last people to see Matty alive and has been experiencing visions, too.

Amanda Christine, 16, grew up in Virginia and landed her first commercial at age 4. She made her TV debut in 2016 with small roles on How to Get Away With Murder and Black-ish, going on to appear in several movies as well as episodes of Colony, 9-1-1, and A Black Lady Sketch Show. She also had a major role in the Prime Video horror movie Black Box.

Matilda Lawler as Marge Truman

Marge (above, wearing glasses) is one of Lilly's best friends, but she also wants to join the popular clique in their class, the Pattycakes (led by Patty). Unfortunately, her fear of not fitting in means she can be a less-than-helpful friend to a traumatized Lilly.

Matilda Lawler, 17, is a child of actors who made her Broadway debut in the 2018 production of The Ferryman. She went on to star as Young Kirsten in HBO Max's TV adaptation of Station Eleven, for which she received a Gotham Awards nomination for Outstanding Performance in a New Series. She is also known for playing Frances Montgomery on HBO's The Gilded Age.

Jovan Adepo as Major Leroy Hanlon

Major Leroy Hanlon is a decorated pilot and Korean War veteran who has recently been assigned to the Air Force base in Derry. Early in his move, self-described optimist Leroy has to deal with both racism from his fellow soldiers and danger surrounding the base's secrets.

Jovan Adepo, 37, is a familiar face for both HBO viewers and fans of Stephen King adaptations. The British-American actor previously starred in the films Fences, Mother!, and Babylon, as well as the shows The Leftovers, When They See Us, and Watchmen (for which his performance as Hooded Justice earned an Emmy nomination). Adepo also played Larry Underwood in Paramount+'s 2020 adaptation of The Stand. Next up, Adepo's set to appear in Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey, and to reprise his role as Saul Durand in season 2 of Netflix's 3 Body Problem.

Taylour Paige as Charlotte Hanlon

Leroy's wife, Charlotte Hanlon, was active in the civil rights movement in Louisiana, where the Hanlons lived before moving to Derry. As reported by Gizmodo, "Derry has its share of injustices that catch Charlotte’s interest, and it’s hard for her to resist speaking up for what’s right."

Taylour Paige, 35, grew up a dancer in Inglewood, California, including stints training under Debbie Allen and performing as a Laker Girl. She has previously appeared in movies including White Boy Rick, Zola, Boogie, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Sharp Stick, and Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F. She earned a Grammy nomination for appearing on Kendrick Lamar's spoken-word track "We Cry Together."

Blake Cameron James as Will Hanlon

Blake Cameron James plays Will Hanlon, Leroy and Charlotte's young son who, as an adult, will be the father of IT's Mike Hanlon. The 15-year-old actor is best known for starring as Malik in the acclaimed indie drama We Grown Now, for which he received an NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Youth in a Motion Picture. He also appeared in an episode of the short-lived crime drama Found.

Arian S. Cartaya as Rich

On Will's first day in Derry, he becomes friends with Rich, a band kid with a crush on Marge.

Arian S. Cartaya is a young actor who made his TV debut in the first season of HBO Max's short-lived comedy Gordita Chronicles. He has also appeared in the telenovela Juego de mentiras and the Apple TV+ series Bad Monkey.

Stephen Rider as Hank Grogan

Hank Grogan, the projectionist at a Derry movie theater, is a widower who raises his son, Ronnie, with his mother (BJ Harrison) after his wife's death. He's played by Stephen Rider, 46, who had previously auditioned to play adult Mike Hanlon in IT: Chapter Two.

Rider made his film debut in the 2007 drama film The Great Debaters after being discovered by Denzel Washington. He has since appeared in 2013's The Host and The Butler, the Showtime series Shameless, the Netflix/Marvel shows Daredevil and Luke Cage, and the CBS procedural Instinct.

Rudy Mancuso as Captain Pauly Russo

Pauly is Leroy's loyal friend and fellow pilot, who served with him in Korea and also moved to Derry. The captain is played by Rudy Mancuso, 33, who rose to fame with his popular musical-comedy videos on Vine and YouTube. He co-wrote, directed, starred in, and composed the soundtrack for the 2024 Prime Video rom-com Música, which co-starred Riverdale alum Camila Mendes. After falling in love while filming Música in July 2022, Manusco and Mendes got engaged a few days before the premiere of Welcome to Derry.

Chris Chalk as Dick Hallorann

Dick Hallorann is a fellow soldier at Derry's Air Force base, who has a supernatural talent—you could call it a "shine"—and an important role in a top-secret mission. Stephen King fans better know the man from another famed novel, The Shining. (Yes, it's the same character, who's also mentioned in the IT novel.)

Chris Chalk, 47, is a long-time TV actor and scene-stealer who previously starred in Homeland, The Newsroom, Underground, Gotham, When They See Us, Shining Girls, Perry Mason, and Feud: Capote vs. the Swans. He has also appeared in the movies 12 Years a Slave, Detroit, Godzilla vs. Kong, and All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt.

James Remar as General Shaw

Shaw is the leader of Derry's military base, who recruited Leroy Hanlon and Dick Halloran for a mysterious mission involving IT. He's played by James Remar, 71, a film and TV actor with a four-decade-spanning career.

Remar is best known for his roles as hotel magnate Richard Wright in Sex and the City and father Harry Morgan in the Dexter franchise. Next up, he's set to appear in Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey, following his role as Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson in 2023's Oscar-winning Oppenheimer.

Kimberly Norris Guerrero as Rose

Rose is the owner of the thrift shop Secondhand Rose, and a member of Derry's fictional Shokopiwah tribe. Readers who recall the tribe's mention in the novel know that Rose is hiding some big secrets.

Kimberly Norris Guerrero is a Native American actor with Salish-Kootenai heritage and an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, per UC Riverside. Notable roles in her career include appearances on Seinfeld, Charmed, Grey's Anatomy, The Wilds, and Rutherford Falls, as well as playing Auntie B in Reservation Dogs. She also originated the role of Johnna in August: Osage County, performing the role in the play's Chicago, Broadway, London, and Sydney premieres.

Madeleine Stowe as Ingrid

One of the most mysterious characters in Welcome to Derry is Ingrid, an employee at Juniper Hill who befriends Lily. Ingrid is played by Madeleine Stowe, 67, who rose to fame with a string of movie roles, including 1988's Stakeout, 1992's The Last of the Mohicans, 1993's Short Cuts, and 1995's 12 Monkeys. After her semi-retirement to Texas in the 2000s, Stowe made her major TV debut with the iconic role of Victoria Grayson in the ABC soap Revenge.

Bill Skarsgård as Pennywise

Though it took him a while to appear, no It story is complete without Pennywise, the most well-known form of the mystical evil that haunts Derry. Reprising his iconic role is Bill Skarsgård, the 35-year-old son of Stellan Skarsgård and brother of Alexander Skarsgård.

Born in Stockholm, Sweden, Bill started as a child actor and rose to fame in the U.S. with roles in Netflix's Hemlock Grove, 2012's Anna Karenina, and 2016's Atomic Blonde. Since his debut as Pennywise in 2017, the star has appeared in films such as Deadpool 2, Eternals, John Wick: Chapter 4, The Crow, and Nosferatu, as well as the series Clark and Castle Rock.

In Grace Byron’s, Herculine, the unnamed narrator is a bitingly funny critic of New York culture. She speaks of “hot freelance girls,” a specific media breed seemingly made in a lab with a “cloud of Santal 33 and secondhand Prada” to incite envy. Byron's own time in the freelance trenches—she made a name for herself in the media world penning incisive cultural criticism for outlets like The New Yorker, Vulture, and on her Substack—makes her know these kinds of girls all too well.

So reading Herculine feels like a natural extension of Byron’s work. In it, her unnamed heroine is living adrift in Brooklyn; her demons literally accompayning her as she works at a children’s clothing store while dreaming about being a writer. As she unearths her various traumas, she reconnects with her ex-girlfriend, Ash, who has started an all-trans girl commune (named Herculine) near her hometown in Indiana. The pull of both Ash and the ideal of trans community brings the narrator there, where it becomes clear that her demons aren’t the only ones at the commune.

Ahead of the book’s October 7 release, Byron spoke to Marie Claire about writing her debut novel, the idea of trauma bonding, and how it feels analyzing trans life in this political climate.

Marie Claire: What was the first inspiration for Herculine?

Grace Byron: I was trying to write a memoir, and I failed. It felt important to try and figure out a way to think through similar themes, but introducing a sense of play, fantasy, and surrealism felt like a helpful way to work through it. I always wanted to work on fiction, and it ended up having to circle back after I spent some time thinking through how to approach it.

MC: This novel straddles a lot of lines between horror and fantasy. Why was that a draw for you?

GB: I grew up reading a lot of fantasy, more than horror. I read Narnia, A Wrinkle in Time, and all the quasi-Christian fantasy books. I wasn't really expecting to do horror, and it crept up and felt like a natural way to think through trauma. I read Gretchen Felker-Martin’s book Manhunt, and that was just a big light bulb moment. At first, Herculine wasn't necessarily going to be a horror novel. The demons took over as I was writing.

MC: You are from Indiana. Was that part of having this setting between New York and then the narrator going back to where she was from?

GB: You write the book that you don't want to write; you end up confronting all the things that you don't want to write. I didn't really want to write about New York, but I did, through this backdoor way of writing about personal stuff, including Midwestern culture and what it's like to be queer or trans in the Midwest, and the guilt and confusion around moving away. It felt important to me to represent the Midwest and not just writing another New York novel.

MC: Herculine is so funny on top of being frightening. There are so many incredible phrasings like “hot freelance girls,” “trans girl actress,” and “female small business owner” that are just so succinct in knowing exactly what you are talking about.

GB: I wrote this at a time when I was less accomplished. I was really working through jealousy and envy, and so much of gender for cis and trans people is about ambition, envy, jealousy, and desire. There's this way that the narrator is thinking, even if she's not really getting anywhere with her thoughts. That bitterness felt like a narrative engine and interesting to use as a propulsion for thinking about belonging and community, and the way that she is unable to build alliances or friendships with people because she can only see them as people she wants to be or as people she wants to conquer. A lot of freelancers feel it is competitive, and similarly, gender can be competitive. The bitterness lent itself to this biting humor that felt like the only way to write about it. I didn't really want to write a more sappy trauma story. I would rather obliquely reference the Trans Girl sob story and have some bile come up rather than give it in a sickly sweet way.

MC: That outsiderness that the narrator feels is what brings her to the commune and back to her ex-girlfriend Ash. Their relationship is interesting because it's so toxic, but they're also tied together in terms of discovering who they were and transitioning at similar times. How was it mapping out that relationship?

GB: It felt important to sort of write about T for T heartbreak in a way that strips away some of the naivete and gets into the more gritty and painful parts of that, which there is a precedent for—I think, both Torrey Peters and Gretchen Felker-Martin have written about that. To me, such a large part of the book is how the very alliances that you want to have and the community you want to have can still hurt you. Someone recently, in an interview, was like, ‘I feel like Ash is the villain.’ And I was like, ‘That's so crazy to have a trans woman be the villain in a book about trans women, especially in this political climate.’ But I always want to dig into those uncomfortable things. There is a danger in portraying her as the villain, for sure. It is a delicate balancing act, but I don't necessarily see that there's a clear-cut evil person; perhaps the demons are. She really wants it to work with Ash on some level. I think those things are messy and painful. She goes to this commune, skeptical but hopeful, and ends up still being let down even though she wasn't ready to give it her all. Her actual friends end up being the imperfect but hopeful vessels for community.

MC: What was the idea for Herculine being this idea of an all trans women commune, looking for community, and then for it to all go completely awry?

GB: There's a trope about the queer trans back to the land commune, and I wanted to take that not fully at face value, and explore how that can still reinforce the same social hierarchies and oppression that the outside world does. You can't escape your baggage, which isn't to say that being a separatist is an entirely wrong politic, but to explore the messiness of that and how that can still fail you, and that it's not a foolproof strategy to escape pain or heartbreak or disaster. That felt like an interesting vessel for thinking about trauma and politics and the way that you bring all of your pain with you wherever you go.

MC: I love the line towards the end of the book about how Ash thinks they fell in love because of their mutual trauma.

GB: Trauma bonding is such a confusing, but continual trope in queer culture, and what is the right way to form a friendship or the wrong way to fall in love? This book takes the fact that inevitably trauma will inform your life, but there are ways that it can lead to negative consequences if you let it too much. The book is about how trauma can distort love or friendship, and it's a book about what love isn't more than it is a book about what love is.

MC: There’s a line in the book that’s “So much of transexualism is the divulging of history. It’s not a gift so much as a bomb we’re all passing to one another.” I’d love to hear a bit more about that.

GB: It's always really nerve-racking to write into these more tricky parts of trans life and embodiment that other people might read and weaponize against us in this political moment. But for better or worse, that is what is interesting to me as a writer. I'm glad that a lot more trans writers are starting to try and write about poorly behaved trans women. And a lot of my short stories started as well, what if someone trans did “the worst thing,” and we follow that person and treat them as a whole human anyway. That line in particular is reflecting on the idea of trauma bonding and the way that when you're trying to offload your pain through confession. Like maybe this time if I connect with someone or this time I befriend someone, I can tell them my burden and it'll be done. I'll have given it away. I'll have given the ticking time bomb to someone else. And it just doesn't work like that.

I think so much of the way that a lot of queer and trans people can befriend each other is like, ‘Here's my shitty history. What was yours?’ That can be both a sort of cheat code or a shortcut into intimacy that sometimes isn't always the best…It's another one of those double-edged swords that felt interesting to write about.

MC: You wrote a piece for The New Yorker about the state of trans art right now, and everything with trans rights is scary at the moment. How is it exploring that with the novel?

GB: I find the idea of purity politics in minority art to be really brutal and not fair and not interesting, not how art works. I always want to be pushing against that. Rose Dommu said something similar in an interview recently about her new novel, where she was talking about anything I can do to push against quasi-positive holier-than-thou representation, I'm going to do it. That's a fair way to put it. It's just not fun. It's not sexy.

MC: Cultural criticism has been such a hot topic of conversation with the state of media and our current political climate. What are your thoughts about that since you work in a lot of these spaces?

GB: It'll be interesting to see how people try to combat and evolve. A lot of people have migrated to Substack, but there are advantages and disadvantages to that. [The novelist] Brandon Taylor, when he read my book, was like, ’It doubles as an act of cultural criticism.’ And I hadn't thought of it like that. But I do think there's a way that criticism informs everything that I do in my way of writing, even when I'm writing more traditional books, and I love books that reference other books and think through other texts. There will always be criticism, but it has always been in crisis.

MC: Do you have any recommendations for favorite books or trans writers that you think people should check out?

GB: I always try to make a list that isn't just other trans writers, but I also think more people should be writing and reading trans literature as mainstream, because it is, and it has a lot to say about bodily autonomy at large, and also just fiction and life and the human condition. In my book, there are references to Nevada by Imogen Binnie, Stag Dance by Torrey Peters, and Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin. I really love Wild Geese by Soula Emmanuel, which I think is under-read. I love Mrs. S by K. Patrick. I love Girlfriends by Emily Zhou. Lucy Sante is an incredible writer. Shola von Reinhold is a great writer. Harron Walker, Jamie Hood. There is an explosion of great writers, and people should read them and not just during some sort of quasi-weird trans readathon thing.

This article contains discussions of kidnapping, abuse, and murder.

In the television landscape today, there’s no shortage of serialized true crime stories—many of them from creator and writer Ryan Murphy. Within his Netflix deal, Murphy has already covered the stories of Jeffrey Dahmer and the Menendez brothers, and when his Monster franchise returns on October 3, it will explore the 1950s Wisconsin-based serial killer Ed Gein. Also known as the Butcher of Plainfield, the notorious “bodysnatcher” and murderer will be played by Charlie Hunnam.

Unlike previous Monster installments, the Ed Gein version will also explore the killer’s infamy and depiction in horror films, with fictionalized versions of filmmakers like Alfred Hitchcock and Tobe Hooper included in the series. Read on to find out who will be embodying these famous names and the other major characters in Gein’s life in the cast of Monster: The Ed Gein Story.

Charlie Hunnam as Ed Gein

Ed Gein was a convicted serial killer from Wisconsin, also known as the Butcher of Plainfield. Active during the 1950s, Gein’s heinous crimes inspired the novel and film adaptation Psycho and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

Before leading Netflix's latest true crime series, Charlie Hunnam, 45, rose to fame for his main role in Sons of Anarchy. He has also appeared on TV shows like Queer as Folk, Undeclared, and the adaptation of Shantaram. His film roles include The Lost City of Z, Triple Frontier, and Pacific Rim.

Laurie Metcalf as Augusta Gein

Augusta was Ed Gein's mother, described as “controlling, puritanical, fervently religious, and domineering.” Ed eventually became obsessed with his mother, and their relationship was the crux of Psycho.

Laurie Metcalf, 70, is a decorated theater legend and known for her work on TV shows such as Roseanne, 3rd Rock From the Sun, and Getting On. She received acclaim and awards attention for her role in Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird, and appeared in other films, including JFK, Georgia Rule, and Scream 2.

Suzanna Son as Adelina

Adeline Watkins was a woman allegedly romantically involved with Gein for 20 years, who defended him even after his convictions. Watkins later refuted the articles, claiming her words were taken out of context.

Suzanna Son, 29, made her film debut in 2021 in the Sean Baker film Red Rocket. Following her breakout, she starred in the HBO series The Idol as well as the Netflix film Fear Street: Prom Queen.

Tom Hollander as Alfred Hitchcock

Tom Hollander plays Alfred Hitchcock, an acclaimed English film director who directed the horror film Psycho, which is based on Gein’s story. He was known as the “Master of Suspense” for his work on influential noirs and thrillers, from Rear Window to Vertigo to North by Northwest. He garnered a whopping 46 Oscar nominations throughout his career, taking home six trophies, but never won Best Director, even though he was nominated in the category five times.

You might recognize Hollander, 58, from his scene-stealing role on season 2 of The White Lotus, but the British actor’s career dates back to the 1980s. He began on stage before transitioning to the screen with roles in both TV and film, including Gosford Park, Pride & Prejudice, Pirates of the Caribbean, Feud: Capote vs. The Swans, in which he played the titular famed author Truman Capote, and more.

Vicky Krieps as Isle Koch

Ilse Koch was a Nazi war criminal nicknamed the “Witch of Buchenwald.” She and her husband, Karl-Otto Koch, made lampshades from human skin from the concentration camps. It is believed that Gein was influenced by the Kochs to make a lampshade from the skin of one of his victims.

Vicky Krieps, 41, broke out via the 2017 Paul Thomas Anderson film Phantom Thread. She has also appeared in films like Hanna, Old, and Corsage—the latter of which earned her a European Film Award for Best Actress. Later this year, she will appear in the ensemble cast of the Jim Jarmusch film Father Mother Sister Brother.

Olivia Williams as Alma Reville

Alma Reville was Hitchcock’s wife and a screenwriter and film editor in her own right. She was known for her attention to detail, famously noticing Janet Leigh swallowing after her character dies in Psycho, forcing an alteration to the negative.

Olivia Williams, 57, rose to fame in the 1997 British television film Emma. She has starred in films like The Postman, Rushmore, The Sixth Sense, An Education, Anna Karenina, and more. More recently, she played Camilla Parker Bowles in the final seasons of The Crown.

Lesley Manville as Bernice Worden

Bernice Worden was Ed Gein's final victim, whom he killed in November 1957. She was a local hardware store owner, and her son, a deputy, helped connect the dots to Gein.

Lesley Manville, 69, is an acclaimed British actress across stage and screen. She has a notable collaboration with director Mike Leigh, having appeared in eight of his films, including Secrets & Lies, Topsy-Turvy, and Vera Drake. Her performance in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Phantom Thread earned her Academy Award and British Academy Film Award nominations. Manville’s other film appearances include Queer, Maleficent, and Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris, and she has also appeared on TV shows like The Crown, Citadel, and Disclaimer.

Joey Pollari as Anthony Perkins

Anthony Perkins was an actor best known for his role as Norman Bates in Psycho. He was a major star during the Old Hollywood era, acting opposite names like Audrey Hepburn, and held roles in films like The Trial and Murder on the Orient Express. He tragically was forced to hide his sexuality from his public life and died of AIDS-related complications in the ‘90s. His son, Osgood Perkins, carries on his legacy by writing/directing horror films today (many of which are inspired by his relationships with his family, including Longlegs, The Monkey, and The Blackcoat’s Daughter).

Joey Pollari, 31, is best known for his roles on American Crime and the film Love, Simon. Pollari has also appeared on the TV shows SEAL Team and Sugar, as well as LGBTQ+ films like The Obituary of Tunde Johnson and Things Like This.

Charlie Hall as Deputy Frank Worden

Deputy Worden was the son of Bernice Worden, who was Gein’s final victim. The Deputy became suspicious of Gein and played a key role in the investigation.

Charlie Hall, 28, has appeared in popular TV shows like Bel-Air, Single Drunk Female, Sex Lives of College Girls, and Love, Victor. This is his second collaboration with Ryan Murphy after appearing in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, in which he played Erik’s best friend Craig. The son of Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Brad Hall, he also briefly appeared in his mom’s hit comedy Veep.

Tyler Jacob Moore as Sheriff Schley

Not much is known about Sheriff Schley except that “he was infamously photographed with Gein after he confessed to murdering two women and robbing graves,” according to PEOPLE. In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), Moore called the real Sheriff Schley “a very real, & genuinely good & decent man.”

Tyler Jacob Moore, 42, is best known for playing Tony Markovich on Shameless and Prince Hans in Once Upon a Time. He also appeared in Perry Mason, Ride, Paradise, and SEAL Team.

Addison Rae as Evelyn

Evelyn Hartley was a 14 year-old American teenager who mysteriously disappeared in 1953 in LaCrosse County, Wisconsin. Hartley’s disappearance was never solved.

Addison Rae, 24, rose to fame on TikTok before becoming an actress and musician. She starred in the films He’s All That and Thanksgiving, while her single “Diet Pepsi” went platinum. Earlier this year, she dropped her debut album, Addison, to acclaim and is now out on tour to support it.

Will Brill as Tobe Hooper

Tobe Hooper was an American filmmaker best known for directing and co-writing the original 1974 version of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, one of the first slasher films and most influential horror films in history, which was loosely inspired by Ed Gein.

Will Brill, 39, is best known for his stage career. On Broadway, he appeared in the reimagined 75th-anniversary revival of Oklahoma! and Stereophonic, for which he won a Tony Award. On TV, he acted on The OA, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and Fellow Travelers, and he also recently appeared in the Darren Aronofsky film Caught Stealing.

Mimi Kennedy as Mildred Newman

Mildred Newman was a psychologist known for her controversial views on the extremely harmful practice of conversion therapy, which she performed on actor Anthony Perkins to “cure” his homosexuality.

Mimi Kennedy, 77, rose to fame on the sitcoms Dharma & Greg and Mom. Her film credits include Erin Brockovich, Midnight in Paris, and The Five-Year Engagement.

Robin Weigert as Enid Watkins

Not much is known about Enid Watkins, though her last name indicates that she will be a relative of Gein’s longtime girlfriend, Adeline Watkins.

Robin Weigert, 56, is best known for her starring roles on TV shows like Deadwood, Sons of Anarchy, Big Little Lies, Tracker, and the miniseries Angels in America. She also received acclaim for the 2013 film Concussion.

When you're looking to get lost in a book, sometimes you need your reading material to match your mood. With Marie Claire's series "Buy the Book," we do the heavy lifting for you. We're offering curated, highly specific recommendations for whatever you're looking for—whether you're in your feels or hooked on a subgenre trending on #BookTok.

In this author-curated rendition, Mona Awad—a short fiction writer, the bestselling author of Bunny, and the Queen of Feminist Horror—shares her favorite books about dark enchantment.

Whenever author Mona Awad finishes a novel, she experiences a “grieving period” when she “[longs] to return to the characters.” Her 2019 bestseller and #BookTok favorite Bunny was no different—except she couldn’t let it go.

“Bunny never left me,” the writer says of the dark academia book about a peculiar cult of young women in the fictional Warren University’s MFA program. “When the book began to find more readers, I felt inspired to follow my heart and return to it.”

The result is the beguiling and darkly funny duel prequel/sequel, We Love You, Bunny (out September 23), in which the Bunnies get the chance to tell their side of the story that turned their classmate Samantha’s school year into a nightmare—and the subject for her debut novel.

As with most of her work, Awad turns to horror to tell yet another honest, yet twisted tale about the female experience. She shares with Marie Claire over email why she often turns to the genre: “Women live in a world where the truth of their experience is constantly being dismissed, denied, devalued. We are gaslit into thinking that we’re the ones who are wrong about our experience. That conflict is horror’s terrain. Horror is the perfect vehicle for exploring womanhood. I wouldn’t have been able to write All’s Well or Rouge, and certainly, Bunny, without it.”

The Canadian author also describes “enchantment” as a critical piece of all her fiction, especially Bunny and its follow-up. “It’s a driving force for fairy tales, but it’s also a crucial part of horror. If we’re not drawn in, how could we possibly stick around for the scare?” she says. “I love exploring what holds us captive, because ultimately that’s what enchantment is all about.”

Awad adds, “Enchantment sounds so light and lovely and magical on its surface, and it can be, but like all forms of desire, it can drive us into darkness.”

To take a journey down that rabbit hole, we asked Awad to share her favorite “dark enchantment” books with us. Below, you’ll find her picks ranging from literary classics to recent mythology-inspired favorites.

We Love You, Bunny by Mona Awad is available now.

Alison Brie speaks to Marie Claire's Halie LeSavage for the cover of our new Entertainment issue, spilling behind-the-scenes details on her new film with husband Dave Franco, Together.

Brie also mentions a second intriguing project: a horror-comedy she has in the works. She can't share details, but notes that it has a "female-forward, very fun energy."

Brie is working on the script for this film with "dark bubblegum" writer Alice Stanley Jr.; she'll also direct it. "While we were writing it," she says, "I felt like I was writing it to direct it. I could see every shot in my head."

The Community actress has already cut her directing teeth on one episode of GLOW and one episode of Marvel 616.

The actress wasn't always super into horror, she tells LeSavage—but she dove all the way into the genre with Together, which tells the story of a stagnant-yet-codependent couple, Tim and Millie, and the dark forces attempting to bring them down.

"What's really unique about this movie is that the thing that's trying to get us, is inside of us," Brie said. "It was this unique acting challenge to be fighting your own body."

The movie's director, Michael Shanks, tells Marie Claire, "The whole time, she was throwing herself into so much more of the film than I think would be expected of the lead actors." That "throwing" even included doing her own stunt at one point, which consisted of crashing into a glass door.

Together, starring Alison Brie and Dave Franco, is out now.

Nearly 30 years ago, the cult classic I Know What You Did Last Summer cemented a cohort of stars as '90s Hollywood icons. Now, the highly anticipated revival, directed by Do Revenge's Jennifer Kaytin Robinson, ushers in a new era of scream queens. In the eerie reboot, a new group of friends from Southport, North Carolina (played by Madelyn Cline, Chase Sui Wonders, Sarah Pidgeon, Tyriq Withers, and Jonah Hauer-King) are terrorized by a harpoon-wielding killer with knowledge of their darkest deed.

In a perfect bit of casting, Wonders and Pidgeon were able to draw on their lifelong friendship—having met in community theater in the fifth grade—while playing once-estranged friends bonded by their trauma. In honor of the horror movie's release, the stars sat down with Marie Claire to test their kinship with a game of How Well Do You Know Your Co-Star?. The pair breezed through questions about their first jobs, first cars, and first kisses, pulling from their memories of growing up in the Detroit suburbs.

Watch the challenge above to get the scoop on their shared love of Wonders's The Studio castmate and Pidgeon's Tiny Beautiful Things co-star Kathryn Hahn, the college theater review that still haunts Wonders, and which famous Kevin is their celebrity crush. Then, head to your local theater to catch I Know What You Did Last Summer.

Netflix's popular horror franchise Fear Street is back from the dead with a new can't-miss high school slasher. Fear Street: Prom Queen, which hit Netflix on May 23, takes viewers back to Shadyside, Ohio, in the year 1988, as six girls locked in a fierce race for prom queen are targeted by a masked killer. For the revival, Netflix recruited several members of Hollywood's rising class of stars: India Fowler as wallflower Lori Granger; Red Rocket's Suzanna Son as Lori's best friend Megan; Barbie breakout Ariana Greenblatt as burnout Christy Renault; Fina Strazza as queen bee Tiffany Falconer, and Ella Rubin, Rebecca Ablack, and Ilan O'Driscoll as Tiffany's minions.

In honor of the movie's streaming release, Greenblatt, Rubin, and Ablack sat down with Marie Claire to test their friendship with a game of How Well Do You Know Your Co-Star?. The trio was all smiles as they answered questions about the sports they each played growing up, first concerts, and botched tattoos. When they weren't laughing so hard that they nearly cried, they were talking over each other while recalling the major bout of food poisoning that took Greenblatt out on her first day of shooting. (Also, if you ever see the trio out and about together, they may be doing joint driving lessons.)

Watch the full challenge above, then head to Netflix to watch Fear Street: Prom Queen, streaming now.

This story contains extensive spoilers for Sinners. Ryan Coogler’s vampire-blues epic Sinners centers on an eventful 24 hours in 1932 Clarksdale, Mississippi, as gangster twins Smoke and Stack (both played by Michael B. Jordan) host the opening night of their juke joint. The horror film's lore—borrowed from folktales across ancient cultures—suggests that some musicians are imbued with the power to blur the line between life and death, like Miles Canton’s character, the twins’s cousin Sammie “Preacher Boy” Moore. With one powerful blues performance at the club, he summons the spirits of Black music past and present.

Sammie’s performance is a summation of Sinners’ love letter to Black music and its influence on every modern genre, paired with the film’s overall adulation of Black Southern history and culture. However, the most compelling moment that shows the true emotional power of Sammie’s music, and all great music, doesn’t take place at the juke. The most poignant music scene (and my favorite of the film) is when another Sinners character demonstrates music’s universal power to connect the past and present.

The first half of Sinners follows the SmokeStack twins as they separately gather the people they need to run their juke, from the Chinese Delta grocers Grace (Li Jun Li) and Bo (Yao) to Smoke’s old flame, hoodoo practitioner Annie (Wunmi Mosaku). To provide music along with Sammie, Stack recruits Delta Slim (film legend Delroy Lindo), a local musician who loves drinking just as much as he loves the blues. As Stack, Sammie, and Slim drive past acres of cotton fields, they pass a chain gang singing as they work on the roadside. Slim, who knew the prisoners, recalls when he and his old musical partner were arrested on a trumped-up charge and forced to perform at a white mansion party without pay. His partner was subsequently falsely accused of rape and murdered. As Slim tells the story, the sounds of a lynching seep into the score. As we hear the sound of a rope stretching, the bluesman, overcome with emotion, begins to hum his sorrow, and then sings. Stack tells Sammie to start playing his guitar.

It’s a scene more effective than the many allegories presented in the Black horror boom of recent years, following the release of Get Out in 2017. Coogler shows the vital essence of the blues, a genre created in the late 19th century by Black musicians living under the horrors and indignities of Jim Crow, just a generation out of slavery. In one moment, Slim’s music helps him acknowledge and process the past before transforming his painful memories into something beautiful—something that the younger generation, like Sammie joining in on his guitar, can build upon.

In the aforementioned scene of Sammie’s set at the juke joint, he does build upon this. Though Slim briefly mentions having dealt with some devils in his lifetime of playing the blues, Sammie appears to be the only descendant of griots and spiritual storytellers whose magic we see in Sinners. While playing a rendition of “I Lied to You,” the film relays a chronicle of Black music history, threading African tribal drummers, a Jimi Hendrix-style rock guitarist, and a classic hip-hop DJ to that moment. The scene draws the most undeniable line from African culture that endured through the Transatlantic slave trade to the blues, rock, soul, hip-hop, and beyond, ever put on film. It’s a bold statement in an era where the political powers that be are literally erasing Black history from federal records.

Of course, this is only half of the film’s musical themes. Sammie’s griot power also lures out evil in the form of Remmick (Jack O’Connell), a Celtic vampire who sets his sights on the blues singer. When he approaches the revelers, Remmick offers elevation above racial prejudice and superhuman power in exchange for vampiric assimilation, with the film making a clear allusion to the history of Black music being stolen and appropriated into mainstream (white) culture. But Remmick’s true motivation isn’t as stark. As Annie explains, the vampiric curse in Sinners traps the afflicted human’s soul inside their body with the demon spirit, so while their personality and memories are retained, their soul cannot ascend and join their loved ones in the afterlife. Remmick wants to claim Sammie because the bluesman will allow the vampire to connect to the loved ones he outlived centuries ago.

Since Sinners’ debuted in theaters on April 18, 2025—breaking box office records in its opening weekend—Remmick has quickly been lauded as one of Coogler’s signature morally-complex antagonists, as enticing and charismatic as he is deadly. Through Remmick, Coogler plays with the allure of the modern vampire, a monster that evoked seduction long before they could be depicted as unequivocally hot. As the night goes on, Remmick and his two fledglings bite and turn several of the Delta residents, even including Stack and his ex-lover Mary (Hailee Steinfeld). The central battle turns from us vs. them to brother vs. brother, as an undead Stack implores Smoke to join them in eternal glory and power. (Who among us who have dipped their toe into the worlds of Twilight or Interview with a Vampire fandom has not weighed the pros of vampirism with the cons?)

Still, despite the respect with which Coogler treats both the vampire and the Irish musical tradition, Sinners masterfully shows why Sammie being turned into a creature of the night would be the ultimate tragedy. The true danger of the vampire is being cut off from the past, stuck in the present day without any connection to your lineage or legacy. As a vampire, you may be powerful, but you’re also lost, desperate for connection and filled with existential yearning. Remmick is no exception; his life, as we see it, is his quest to find any meaningful connection to his past, however tenuous or brief. Sammie is important because, without him, Remmick cannot mend these severed ties. What an important gift music is, one passed on from Slim’s generation to Sammie’s, that even an eternal being recognizes its value.

During his press run, Coogler has been open about Sinners being a film where he “interrogates [his] own personal heritage.” The movie is inspired by his late uncle, a Mississippi man who “communicated” through Blues music. Sammie’s power is a fantasized depiction of how Black musicians channelled the past and influenced the future of culture through their craft, but communicating through music is also a daily practice for humans. Music helps the brain create complex memories. Different harmonic progressions can evoke specific moods and emotions. And very importantly for these times, music has also been a historical record, reflecting both wide cultural shifts and global events, as well as the day-to-day lives of our forebearers. Even today, some of the industry’s most exciting artists—Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar, Doechii, and more—study music history and honor legendary artists while moving the genre forward. They’re the Sammies, picking up Slim’s harmony and building upon it. In its most pivotal music moments, Sinners shows how music connects us to the past, how it can help us get through the present, through cultural memory and catharsis, and how that inherent soul will always be more powerful than whatever the vultures try to take from us.

Is it a coincidence that Charles Manson, one of the most notorious cult leaders in history, aspired to be a rock star? As Mark Anthony Green’s Opus sees it, it’s not.

The A24 horror film, released in theaters in March, follows budding journalist Ariel Ecton (Ayo Edebiri) as she’s invited, alongside a group of other media professionals, to the estate of Alfred Moretti (John Malkovich), a legendary pop star who disappeared from the public eye 30 years ago. They are led under the guise that they’ll be listening to Moretti’s comeback album, Caesar’s Revenge, but the group quickly learns not everything is as it seems on the remote Utah commune where he’s been hiding.

The directorial debut from Green, a.k.a. MAG, explores the cult of celebrity. The fictional Moretti, therefore, needed to rival musical icons like David Bowie and Elton John in style and charisma but have a compound that fell somewhere between Waco and Prince’s Paisley Park. MAG tapped stylist/costume designer Shirley Kurata (Everything Everywhere All At Once) to help craft the looks for the singer and his followers, known as the Levelists,, while production designer Robert Pyzocha (Joker, The Whale) was tasked with building out Moretti’s mysterious community.

Pyzocha sought out La Mesita Ranch Estate in Santa Fe, New Mexico as the primary filming location, seeing how it resembled the sites he researched and how it housed different buildings that would meet a group’s “belief rituals, meditation practice, and isolation needs.”

Kurata, meanwhile, looked for inspiration in both real cults as well as celebrities and their fandoms. Above all, though, she was thrilled to collaborate with MAG, who worked in fashion as a GQ editor for 13 years before transitioning to film. “I love it when I get a script where I can play with fashion,” Kurata tells Marie Claire over Zoom.

Here, Kurata and Pyzocha explain how they tackled fame, artistry, and a messiah complex in the highly stylized film.

Marie Claire: It seemed you were inspired by icons like David Bowie, Elton John, and Prince, but what elements from their style were you looking at to craft the wardrobe?

Costume Designer Shirley Kurata: They all love something ostentatious, a little bit garish, or very showy. So I knew I had to add some element in his wardrobe, but I didn't want it to reflect too much of any specific musician. In an ideal world, we would've custom-made all of [Moretti’s] outfits, but I didn't have the time or the money. I did for a good amount, but I had to take shortcuts, so some of my shortcuts were buying existing suits and then adding panels, fabrics, and appliques, or tweaking the collar. I thought that was a cool way to create this new silhouette, but then add these elements that showed that he was a peacock.

When you study [someone like] Michael Jackson in the earlier days to his later years, their style evolves, and so that evolution was important to show. But there is always that element of something that looks custom-made. I know sometimes Elton John works with designers, but I think a lot of them—Prince, Michael Jackson—had a personal tailor, but they weren't famous clothing designers. I thought that was something that Moretti would do too. At this point, there’s probably someone on the compound making the clothes for him.

MC: Almost all of his suits have silver applique and matching gloves. Why were those the throughlines you landed on?

SK: [The applique is] influenced by Liberace. He always had these amazing costumes with appliques, so I thought that was a cool touch to his wardrobe. The gloves served a couple of purposes. It was really cold when we were shooting, so it was helpful for John to stay warm. But also, it gives the outfit much more of an element of wealth. Usually, people who wear gloves are not doing physical labor, so it sets his status as the leader. I thought it was a cool touch to his style because then he would wear the rings on top of his gloves.

MC: What specifically was on your mood board? Were there any memorable looks you were referencing?

SK: I really loved Brian Eno's costume during his glam rock phase when he was performing with Bowie. He had some amazing costumes. Bowie, hands down had some of the most amazing costumes—the Ziggy Stardust looks, anything that was a little bit futuristic, the ones that were the crazy shapes that he wore. Brian Eno wore this one that had this crazy collar and it had feathers coming out, which I loved.

In the first few fittings with John, we experimented because there were some costumes that we felt didn't reflect the present Moretti. They reflected the younger Moretti. So we were like, Okay, let's use these instead for flashbacks, and we had to figure out what the present Moretti would be like in terms of silhouette and what he would wear.

MC: Was John Malkovich always game to wear the platform heels?

SK: We always wanted to put him in platform boots and John was totally down to do that. I had asked him, ‘Are you sure you can do this? Can you walk in it?’ And he said that, back in the day, he would wear platform boots as a kid, so he was fine with it. I found those crazy Rick Owens platform boots and he's wearing them in one of the dinner scenes when he’s on the floor talking to everyone. We also had him in a classic black platform boot.

One of the things that John personally suggested was experimenting with pants. He mentioned, ‘Well, what if I'm wearing a sarong?’ to MAG. I thought that was a great idea to add that element to his blazers with all the embellishments on it, so for a couple of scenes, I had some custom-made sarongs. They're a combination of trousers with a skirt panel over. I thought that was a great idea: a little bit culty, but also very fashionable and had that spiritual aspect of a cult leader.

MC: Why did the estate in New Mexico feel like the right aesthetic for the place where Moretti would have set up and lived with his cult?

Production Designer Robert Pyzocha: La Mesita Ranch Estate is located in the Pojoaque Pueblo, about 40 minutes north of Santa Fe. The property is owned and operated by the Pojoaque Pueblo. MAG and I toured the 144-acre estate and immediately felt that it had the right level of grandeur and decadence to embody Moretti’s vision of an earthly paradise for his devoted followers. The architecture on the site is a fusion of Southwestern Spanish colonial architecture mixed with a Pueblo revival style. The austere simplicity of the Pueblo adobe interiors worked beautifully for the cult’s ascetic life of making art and practicing the tenets of Level.

MC: Did you research cults and their compounds while designing the Levelist’s community?

RP: I researched a range of radical organizations and quasi-religious sects that exhibited extreme cultish behavior. One of the groups that I found fascinating and endlessly intriguing is the Aum Shinrikyo cult from Saitama, Japan. I found many similarities between Moretti and the founder, Shoko Asahara. Shoko was an accomplished musician who often wore lilac-colored tunics along with his devoted followers during meditations at communal concerts. There are many pictures of him magically levitating above the stage during shows. He was the ultimate doomsday showman with the liner notes to back it up.

Shoko was also very similar to Charles Manson, another stealthily gifted guitarist with raw talent and a festering messiah complex. He, like Moretti, also had an entourage of radical groupies willing to execute orders upon command. These three men came out of a period during the ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s when the boundaries between counterculture, madness, and violence became dangerously blurred.

I was highly inspired by Shoko’s use of the color lilac, and I really wanted to paint all of the Moretti compound buildings a lilac color. MAG loved the idea of the compound having a distinct identity, but this particular color had too many associations with Paisley Park, Prince’s home and studio. Turns out that Elton John also had a thing for the lilac color, as did the cult members of Warren Jeff’s the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. MAG was highly conscious of Moretti living in his own reality and did not want to make any direct allusions to other well-known celebrity musicians.

I also studied the Rajneesh Movement at Big Muddy Ranch in Oregon; this cult also aimed to create a utopia in the desert. It was here that the aesthetic of hand-dying everyday work garments orange, red, maroon, and pink clothes became a distinct uniform for the faithful followers of the Bagwan.

MC: How did you decide what the Levelists should be wearing?

SK: That was an initial conversation with MAG because he had it scripted that they were all in robes, but he told me, ‘That's just a marker. They don't have to be in literal robes or all matching. We can do what we think is right, but I think it would probably be best to have it all be one color, but they're in their own outfits.’ I thought that was a better way to approach it too because you could also see the different characters within the world.

MC: How much dye did you use?

SK: We hired an ager/dyer, [Colleen Fox], and I don't know how many bottles of dye she went through, but there was a lot. It is multiple dips, multiple washings, so it was weeks of over-dying. We tried to find some things that were already in blue, but a lot had to get over-dyed. It’s interesting because when you deal with indigo, there are so many different shades. You have to match the right shade of a shirt with pants, but sometimes they don't work together, and you have to play around with the shades.

Indigo was originally in the script and I think that color is great because it reflected the dedication that the Levelists had to the craft. Indigo dye is the same thing. It's a craft. It felt like that was a great element in what the Levelists wore and their tenets of being connected to the arts, but also dedication and commitment.

RP: The production design utilized the same indigo consistently. Upon arrival to Moretti’s compound, all the guests are given blue ceramic ceremonial vases to mark their welcome to the compound, which ultimately become symbolic death vessels. We created a functioning ceramic studio with indigo blue aprons for the young Levelists ceramic workshops. The marionette puppet stage is also painted an indigo blue color with gold oyster shells along the proscenium arch. This design feature is also maintained in the listening room where the speaker stacks are indigo blue to match the intricate indigo blue calligraphy itineraries on baby lamb skins. I asked my long-time collaborator Chisato Uno to create special itineraries with floating oyster pearls adorning the baby lamb skins. In Moretti’s world, there is no limit to creative potential, however destructive they might become.

MC: Did you do any research into what cult members wear?

SK: Yes, I did. I watched documentaries, and, for the most part, aside from a few fringe ones, they wore their own clothes. In Wild Wild Country, [the documentary about the Rajneeshes], it was more color-coded and I thought that was a good reference. You still could identify them as a cult, but they're all wearing their own clothes.

It felt like if you put them in some sort of robe, it removed you from the whole story to take it into more of a sci-fi thing. It seemed more human to have them dressed in regular clothes.

MC: How were you thinking about the aesthetics of celebrity homes or famous estates like Graceland and the Neverland Ranch, or how we often perceive them?

RP: This was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to be next to Moretti to hear and witness his 13th studio album Caesar’s Request. It had to feel real. From a production design standpoint, I could have amped up the interiors with excessive decorative appointments to scream ‘celebrity,’ but, I didn’t want it to feel like Mariah Carey’s dressing room.

I decided on an adobe modern minimalist aesthetic for each of the guest rooms. All the guest rooms were painted Moretti orange, except for Ariel’s, which is light blue. She has been selected to write the history of the Level faith, so I used the color blue to align her with the Indigo blue of the Levelists wardrobe colorway. It’s a subtle hint that goes unnoticed, but it’s a strategic color choice to allude to what’s coming.

I removed all the existing furniture from the premises and we purchased low modern couches for all the guest rooms. Animal skins were on the beds, floor, and furniture. In the film, we later find out that there is a black slaughter shed on site where the animal skins were processed, along with Moretti’s invited guest, Bill Lotto [played by Mark Sivertsen]. So it gets a bit creepy if you start to make all the animal skin connections.

MC: What was it like toeing between designing a wardrobe for a pop icon and a cult leader, or did you find that those things weren’t all that different?

SK: In theory, it is really not that different because they're both usually people who like to be center stage, who like all the attention and the adoration. So, it makes sense that that's the path that would be created for him or that he would create. But, in terms of costume design, it was pretty challenging to figure out that balance of, What is realistic and what seems natural and not too forced.

For his performance, I wanted him to wear something a little bit more modern and not like, Okay, this looks like a costume that he wore in 1988. So I thought it would be cool to have something [with] a little bit of sci-fi influence. Prior to this, I was a big fan of the fashion designers threeASFOUR and reached out to them to see if they would be interested in collaborating, and they were totally down. They're the ones that made the custom silver look for him.

MC: How was the space for the listening party conceived? Was it at all intended to look like a music video?

JP: Moretti’s listening session was conceived as a circular space. However, we later chose to do it in the riding stable at La Mesita. I designed a 60’ by 60’ stage for the center of the stable and painted it bright orange. In each of the four corners, I had indigo speaker stacks as if it were a massive EDM sound system installation. John requested pivoting chairs for his choreographed vignettes with the guests, so I sourced some modern high-back lounge chairs from the local community college. It was always conceived to be staged in a circular arrangement and shot in a circular format. However, the height and size of the riding stable made the volume of the playing space feel like it was floating in a much larger arena.

MC: There are a lot of eerie yet fun details, like the blue lobster in the dinner party scene, the oysters the Levelists shuck, Moretti’s wax figure at his museum. Did you have a favorite?

RP: My favorite set was the orange yurt where the levelists pined for pearls in the deserted landscape. We cast about 450 plaster oyster shells in rubber molds. That wasn’t nearly enough, so my art director Jurasama Arunchai, my production assistant, and I went out in the snow and brought hundreds of rocks into the yurt to fill in the purple garbage cans, so it appeared that were thousands of shells.

My second favorite set was the puppet show. We created a rat-pack media scrum with marionettes inside the children’s activity room. MAG and I had some downtime while we waited for a production waiver to fall into place during the actors strike, so I banged out some quick rat sketches. MAG said, ‘Cool, do it,’ so I just went for it. I made a rat head out of clay and then used tracing paper dipped in aqua resin for each of the puppets. For the facial warts on the rat heads, I used black pepper. My friend Misha Sturtevant runs a Broadway costume shop in Manhattan and volunteered to fabricate the puppet outfits. Then, the rat parts were shipped out to Albuquerque where they were fuzzed up and strung for performance. The puppet show happened somehow, but the whole time, I think the producers had it on the chopping block due primarily to the tight shooting schedule. So at least one positive thing came out of the actors's strike: We were graced with a bit of time to make rats.

MC: Moretti’s childhood home has been turned into a museum, The Rhinestone Chalet, on the compound and it’s a stark contrast from the main building in many ways. What did you hope to convey about who he is in that scene?

RP: The Rhinestone Chalet was shot in downtown Albuquerque. Visual effects 3D-scanned the entire house and digitally inserted the Rhinestone chalet into the Moretti Compound at La Mesita Ranch. We selected this two-story Victorian home in Albuquerque to construct a narrative of Moretti being from the Midwest and growing up in a conservative, middle-income neighborhood. He kept his house as his own reliquary of artifacts from his childhood and the wild touring years on the road.

I painted the exterior of the Rhinestone Chalet some really awful, putrid color combinations, thinking it would feel awful and old. Much to my surprise, the actual homeowners loved the color combinations and kept it! I created an exterior plaque to identify the house and found a painted wood reindeer at a thrift store for just $7 that I couldn’t pass, so the deer guarded the entrance to the Rhinestone Chalet. I added a climbable steel trellis on the side of the house to the attic for the stunt fight in the attic where Ariel is hiding in the bathroom. But the bathroom was built as a stage set in a maintenance shed at La Mesita Ranch north of Santa Fe.

MC: What was it like as a costume designer working on a project helmed by someone so connected to the fashion world?

SK: It was really helpful because having such a short prep time, once we got casting, I would be like, ‘Okay, so how do you see this character dress?’ Most directors would be like, ‘Okay, I see him in a leather jacket,’ but MAG would be like, ‘I see him in a Belstaff leather jacket.’ He knew his brands and it was so helpful being able to understand his vision of the character.

Also, he had a lot of connections. We were shooting in New Mexico, and there are hardly any higher-end boutiques there. We had to reach out to designers to see if they would loan or lend some pieces, and he was good friends with John Elliott and Todd Snyder, so they were able to give us some pieces. Then my styling background, I reached out to many different brands. [Because of] my connection with Kate and Laura Mulleavy of Rodarte, I was able to reach out to them to have them loan a dress for Juliette Lewis. And then Prada, of course, who dressed Ayo [Edebiri]. Later on, when Ayo is getting interviewed as a writer, Phillip Lim loaned some looks, The Frankie Shop, she’s also wearing Coach. It was really helpful to have these connections and reach out to them because my budget was really limited and it really allowed for the movie to look the way I wanted it to.

MC: Ayo Edebiri has become a fashion It Girl. What was it like working with her?

SK: Amazing. She has a great sense of style, but she also knows how to build a character with what she's wearing. Initially, we wanted to go with more of a Black Ivy style. So she's wearing a Bode sweater vest, and we see her at her house in a Spelman College sweatshirt—a little bit preppy, bookish. That way it would be a big contrast to the makeover: There she iis elegant and in Prada. Then, in the final scene, she's definitely still put together, but it's much more expensive and polished. It was a great way to tell the story, like the three parts: right before the compound, during, and then after.

What if, just 15 years from now, you could design a robot partner tailored to your own perfect specifications? The new sci-fi thriller Companion ponders just that, taking what’s already our current reality—text exchanges with an AI boyfriend or girlfriend—to a dystopian extreme.

The film, written and directed by Drew Hancock, follows a human and robot couple’s weekend away turned disastrous. Jack Quaid’s character Josh has designed his dream girl in his “companion” Iris, played by Yellowjackets breakout Sophie Thatcher. She’s doting, happy-go-lucky, subservient, and pulled straight from the Stepford Wives—dressed modestly in A-lines, hair flawlessly coiffed. But as Iris comes to grips with her not-so-real reality in the film, it exposes Josh’s unrealistic expectations of women and his controlling nature.

Though Iris’s look is significant to the plot, it was not explicitly written in the screenplay. Hancock tells Marie Claire the final product was a “total collaboration” between Thatcher, costume designer Vanessa Porter, makeup designer Sasha Grossman, hair department head Joshua First, and himself.

“What was interesting from a costume perspective about Iris is that she doesn't make any of her own decisions. A man has decided what she wears, her personality, what her hair is,” Hancock says. “Everything about her is dictated through the male gaze, which is really fun to play around with. There are a billion different iterations of what could be a man's idealized mate.”

They landed on an aesthetic inspired by ‘50s and early ‘60s fashion. But with the current political climate and rise of #trad culture on and off TikTok, Hancock says it’s not lost on him how prescient the film’s themes are (surprisingly, though, he began writing it four years ago). Overall, he sees the movie as “a cautionary tale.”

Before Companion hits theaters on January 31, Hancock, Porter, Grossman, and First broke down how they designed Thatcher’s character to look like “the perfect girlfriend,” from the mid-century icons they referenced to what was on their mood boards.

Marie Claire: Was Iris’ ‘50s and ’60s-inspired look written into the screenplay or did the team develop it together?

Writer/director Drew Hancock: For Iris, the only description was ‘impossibly perfect skin,’ presenting this idea that she is a doll, but without saying that she's a doll.

Costume Designer Vanessa Porter: We came up with this idea that isn't explicitly said in the script or in the movie, but that there are basically different models you can buy from [the companion] company. So they sell maybe the ‘girl-next-door’ model, and Iris would be the ‘good girl’ model. Then it was like, ‘Oh, we should look back to the original version of this archetype.’

MC: Before you landed on the “good girl model,” what other ideas were you considering?

VP: It was always [Drew]’s idea that it would be this girl next door, sweet, demure thing. We were looking at more of this early 2000s archetype of little denim shorts. Britney Spears-y, but less sexual, was a possible direction.

DH: The Britney Spears thing, we tried a couple of outfits with Sophie. It just looked wrong and not wrong in a fun like, oh, this is commentary or this helps the story. It just was like, This does not look right. The French New Wave, ‘50s and ‘60s thing, that's Sophie. That's her style that fits so well with her. It also plays into this idea of The Stepford Wives, playing dress up. The outfits do look, not Barbie, but Barbie-ish. I can't take credit for any of that. That's all Vanessa and Sophie together, and just me saying, ‘Yeah, let’s keep going in that direction.’

MC: What reference points for the original good-girl archetype were you looking at?

VP: We were looking at a lot of Audrey Hepburn. There are some cool photos of her from a summer vacation in the ‘50s where she's in gingham and ballet flats and these mock neck turtleneck tank tops. The headbands are all a Brigitte Bardot nod—this French girl aesthetic. The color palette came from The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and the beginning of these romantic films. We wanted to use the costumes to set the expectation that this is a romantic, lighthearted movie that then we can subvert.

MC: Iris’s ‘50s-inspired look is interesting because Josh purchased her and programmed her to look that way.

VP: This character is so interesting because it's one of the first characters I've ever designed where the character doesn't choose their own clothes and her costumes are almost more reflective of his character than hers. It really speaks to his toxic masculine ideals of what a perfect woman is—this sort of trad version of a woman that dates back to an earlier time.

Makeup designer Sasha Grossman: I remember this light bulb moment when Vanessa was showing us photos and we saw [the outfit Iris wears in most of the film] and Joshua [in the hair department] and I got to then really riff on this idea of her look is also the gaze that is in Josh's eyes. So it's like, what would this man’s ideal person be? It was this cool opportunity to [nod to] to that antiquated expectation of the ‘50s and ‘60s, this housewife, and the idea of this man scrolling through and being able to choose that.

There are lots of moments where there are conflicts between Josh and [the other woman in the movie played by Megan Suri]. It made sense for him to design this version of womanhood that was in direct opposition to this other character.

MC: Drew, the movie is about relationship dynamics, but a lot of that, which filters down to how Josh programmed Iris to look, is about toxic masculinity. Were you thinking about that in the writing process or did that come along the way?

Writer/director Drew Hancock: A little bit of both. I didn't want to make a preachy movie that was about like, ‘Oh, toxic masculinity is wrong.’ I don't think anyone is surprised that that's a thing. And I know that being a man, I'm not really the person to tell that version of the story.

[In Companion], you're existing in a world that it's a near future, but it's not today. It's 15 years from today, and it's a world where this technology is already a part of it. This isn't the iPhone 1, it's the sixth or seventh-generation Iris. So it's a society used to interacting with robots that look like human beings. The question of who Josh is becomes well, what would that do to someone if their phone looked like a human being? How would they, not only treat their phone, but how would they treat all other human beings? So it's not just about him being an evil man who wants to suppress women. He's a guy who objectifies everyone. He's a guy that isn't capable of empathizing with human beings anymore.

MC: How much were you thinking about playing with artificiality versus realism in Iris’s look?

SG: A conversation came up early on with Drew where I was like, ‘Listen, she's going to get in the shower. I feel like we can play with her makeup because we're going to see her face in the shower. [Her makeup] shouldn't move. We call it ‘the Barbie face.’ It's a stamp. It never comes off. It never changes because that's also what Josh would want. He just wants her to already be like this every single day—this feline flick [eyeliner] and perfect, pouty, bright lips and matte skin.

Another movie where someone just looks perfect all the time, even when they wake up, it's not believable. But on this movie, it was a hint to the reveal. It was the same thing with the hair. She gets it all wet and then she gets out and it's already starting to be what you wish your hair looked like all the time.

DH: That was one of the benefits of shooting sequentially. It was early on enough that now you can go, ‘Oh, my gosh, when she's running through the woods, she never sweats. Her makeup never smears.’ That's one of those things that you would think is intentional, but it's something you have to discover. And as long as you're open to ideas that enrich and enliven the story, then, yes, it all feels like it was meant to be.

VP: Her looks are very matched. The headband is matched to the shirt [her shorts are] matched to the shoe, which is something that lends artificiality. People don't generally do that, but we were trying to blur the lines.

It is a trend right now to have those headbands and to have these cutesy, doll-core looks. So the fact that it's also believable that these might be a regular person's clothes is part of the blending of artificiality and reality that the movie plays with.

MC: Did you research what sex bots on the market look like for inspiration?

Hair Department Head Joshua First: 100 percent. I found a lot of the typical sexy, wavy hair. You weren't really finding [period-inspired looks] in my research… at least I didn't delve down into that part of the dark web. It was what you would think you would find: big bouncy waves. So I was like, okay, we got to get more creative with this.

SG: Same for me. It’s about the very impossibly smooth skin. With Sophie, she's got these amazing freckles, which I was like that would be something Josh would [program] ‘yes.’ He would want that bumped up. I imagine it's on a little toggle thing, and you can decide how much or how little.

One thing I did ask Drew about was like, ‘We can do one of two things: Either she can have matte, flawless skin, or it can be impossibly glowy, but either way, it shouldn't be an in-between. It should be the lack of shine or very intentional shine.’ We settled on lack of shine; we wanted it to look very much like the Barbie face.

MC: What products were you using?

JF: Oribe.

SG: ILIA cat eyeliner and felt tip liner. I used both of them to create the flick liner. I love the felt tip line, and it stayed in the shower. That was not a reset. It did not come off.

We used a combination on her lip, too: It was ILIA Tint Hydrating Lip Balm in Runaway and Hold Me blended. And I find that anything, especially for the lips, to have it be a tinted chapstick. It's not going to look like lipstick. It's going to look like your lips, but with that poutiness, and it's going to keep you hydrated.

MC: Where did you source the pieces in Iris’s wardrobe?

VP: We shopped at a few of the French girl aesthetic brands. Ciao Lucia made a couple of the pieces. We also shopped at Brooks Brothers. We got it into our mind that we wanted to have this A-line, ‘50s buttoned-up dress, so we set out looking for that silhouette and fabric dress, and Brooks Brothers is who made it.

MC: How did you decide on the look that gets trashed throughout the movie?

VP: There are certain practical aspects where we could see blood and dirt blend into that pastel color. But I think that gingham is very iconically that trad, feminine look.

MC: Was there a specific piece that you sourced that when you found it, felt like it really made the look come together?

VP: The headbands became a really iconic thing for us as this call back to Brigitte Bardot and this other kind of sexuality and this doll-ness without hitting it too hard.

MC: Sophie’s bangs always look incredible but are so fitting for Iris. What was it like coming up with her hairstyle for the movie?

JF: We didn't have a ton of lead-in time to really discuss looks with her specifically. Sophie has this magical way of fixing her own bangs to lay—I can't figure it out. We'd be sitting there and I'd be like, ‘Can you just do this?’ So she created the bang look. And then the headbands solidified that. And then when she cuts her arm open, [somebody suggested], ‘Maybe she wraps her arm in the headband,’ and then it got to be a little more playful.

MC: What was it like collaborating with Sophie on Iris’s look?

VP: She’s just very excitable in a really playful and fun way, and she loves this kind of fashion. She made a whole little mood board too, and shared that. Some of it went a little bit darker, and we upped it into a more playful place to set this expectation of the romance.

MC: What was on Sophie’s mood board?

VP: [I think] some Courtney Love. Anna Karina was big on there. She had a bunch of French New Wave stuff that was just a little bit more emo than the more upbeat direction that we ended up going. But all really fun stuff that was a huge catalyst for the design.

MC: With bows and girl-ish clothes like Iris’s being in, there’s a bit of debate about whether the fashion trends are regressive or subversive. What do you think about the difference between that look in reality versus what you’re doing in Companion?

VP: You want these costumes to be giving the feeling of a repressed person. We wanted to not like these costumes and like them at the same time. You want to feel like they are repressive and they're from a pastime, and you don't want women to go back to that time, but you also want to think it's kind of cute. That's what the costumes are doing in the film. As far as in wider culture, a lot of the times where these bows and demure, cutesy things are being used, it’s part of a commentary. I feel like Sabrina Carpenter is doing a little bit of a commentary. I feel like it is part of a conversation more than just leaning in. But then you look at TikTok at some trad wife and it's some of the same stuff, but it's not being used in that way. I think fashion takes different forms depending on who's employing it.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Horror movies are guaranteed to give you a fright—that's kind of the point—but some will have you hiding under the covers more than others. While realistic psychological thrillers can be very eerie, sometimes paranormal movies—with their jump scares and disturbing imagery—can be even more terrifying. Whether about ghosts, witches, or monsters, the scariest paranormal movies examine an evil force beyond human comprehension and how much of an effect its haunting has on an unsuspecting victim.

Whether you're a horror aficionado or prefer movies that even scaredy cats can watch, if you're in the mood to watch something spooky that will keep you at the edge of your seat, look no further for the best paranormal movies.

'The Autopsy of Jane Doe' (2016)

Like others on this list, this falls into the category of underrated scary movie. It follows a coroner and his son (Brian Cox and Emile Hirsch, respectively) who perform an autopsy on an unidentified woman and are increasingly terrified by what they find inside her.

'The Babadook' (2014)

The Babadook is a smart rumination on grief—but it's also beyond terrifying. A widow (Essie Davis) and her young son (Noah Wiseman) discover a book called The Babadook, and then the titular character decides to visit them. Their increasingly erratic behavior means that essentially no one believes them.

'The Blair Witch Project' (1999)

The Blair Witch Project was deliberately marketed as a true story, including insinuating that the actors were indeed "missing" after an ill-fated trip to the woods in search of a witch. So, it was quite a cinematic experience watching this found-footage film at the time and thinking it was real—and even still, it's extremely eerie.

'Candyman' (1992)

Don't believe in urban legends? Well, graduate student Helen (Virgina Madsen) didn't either, before she invoked the Candyman (Tony Todd) legend by speaking his name five times into a mirror.

'The Conjuring' (2013)

While this is considered a loose interpretation of the paranormal investigations by real-life figures Ed and Lorraine Warren, the story is still scary as heck. A family moves into a house, starts experiencing some scary stuff, and can't really move—they're literally and figuratively trapped.

'The Descent' (2005)

If you have claustrophobia, we'd strongly recommend you not watch this. Six adventuresome women decide to go spelunking as a part of their girls' trip and end up lost in an uncharted cave system—oh, and they're sharing the space with some humanoid inhabitants.

'Evil Dead' (1981)

This is a shining example of how a low-budget horror film can still be very scary. Despite the now-predictable premise (a group of college students goes out to a cabin in the woods and things go very, very badly), the film stays fresh—even now—by refusing to pull a single punch.

'The Exorcist' (1973)

The Exorcist is the original stellar paranormal film—and among the best movies of all time. Its efficacy hinges on how seriously it takes the premise about a girl (Linda Blair) possessed by a malevolent force and the religious leaders performing an exorcism on her to stop it.

'Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum' (2018)

Found-footage is an impressively rich genre for the paranormal movie. In this cool setup, a horror web series crew is enlisted to investigate an abandoned psychiatric hospital. Fun fact: This became the third most-watched horror film in South Korea after its release (and it remains one of the best Korean horror movies of all time).

'Hereditary' (2018)

This is one of those movies that benefits from a second and third watch; the clues are all there, but when you're watching Hereditary for the first time, you're too busy being terrified to notice. It also makes the argument that a whole family could be cursed.

'High Tension' (2003)

Whether or not this movie is about the paranormal is up for debate, but that's half of what keeps you at the edge of your seat. Without spoiling much of the plot or its impressive twist, High Tension follows a woman (Maïwenn Le Besco) and her friend/crush (Cécile de France) as they go away for the weekend—only to find themselves at the mercy of a vengeful, unkillable sociopath (Philippe Nahon).

'Host' (2020)

This brilliant film—which almost entirely takes place over Zoom—captures the experience of COVID-19 isolation but adds a paranormal twist. Several friends decide to conduct an online seance (already a terrible idea) and then unwittingly release something from the beyond.

'Insidious' (2010)

For parents, this one's particularly bone-chilling: a young boy (Ty Simpkins) goes into the attic of the family's new house, falls off the ladder, and goes into a coma. And then a whole bunch of supernatural stuff starts happening, with their son unable to wake up.

'It: Chapter One' (2017)

If you're familiar with the Stephen King book or its 1990 miniseries, you'll know that the "It" in question takes the form of what you fear most (but mostly presents at the terrorizing clown Pennywise). Thanks to incredible makeup aand CGI and an amazing young cast, the story was made even more frightening by this 2017 version.

'It Follows' (2015)

This film features a supernatural force that doubles as a fascinating analogy. Teenager Jay (Maika Monroe) hooks up with a guy—only for him to tell her that he's passed on an evil entity to her. However, whatever "It" is, it's invisible, making this paranormal game of cat-and-mouse especially chilling.

'Oculus' (2013)

The idea of a supernatural mirror that causes increasingly evil hallucinations could have made for a silly movie. But Oculus manages to turn the concept into an effective family drama, told partially in flashback to indicate how frightening circumstances became for the two kids (Karen Gillan and Brenton Thwaites) living under its influence.

'The Omen' (1976)

Skip the remake and go straight to the 1976 original starring Gregory Peck. Imagine, if you will, that you slowly start to suspect there's something wrong with your young son...only to have someone tell you he's the Antichrist. "Look at me, Damien! It's all for you!" It's a classic for a reason.

'Onibaba' (1964)

Onibaba is a classic Japanese horror movie about two women (Nobuko Otowa and Jitsuko Yoshimura) who murder and loot the bodies of deserting soldiers as a means of survival. Their plans go awry when one of the women is seduced by a soldier, and while much of the film is focused on their shift in dynamic, there is a malevolent force at play.

'The Others' (2001)

This is one of the more restrained paranormal films on this list, but no less terrifying (thanks to a stellar performance by Nicole Kidman). All you need to know is that it follows a young mother and her two children as they're haunted by mysterious spirits—and that it results in one of the best twists in movie history.

'Paranormal Activity' (2007)

This movie was shot for about only $15,000 before it spawned a whole franchise of films; its premise and execution were just that good. Katie and Micah move in together, with Katie insisting she's been haunted by evil forces since she was a kid. Micah decides he should film them while they're sleeping to see if they can capture them. You can bet that doesn't turn out to be the best idea.

'Poltergeist' (1982)

"They're heeeeere!" If you grew up in the '80s, you'll remember this Steven Spielberg-written horror movie. A family moves into a seemingly bucolic home, only to find that their white picket fence comes with some strange, supernatural entities...and they're obsessed with the kids.

'[•REC]' (2007)

[•REC] is a Spanish found-footage horror movie (later remade into a not-as-great English-language version). A reporter (Manuela Velasco) and her cameraman (Pablo Rosso) shadow a bunch of firefighters as they follow an emergency call into a building—only to become sealed inside and quarantined because of a mysterious virus. As you might expect, it's no ordinary virus.

'The Ring' (2002)

This is a rare case in which the original Japanese movie Ringu and the American adaptation Ring are just as compelling. If you don't know much about the film, don't spoil it for yourself, and give yourself over to the idea that there's a haunted videotape out in the world. Be prepared for the jump scare of your life.

'Rosemary's Baby' (1968)

Everybody's had bad neighbors, but Rosemary (Mia Farrow) has the worst. This classic is equally terrifying and depressing while being surprisingly subversive and funny. It also pulls off a wild premise: Is the creepy couple in your building just nosy, or are they more sinister? Very much the latter, as it turns out.

'The Shining' (1980)

This movie isn't gory or plagued by jump scares; instead, it relies on mounting dread to scare you half to death. A man (Jack Nicholson), with a history of violence and alcoholism, is stuck with his family for months in a remote and abandoned hotel—which just so happens to be evil.

'Sinister' (2012)

An author (Ethan Hawke) moves his unsuspecting family into a house that was previously the site of something gruesome. The sinister entity starts exerting influence over him and his family. Unlike many other paranormal movies, you get to know what's behind everything, to terrifying effect.

'Skinamarink' (2022)

This movie is experimental and not for everyone (certainly not for horror fans who prefer jump-scare-ladden movies). But it's a moody, eerie piece that became a word-of-mouth hit, with a frightening premise: a girl (Dali Rose Tetreault) and a boy (Lucas Paul) wake up to find their parents, along with all the windows and doors in their house, gone.

'Suspiria' (1977)

The Luca Guadagnino-helmed remake goes in interesting directions, but Dario Argento's original 1977 film is creative, visually stunning, and horrifying. A young ballet dancer (Jessica Harper) attends a dance academy in West Germany, only to find it an increasingly terrifying experience.

'The Taking of Deborah Logan' (2014)

This is a smaller indie with a gripping premise that's worth watching. It centers on a documentary crew as they follow Deborah Logan (Jill Larson), a woman in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, and her caretaker daughter (Anne Ramsay). But is the old woman really experiencing dementia? Or is something way, way worse happening?

'Talk to Me' (2022)

If you fell into possession of a severed, embalmed hand, and you discovered that you could use it to contact the dead, would you play around with it? That's exactly what a bunch of teenagers do in Talk to Me—and, unfortunately, things start to go as badly as you expect.

'The Thing' (1982)

While this is a sci-fi-horror hybrid, it remains one of the most tense watches you'll ever experience. Scientists in Antarctica come across Norwegian scientists who appear to have gone mad. However, they discover that whatever they found out there in the snow and made them grow insane is more insidious than expected—and determined.

'The VVitch' (2015)

Once you acclimate to the Puritan English, Robert Eggers' debut feature is a taut and terrifying story. After being expelled from their community in colonial New England, a family goes out into the woods....where something begins to target them. Thomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy), their teenage daughter, is increasingly blamed for the occurrences—leaving you to question what's really unfolding.

Demi Moore won her first major acting award at the 2025 Golden Globes and used her acceptance speech to honor women who struggle to "know the value of your worth."

As she took to the stage on Sunday, January 5 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in L.A. to accept the Golden Globe for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for her performance in The Substance, Moore said she was "in shock" at her win for the body-horror film, and pointed out that it was her first-ever prestigious acting award.

"I’ve been doing this a long time—like over 45 years—and this is the first time I’ve ever won anything as an actor," the star, 62, began. "I'm just so humbled and so grateful. 30 years ago, I had a producer tell me that I was 'a popcorn actress' and at that time, I made that mean that this wasn't something that I wasn’t something that I was allowed to have, that I could do movies that were successful, that made a lot of money, but that I couldn't be acknowledged."

"I bought in and I believed that. And that corroded me over time to the point where I thought a few years ago that maybe this was it, maybe I was complete, maybe I've done what I was supposed to do. As I was at kind of a low point, I had this magical bold, courageous, out-of-the-box, absolutely bonkers script come across my desk called The Substance, and the universe told me that you're not done."

"I am so grateful to [writer/director] Coralie [Fargeat] for trusting me to step in and play this woman," Moore continued. "For Margaret [Qualley] for being the other half of me that I couldn't have done without, for looking out for me. To the people who've been with me for over 30 years…all of the people who stood by me, especially the people who believed in me when I haven't believed in myself."

She concluded by referring to how the themes of The Substance—which follows an aging fitness star as she undergoes a risky procedure that makes her a younger double—resonate. Moore said, "I'll just leave you with one thing that I think this movie is imparting, in those moments when we don't think we're smart enough or pretty enough or skinny enough or successful enough or basically just not enough. I had a woman say to me, 'Just know, you will never be enough, but you can know the value of your worth if you just put down the measuring stick.' So today I celebrate this as a marker of my wholeness and of the love that is driving me and for the gift of doing something I love and being reminded that I do belong. Thank you so much."

While this Golden Globe marks Moore's first win at the awards show, over her career, she has been nominated for three other Golden Globes—for the films Ghost and If These Walls Could Talk. She also won an Independent Spirit Award as part of the ensemble cast of Margin Call.

Moore is expected to rack up more nominations throughout awards season. So far, she has also received a Critics Choice nomination for Best Actress. The Substance is currently streaming on Mubi, and available to rent on Amazon Prime Video.

The Substance was nominated across multiple categories at the 2025 Golden Globes: The feminist horror film also received nods for Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy and Best Screenplay, while filmmaker Coralie Fargeat received a Best Director nod and Moore's costar Margaret Qualley was nominated for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture.

It seems like cinephiles and entertainment industry profiles haven't been able to stop talking about how horror has become one of the most unique and thought-provoking genres of the 2020s. In 2024 alone, several indie movies became surprise smash hits, from Strange Darling's word-of-mouth success story to Longlegs becoming the year's highest-grossing independent release to The Substance's awards recognition. The genre continued its reign in 2025, with many acclaimed, original ideas that became must-sees and even shattered box-office records, as audiences rushed to the theater to see films with little to no promotion (we're looking at you, Sinners and Weapons!).

From the latest projects from award-winning, cult-loved directors to highly anticipated sequels, this year, there were many scary movies and thrillers worth seeing (including some that even scaredy cats can tolerate). Below, find the best horror movies of 2025. (For more recommendations of what to watch, check out our list of the best horror movies of 2024, as well as our round-ups of the best comedy, romance, drama, and thriller movies of the year.)

'Presence'

Release date: January 24

Starring: Lucy Liu, Julia Fox, Chris Sullivan, Callina Liang, Lucas Papaelias, West Mulholland, and Eddy Maday

Why it’s worth seeing: There are countless haunted house movies, but Steven Soderbergh flips the genre on its head in Presence. The Oscar-winner, known for his innovative filmmaking tactics like shooting on an iPhone, frames this spooky film entirely through the POV of a ghost haunting a family who moves into a new house.

WATCH IT

'Companion'

Release date: January 31

Starring: Sophie Thatcher, Jack Quaid, Lukas Gage, Megan Suri, and Harvey Guillén

Why it’s worth seeing: If you liked the 2022 hit Barbarian, add Companion to your must-see list: It comes from the same production team and twists abound. The thriller, written and directed by up-and-comer Drew Hancock, centers on a twisted love story involving a man and an AI girlfriend, or "companion," and a weekend away gone very wrong.

WATCH IT

'Heart Eyes'

Release date: February 7

Starring: Olivia Holt, Mason Gooding, Gigi Zumbado, Michaela Watkins, Devon Sawa, and Jordana Brewster

Why it’s worth watching: This horror-comedy arrived just in time for Valentine’s Day. The genre-bending serial killer movie is about a pair of coworkers who work late on February 14 and are mistaken for a couple by the sadistic, romance-hating Heart Eyes Killer.

WATCH IT

'The Monkey'

Release date: February 21

Starring: Theo James, Tatiana Maslany, Elijah Wood, Christian Convery, Colin O'Brien, Rohan Campbell, and Sarah Levy

Why it’s worth seeing: Did Longlegs give you nightmares but absolutely wow you in 2024? Well, its writer/director Osgood Perkins kicked off 2025 with another film. An adaptation of genre master Stephen King’s 1980 short story of the same name, Theo James pulls double duty, playing a pair of twins who uncover a creepy toy monkey in their family attic. When deaths start unfolding around them, they have reason to believe the monkey is the cause of it, leading them to hide the toy—and set out to destroy it years later when similar deaths start to occur.

WATCH IT

'Holland'

Release date: March 9 on Prime Video

Starring: Nicole Kidman, Gael García Bernal, Matthew Macfadyen, and Jude Hill

Why it’s worth seeing: Filmmaker Mimi Cave burst onto the scene with the unsettling feminist horror film Fresh in 2022, and she followed it up with another movie in which everything is not as it seems. Set in Holland, Michigan—which retains a lot of Dutch architecture and traditions still to this day—a woman (Nicole Kidman) suspects her husband (Matthew Macfadyen) may lead a dark, double life.

WATCH IT

'Hell of a Summer'

Release date: April 4

Starring: Fred Hechinger, Abby Quinn, D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Bryk, Finn Wolfhard, Pardis Saremi, Rosebud Baker, and Adam Pally

Why it’s worth seeing: Call it Friday the 13th for a new generation. Co-directed by Stranger Things star Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk, this horror-comedy toys with the camp trope as it follows a group of camp counselors who face off against a masked killer the night before campers arrive.

WATCH IT

'Drop'

Release date: April 11

Starring: Meghann Fahy, Brandon Sklenar, Jeffery Self, Gabrielle Ryan Spring, Violett Beane, Jacob Robinson, Ed Weeks, Travis Nelson, and Reed Diamond

Why it’s worth seeing: We’ve all had our fair share of bad dates, but few may compare to what happens to Meghann Fahy’s character Violet in this thriller. She stars as a widowed mother who goes on a pleasantly surprising date with a charming man (Brandon Skienar), which quickly turns into a nightmare as she starts to receive texts with a series of commands. Among the requests is an order to kill her date, and if she doesn't, whoever is on the other end of her texts threatens to harm her and her loved ones. Major yikes!

WATCH IT

'Sinners'

Release date: April 18

Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Jack O'Connell, Wunmi Mosaku, Jayme Lawson, Omar Benson Miller, and Delroy Lindo

Why it’s worth seeing: Whenever frequent collaborators Michael B. Jordan and Ryan Coogler team up, it’s a must-see. The Black Panther and Creed filmmaker’s latest is an original horror movie about twin brothers (both played by Jordan) who return to their hometown to open a juke joint, only to be preyed upon by evil forces. If you haven't already seen the sensation—which broke several box office records, including becoming the highest-grossing original movie of the 2020s so far—what are you doing?

WATCH IT

'The Shrouds'

Release date: April 30

Starring: Diane Kruger, Vincent Cassel, Guy Pearce, and Sandrine Holt

Why it’s worth seeing: If you’re a horror fan, any David Cronenberg film is a must-see. The master of body horror’s latest is set in the future, when a technology known as GraveTech exists, so people whose loved ones die can monitor their decaying corpse. When a man (Vincent Cassel) who has been watching his wife’s body discovers hers and several others have been desecrated, he sets out to find who did it and get revenge.

WATCH IT

'Clown in a Cornfield'

Release date: May 9

Starring: Katie Douglas, Kevin Durand, Will Sasso, Cassandra Potenza, and Aaron Abrams

Why it’s worth seeing: Based on Adam Cesare’s YA horror novel, this is a teen scream about the re-emergence of Frendo the clown in a small rural, Midwestern town. Once a symbol of the town’s success, now he’s a terrifying force who's back and ready to wreak havoc on local high schoolers.

WATCH IT

'Fear Street: Prom Queen'

Release date: May 23

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

Why it’s worth seeing: It may have taken four years, but another Fear Street movie arrived on Netflix this year. A standalone story from R. L. Stine’s books, this one is set in the ‘80s and about the deadly battle for Prom Queen at Shadyside High.

WATCH IT

'Bring Her Back'

Release date: May 30

Starring: Sally Hawkins, Billy Barratt, Sora Wong, Jonah Wren Phillips, Sally-Anne Upton, Stephen Phillips, and Liam Damons

Why it’s worth seeing: Were you totally obsessed with the word-of-mouth A24 sensation Talk to Me when it came out in 2022? Well, you can expect filmmaking twin duo Danny and Michael Philippou's follow-up to be even gnarlier. When a brother and sister (Billy Barratt and Sora Wong) are placed in the foster system and wind up in the home of a woman named Laura (Sally Hawkins), it seems something sinister is at play and threatening to tear them apart. It's one of this year's very best—but, if you're squeamish, know that you may avert your eyes at times.

WATCH IT

'28 Years Later'

Release date: June 20

Starring: Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes

Why it’s worth seeing: The filmmakers behind the cult-loved zombie film 28 Days Later reteamed for a long-awaited sequel. While star Cillian Murphy doesn't appear, he’s on as an executive producer, and original screenwriter Alex Garland (Ex Machina, Civil War) and director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting) returned. The new movie follows Rage virus survivors on a desolate island who learn that the virus has mutated and can now infect even survivors when one travels to the mainland.

WATCH IT

'M3GAN 2.0'

Release date: June 27

Starring: Allison Williams, Violet McGraw, Amie Donald, Jenna Davis, Brian Jordan Alvarez, Jen Van Epps, Ivanna Sakhno, Timm Sharp, Aristotle Athari, and Jemaine Clement

Why it’s worth seeing: After the Blumhouse horror-comedy about a killer AI doll slayed at the box office in early 2022, a sequel was green-lit. Though her tech was deactivated at the end of the original, M3GAN makes a comeback in this follow-up to face off with a rogue new bot.

WATCH IT

'I Know What You Did Last Summer'

Release date: July 18

Starring: Freddie Prinze Jr., Chase Sui Wonders, Madelyn Cline, Sarah Pidgeon, Tyriq Withers, Jonah Haur-King, Lola Tung, Nicholas Alexander Chavez, Austin Nichols, and Gabbriette

Why it’s worth watching: Could this cast be any more stacked? I Know What You Did Last Summer is the latest ‘90s movie to get rebooted. For the unfamiliar, the original franchise followed a group of teens being stalked by a killer with a hook for a hand after a tragic accident. The new version has a similar premise and sees original stars making cameo appearances.

WATCH IT

'Together'

Release date: August 1

Starring: Alison Brie, Dave Franco, and Damon Herriman

Why it’s worth seeing: Married couple Alison Brie and Dave Franco have worked together before, but the funny pair flexed their horror muscles in this bonkers body horror movie. The two star opposite one another as a couple whose relationship is on the rocks after moving to the countryside, and then find themselves undergoing a peculiar transformation after coming across a bizarre sight in the woods. Not only do they offer killer performances, but the visuals will also make your skin crawl—so much so that you may leave the experience wondering if you should break up with your partner.

WATCH IT

'Weapons'

Release date: August 8

Starring: Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, Alden Ehrenreich, Austin Abrams, Cary Christopher, Benedict Wong, and Amy Madigan

Why it’s worth seeing: Aunt Gladys, enough said. If that's left you puzzling, despite the many adoring memes and buzz this film has generated, just know you're about to meet the next great horror villain. Barbarian filmmaker (and former indie comedy star from the Whitest Kids You Know) Zach Cregger was the talk of the town in Hollywood when this script was on the market (largely because Jordan Peele wanted to produce it and lost out on a bidding war)—giving this movie a lot of hype...which it in fact lived up to. The less you know, the more fun it is for its mystery to unfold, but it centers on the stellar premise that all the children from one classroom, save for one boy, disappeared one night at 2:17. Told in several chapters from different people involved, with dark humor sprinkled throughout, and no-holds-barred imagery, it certainly comes for the title of one of the year's very best.

WATCH IT

'The Conjuring: Last Rites'

Release date: September 5

Starring: Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Ben Hardy, and Mia Tomlinson

Why it’s worth seeing: The Conjuring universe has produced spinoff series like the Annabelle and The Nun movies, making this sequel the franchise’s whopping ninth installment overall. The film focuses on the paranormal investigators who started it all, the Warrens (Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson), and adapts the true story of the Smurl family haunting.

WATCH IT

'Rabbit Trap'

Release date: September 12

Starring: Dev Patel, Rosy McEwen, and Jade Croot

Why it’s worth seeing: This one’s for fans of folk horror—and creepy kid movies. In Bryn Chainey’s debut feature, a couple (Dev Patel and Rosy McEwen) moves to a home in a desolate, wooded area of Wales. While the musician wife works on her new album, her music “disturbs local ancient folk magic,” inviting a mysterious child (Jade Croot) to their front door. May our crushes on Dev Patel help us brave through the inevitable terrors to come.

WATCH THE TRAILER

'Bone Lake'

Release date: October 3

Starring: Maddie Hasson, Alex Roe, Andra Nechita, and Marco Pigossi

Why it’s worth seeing: We’re always on the lookout for rising female horror filmmakers to watch, and this project, directed by Mercedes Bryce Morgan, should be on your radar. The plot of this confined indie reads, "Disaster ensues." When a couple’s romantic getaway goes awry, they must share a mansion with another mysterious couple.

WATCH IT

'Good Boy'

Release date: October 3

Starring: Shane Jensen, Arielle Friedman, Larry Fessenden, and Indy the dog

Why it’s worth seeing: This supernatural film earned a lot of buzz at festivals and on social media ahead of its release, considering its unique perspective. A new kind of haunted house story, it’s told through the dog’s POV and starring filmmaker/star Larry Fessenden’s real-life pup, Indy. Meaning, this may pull on heartstrings as much as it offers scares! Fur baby owners, be warned!

WATCH IT

'The Black Phone 2'

Release date: October 17

Starring: Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw, Ethan Hawke, Jeremy Davies, Miguel Cazarez Mora, Demián Bichir, and Arianna Rivas

Why it’s worth seeing: While the 2021 hit horror movie The Black Phone was based on Joe Hill’s stand-alone novella of the same name, it received the sequel treatment, thanks to the movie’s blockbuster success. The first film was a coming-of-age story about a 13-year-old boy named Finney (Mason Thames) abducted by a child predator known as The Grabber (Ethan Hawke), who tries to escape with the help of his past victims’s spirits. Part two tactfully expands the story as, two years later, Finney's sister Gwen (Madeleine McGraw) starts experiencing nightmares that lead her and her brother to investigate at a winter camp. As it turns out, the Grabber is even scarier from beyond the grave.

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'Frankenstein'

Release date: October 17; November 7 on Netflix

Starring: Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth, Felix Kammerer, Lars Mikkelsen, David Bradley, Lauren Collins, Charles Dance, and Christoph Waltz

Why it’s worth seeing: Guillermo del Toro is famously endeared to monsters, and now he’s adapted the seminal story about a mad creator and his lonely, misunderstood creation. A very faithful adaptation of Mary Shelley’s novel, fit with stunning production and costume design—not to mention scream queen Mia Goth in two roles—this is sure to cast a spell on you.

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'The Hand That Rocks the Cradle'

Release date: October 22 on Hulu

Starring: Maika Monroe, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Raúl Castillo, and Martin Starr

Why it’s worth seeing: We’ve been fans of Maika Monroe's since she became an instantly iconic final girl in 2014’s It Follows, and have respected her starring in more horror movies since then. She leads this remake of a 1992 movie about a woman with secret motives who poses as a nanny and infiltrates another family. With rising Mexican filmmaker Michelle Garza Cervera directing, she gives the story an updated take.

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'Shelby Oaks'

Release date: October 24

Starring: Camille Sullivan, Brendan Sexton III, Michael Beach, Robin Bartlett, and Keith David

Why it’s worth seeing: Chris Stuckmann built a massive following as one of YouTube’s most popular film critics, and now he’s released a film of his own, which came out of one of the most successful Kickstarter campaigns ever. About a woman (Camille Sullivan) who comes into contact with a supernatural evil while searching for her missing sister, it marks a chilling debut.

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We hope you like movies that keep you on the edge of your seat, because in 2025, there were many of them. A handful of exciting thriller movies arrived in theaters and on streaming services, from whodunits that keep you guessing until the end to espionage dramas to book-to-movie adaptations of popular mystery-thriller books. So chances are, whatever keeps your adrenaline high while at the multiplex or curling up on the couch, there's something for you.

Below, we're rounding up the best thrillers of 2025. (For more recommendations of movies to watch right now, check out our round-up of the best thrillers of 2024, as well as our round-ups of the best comedy, romance, horror, and drama movies of the year.)

'Inheritance'

Release date: January 24

Starring: Phoebe Dynevor, Rhys Ifans, Ciara Baxendale, and Kersti Bryan

Why it’s worth seeing: After seeing Phoebe Dynevor lead the erotic/workplace thriller Fair Play, you should be looking forward to seeing the Bridgerton alum in an espionage movie. She leads this thriller as a young woman drawn into an international conspiracy after learning that her father was a spy.

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'Presence'

Release date: January 24

Starring: Lucy Liu, Julia Fox, Chris Sullivan, Callina Liang, Lucas Papaelias, West Mulholland, and Eddy Maday

Why it’s worth seeing: You’ve never seen a haunted house movie like this. Steven Soderbergh, known for his innovative filmmaking tactics like shooting on an iPhone, is toying with the genre by making this movie told entirely through the ghost’s (or presence’s) perspective. Through their POV, we’ll see a family become frightened upon moving into a new house.

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'Companion'

Release date: January 31

Starring: Sophie Thatcher, Jack Quaid, Lukas Gage, Megan Suri, and Harvey Guillén

Why it’s worth seeing: Twists abound in Companion. The wickedly funny and surprising thriller, written and directed by Drew Hancock, centers around a twisted love story between a young man and his AI bot girlfriend on a weekend away that goes very wrong.

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'Armand'

Release date: February 7

Starring: Renate Reinsve, Ellen Dorrit Petersen, Endre Hellestveit, Thea Lambrechts Vaulen, Øystein Røger, and Vera Veljovic

Why it’s worth seeing: If you loved Renate Reinsve’s breakout performance in The Worst Person in the World, check out Armand, in which she’s showing a completely different role. In the Norwegian thriller, she plays the mother of a boy named Armand who gets in trouble for an incident involving himself and another boy at school. Amid public scrutiny and concern that the incident might mean something more, she begins to unravel.

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'Bring Them Down'

Release date: February 7

Starring: Barry Keoghan, Christopher Abbott, Nora-Jane Noone, Paul Ready, Aaron Heffernan, Conor McNeill, Susan Lynch, and Colm Meaney

Why it’s worth seeing: With Barry Keoghan and Christopher Abbott leading this indie thriller and Toronto International Film Festival favorite, you can bet there will be incredible performances here. They go toe-to-toe in this Ireland-set drama about two farming families with a dark, melodramatic history, which all comes to a head when the son of one farmer (Keoghan) claims the other family’s prize rams were found dead on their property.

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'The Gorge'

Release date: February 14 on Apple TV+

Starring: Miles Teller, Anya Taylor-Joy, Sigourney Weaver, Sope Dirisu, and William Houston

Why it’s worth seeing: After her incredible turn as a bona fide action star in Furiosa, we’ll watch Anya Taylor-Joy lead any action-thriller movie. She and Miles Teller play guards holding posts on opposite sides of a mysterious gorge, which houses a secret evil. Though they don’t know what they’re protecting, they work together when it comes under threat.

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'Last Breath'

Release date: February 28

Starring: Woody Harrelson, Simu Liu, Finn Cole, Cliff Curtis, and Djimon Hounsou

Why it’s worth seeing: Filmmaker Alex Parkinson adapts his 2019 documentary of the same name into a feature. A survivalist thriller, it tells the harrowing yet inspiring true story of a group of deep-sea divers’s race against the clock to rescue one of their teammates stuck without heat or light hundreds of feet under the sea.

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'Black Bag'

Release date: March 14

Starring: Cate Blanchett, Michael Fassbender, Regé-Jean Page, Marisa Abela, Naomie Harris, Pierce Brosnan, and Tom Burke

Why it’s worth seeing: Steven Soderbergh released not one but two acclaimed thrillers in 2025. Black Bag is an espionage thriller with a stacked cast led by Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender as a loving married couple and spy duo who start to face off when she’s suspected of treason. Though it's a mystery, this one is ultimately more about the lengths we go to protect the ones we love—meaning, it's sexy as hell.

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'The Amateur'

Release Date: April 11

Starring: Rami Malek, Rachel Brosnahan, Caitríona Balfe, Jon Bernthal, Michael Stuhlbarg, Holt McCallany, Julianne Nicholson, Adrian Martinez, Danny Sapani, and Laurence Fishburne

Why it’s worth seeing: Is 2025 the year of spy movies? It might be! This adaptation of Robert Littell’s novel of the same name stars Rami Malek as a CIA cryptographer on a one-man vengeance mission. He sets out to get to the bottom of a terrorist attack in London, which resulted in his wife’s death, when his bosses won’t act.

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'Drop'

Release date: April 11

Starring: Meghann Fahy, Brandon Sklenar, Jeffery Self, Gabrielle Ryan Spring, Violett Beane, Jacob Robinson, Ed Weeks, Travis Nelson, and Reed Diamond

Why it’s worth seeing: We’ve all had our fair share of bad dates, but few may compare to what happens to Meghann Fahy’s character, Violet, in this thriller. The latest from Christopher Landon (known for helming horror hits like the Paranormal Activity and Happy Death Day movies) follows a young widowed mother trying to get back in the dating game, whose night with a pleasantly sweet charmer named Henry (Brandon Skienar) turns into a nightmare. Throughout the evening, she receives concerning texts with a series of commands, threatening to hurt her and her family if she doesn’t listen.

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'Deep Cover'

Release date: June 12 on Prime Video

Starring: Bryce Dallas Howard, Orlando Bloom, Nick Mohammed, Ian McShane, Paddy Considine, Sean Bean, and Sonoya Mizuno

Why it’s worth seeing: If you’re always up for saying, “Yes, and…” when it comes to improv, tune into Deep Cover. The crime-comedy centers around a group of improv actors hired by the London police to go undercover in a sting operation.

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'Echo Valley'

Release date: June 13

Starring: Julianne Moore, Sydney Sweeney, Domhnall Gleeson, Kyle MacLachlan, Fiona Shaw, Edmund Donovan, and Rebecca Creskoff

Why it’s worth seeing: Julianne Moore and Sydney Sweeney are two heavyweights of their respective generations, bringing an emotional potency to this crime drama. The two play mother and daughter, with Moore’s Kate doing anything to reach Sweeney’s Kate as she struggles with a drug addiction. When Kate finds herself in trouble—arriving on her mom’s doorstep one night, covered in blood that’s not her own—the two do what they can to protect each other.

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'I Know What You Did Last Summer'

Release date: July 18

Starring: Freddie Prinze Jr., Chase Sui Wonders, Madelyn Cline, Sarah Pidgeon, Tyriq Withers, Jonah Haur-King, Lola Tung, Nicholas Alexander Chavez, Austin Nichols, and Gabbriette

Why it’s worth seeing: The '90s classic about a group of friends being stalked by a killer after a tragic accident is the latest horror series to get the reboot treatment. Like the original, it's got a stacked cast to match—and OG stars (including Freddie Prinze Jr. and Sarah Michelle Gellar) even make cameo appearances.

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'Honey Don't!'

Release date: August 22

Starring: Margaret Qualley, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Evans, Charlie Day, and Talia Ryder

Why it’s worth seeing: Ethan Cohen and Tricia Cooke launched their "lesbian B-movie trilogy" in 2024 with Drive-Away Dolls, and they continued it this year with Honey Don’t!. Like the last, Margaret Qualley stars, this time playing private investigator Honey O'Donahue, who is on the case of a young woman’s death, which she believes is connected to a religious cult. Expect neo-noir vibes, an A-list cast, and a lot of laughs throughout.

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'Lurker'

Release date: August 22

Starring: Théodore Pellerin, Archie Madekwe, Zack Fox, Havana Rose Liu, Daniel Zolghadri, and Sunny Suljic

Why it’s worth seeing: Has stan culture become a little scary? Lurker seems to think so. The indie hit sees a retail employee and aspiring photographer’s (Théodore Pellerin) dream come true when he finds himself in his favorite artist’s (Archie Madekwe) inner circle.

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'The Thursday Murder Club'

Release date: August 22 on Netflix

Starring: Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Ben Kingsley, Celia Imrie, David Tennant, Jonathan Pryce, Naomi Ackie, and Richard E. Grant

Why it’s worth seeing: Are you a fan of cozy mysteries, a.k.a. whodunits with quirky characters and notes of Agatha Christie? Well, you’ll want to turn into The Thursday Murder Club. Based on a book by popular mystery-thriller writer Richard Osman, it follows a group of true crime fiends who meet to discuss unsolved cases—and find themselves in the center of solving one when someone from their small town is murdered.

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'Caught Stealing'

Release date: August 29

Starring: Austin Butler, Zoë Kravitz, Regina King, Vincent D'Onofrio, Matt Smith, and Bad Bunny

Why it’s worth seeing: Darren Aronofsky’s latest adapts Charlie Huston’s novel of the same name (with a screenplay penned by Huston). The film marks an intense turn for heartthrob Austin Butler, as he plays Henry "Hank" Thompson, a former California baseball player who descends into the criminal underground in N.Y.C.’s Lower East Side. Aronofsky famously does grit well, and the punkish, '90s-set movie sure does have some, but it also has a lot of biting humor.

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'The Long Walk'

Release date: September 12

Starring: Cooper Hoffman, David Jonsson, Garrett Wareing, Tut Nyuot, Charlie Plummer, Ben Wang, Roman Griffin Davis, Josh Hamilton, Judy Greer, and Mark Hamill

Why it’s worth seeing: The next generation of must-watch actors fills out the ensemble in this adaptation of Stephen King’s novel of the same name. Set in a dystopian version of the ‘70s, it follows a group of young men who must compete in a challenge in which they walk at the same pace for an extended distance for days, or they’ll be shot to death. While it may not sound like it, it’s one of the most moving and visually stunning horror-thriller movies of the year.

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'American Sweatshop'

Release date: September 19

Starring: Lili Reinhart, Daniela Melchior, Joel Fry, Christiane Paul, and Tim Plester

Why it’s worth seeing: We’re all in on Lili Reinhart’s dramatic era! The Riverdale alum stars in this eerie social media thriller about a young woman whose job it is to moderate online comments. When she sees something violent, she takes it upon herself to try to solve the crime.

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'One Battle After Another'

Release date: September 26

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Regina Hall, Sean Penn, Alana Haim, Teyana Taylor, Wood Harris, and Benicio del Toro

Why it’s worth seeing: If there's a new Paul Thomas Anderson movie with an all-star cast, you see it. One Battle After Another marked his biggest-budgeted film to date—and he delivered. Loosely based on Thomas Pynchon's Vineland, it focuses on underground revolutionaries known as the French 75, who are determined to fight fascism, no matter what it takes. Years after a pair of fighters in love (Leonardo DiCaprio and Teyana Taylor) were pulled apart, DiCaprio's character Bob Ferguson is drawn back in once their daughter (Chase Ifiniti) is kidnapped by a former adversary (Sean Penn). The action is riveting, it's full of witty humor, and it feels like the blockbuster for our times.

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'After the Hunt'

Release date: October 10

Starring: Ayo Edebiri, Julia Roberts, Andrew Garfield, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Chloë Sevigny

Why it’s worth seeing: As usual, Luca Guadagnino (Call Me By Your Name, Challengers) curated a stellar cast to tackle a tense, timely subject matter in a stylish form. In After the Hunt, issues of morality and questionable past decisions arise for a college professor played by Julia Roberts when a student (Ayo Edebiri) comes forward with sexual misconduct allegations against another one of her teachers (Andrew Garfield).

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'The Mastermind'

Release date: October 17

Starring: Josh O'Connor, Alana Haim, Hope Davis, John Magaro, Gaby Hoffmann, and Bill Camp

Why it’s worth seeing: Kelly Reichardt is one of the best filmmakers working today, and her latest is an inspired heist film that can’t be missed. Josh O'Connor plays a suburban family man in the early '70s who assembles a plan to steal a series of paintings from his local Massachusetts art museum.

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'Bugonia'

Release date: October 24

Starring: Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Alicia Silverstone, Aidan Delbis, and Stavros Halkias

Why it’s worth seeing: Emma Stone and Yorgos Lanthimos are back at it. For their fourth collaboration, they remade the 2003 South Korean film Save the Green Planet!. The plot follows two conspiracy theorists (Jesse Plemons and Aidan Delbis) who kidnap the CEO of a major company (Stone), convinced that she’s an alien. Put on your tin foil hats and lock in because you’ll be guessing what’s true and what’s not until the very end.

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'A House of Dynamite'

Release date: October 24 on Netflix

Starring: Idris Elba, Rebecca Ferguson, Gabriel Basso, Jared Harris, Tracy Letts, Anthony Ramos, Jonah Hauer-King, Moses Ingram, Greta Lee, and Jason Clarke

Why it’s worth seeing: Filmmaker Kathryn Bigelow is essentially the queen of political thrillers. The cast is full of powerhouses who play a team of government agents trying to determine who was behind a single missile launched at the U.S.

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'Die, My Love'

Release date: November 7

Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Robert Pattinson, LaKeith Stanfield, Sissy Spacek, and Nick Nolte

Why it’s worth seeing: Acclaimed auteur Lynne Ramsay (You Were Never Really Here, We Need to Talk About Kevin) tag-teams with Jennifer Lawrence, who’s also on as a producer, to adapt a novel of the same name by Ariana Harwicz. It follows a woman who slowly falls into psychosis after the birth of her firstborn and struggles to return to her writing. Lawrence gives a career-best performance, never holding back and giving a heart-wrenching portrayal of a woman unraveling.

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'The Running Man'

Release date: November 7

Starring: Glen Powell, William H. Macy, Lee Pace, Emilia Jones, Michael Cera, Daniel Ezra, Jayme Lawson, Colman Domingo, and Josh Brolin

Why it’s worth seeing: Edgar Wright and Glen Powell team up to re-adapt the Stephen King novel of the same name, which was previously made in 1987 with Arnold Schwarzenegger. The dystopian film follows contestants on a reality show where they’re chased by “Hunters” out for blood.

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'Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery'

Release date: November 26 in theaters and December 12 on Netflix

Starring: Daniel Craig, Josh O’Connor, Cailee Spaeny, Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Daryl McCormack, and Thomas Haden Church

Why it’s worth watching: Rian Johnson and Daniel Craig are at it again. The British star slips back into his New Orleans drawl as Benoit Blanc in the third movie in the Knives Out franchise—this one being a god-fearing, unholy case about the murder of a monsignor. The detective travels to Upstate New York to help investigate, where, of course, he meets a cast of kooky characters.

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'The Housemaid'

Release date: December 19

Starring: Sydney Sweeney, Amanda Seyfried, Brandon Sklenar, and Michele Morrone

Why it’s worth seeing: Sydney Sweeney’s become a bit of a scream queen over her career, and she'll be tapping into that in this adaptation of Freida McFadden’s bestselling novel of the same name. In it, she becomes the housemaid to a seemingly sweet, affluent couple (Amanda Seyfried and Brandon Sklenar), only to find out they have some dark secrets behind closed doors.

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'Marty Supreme'

Release date: December 25

Starring: Timothée Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Odessa A'zion, Kevin O'Leary, Tyler Okonma, Abel Ferrara, and Fran Drescher

Why it’s worth seeing: Did you know ping-pong can be thrilling? Well, that’s essentially an understatement in the world of Marty Supreme. Josh Safdie (Uncut Gems, Good Time) helms this movie—which we’re calling an instantly iconic American epic—about Marty Mauser (Timothée Chalamet), a young man living in a post-WWII N.Y.C. who’s determined to be the best table tennis player in the world. To get there, he’ll do whatever it takes, sending him on an unrelenting, wild journey—bringing a frenetic side out of Chalamet. From the dark humor to the ‘80s-inspired score by frequent Safdie collaborator Daniel Lopatin and a career-making performance by Odessa A’zion, no minute goes wasted, and you’ll be locked in like Marty playing a game of ping-pong the entire way through.

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This story contains heavy spoilers for Nosferatu. Every night her husband Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) is away, Lily-Rose Depp’s Nosferatu character, Ellen, has nightmares about the vampire, Count Orlock. She convulses, sleepwalks, and moans as if something has come over her. Though Orlock (Bill Skarsgård) is vile, the erotic dreams force her to be curious about a side of herself that she’s been told to repress—and clearly no longer can.

During Robert Eggers’ remake of the classic gothic tale, the 19th-century housewife works through her shame even while men try to diagnose and hospitalize her, and Depp’s portrayal is one of cinema’s latest, greatest erotic horror performances. The 25-year-old is on par with Isabella Adjani in 1981's Possession (Adjani also played a version of the Hutter character in a 1979 rendition) and Charlotte Gainsbourg in 2009's Antichrist. But while her predecessors are completely unhinged in their characterizations, Depp straddles a fine line of literally being in a corseted and tightly bound body, while emotionally wanting to rip open her bodice and give herself over to the “darkness.”

Much of Depp’s bewitching performance in the film, out December 25, comes down to her movements, from granular gasps to dramatic back arches. To manifest believable moments of possession and sexual awakening, Depp worked closely with movement coach Marie-Gabrielle Rotie, a visual artist with a background in dance. A close collaborator of Eggers’, having previously worked with him on 2022’s The Northman, as well as shows like The Witcher, she was tapped for this project due to her knowledge of the Japanese dance form butoh, known as “the dance of darkness.” (It’s often a source of visual inspiration for many J-horror films.)

Rotie choreographed movements before shooting, relayed them to Depp during a rehearsal period in the production’s stunt room, and was present throughout filming on the snowy Prague set. She also helped craft the final sequence between Ellen and Orlock, just before the set was closed to the two actors, an intimacy coordinator, and the director.

Most notably, the movement coach saw herself as further elevating the project’s “feminist lens.” “The messages that come across [in the film] are about female desire, female eroticism, and medicalization of the female body, ” she tells Marie Claire over Zoom from her home in Suffolk, England. (The town is coincidentally known as “witch country,” due to its history in the U.K.’s witch trials.)

“There are still things that women don't talk about with each other or admit to. In different cultures, it's completely taboo, or your body does not belong to you to a certain extent. It belongs to your husband or to the patriarchies,” she says. “For Ellen to find her way through all of that and then to reach her own conclusion was an interesting journey to take with her.”

We spoke to Rotie about finding inspiration in hysteria patients from 19th-century mental hospitals, how surprised she was by Depp’s flexibility, and constructing the film’s final intimate scene between the monster and Ellen.

Marie Clarie: You studied images of hysteria patients for inspiration. Were there certain photos you were looking at? Did you give Lily-Rose Depp any homework?

Marie-Gabrielle Rotie: Yes, over the course of that whole rehearsal period, both Rob [Eggers] and I would give her images. In fact, Rob's office had massive blowups of images.

When I go to create movement, I'm drawing upon a massive reservoir of visual images that have embedded themselves in my body. So, I was very aware of some of the images of the arch of hysteria—where women do these extraordinary backbends on the bed. There was one particular patient of [neurologist Jean-Martin] Charco's, called Augustine, who was very famous for doing these.

I was also equally aware of the wonderful visual artist Louise Bourgeois, a French artist in her 90s, and she's done a lot of sculptures called the “Arch of Hysteria” dealing with these images of women in cages or domestic spaces. For me, that was a perfect image to work with.

What I do is I go into a studio, I have these images, I have these references, and I have Rob's script as the primary focus. I'm reading the script carefully, going, ‘What does he need in this particular scene?’ Rob works so beautifully in terms of visualizing and [storyboarding], so everything seems to be there. But funny enough for the movement, [he can be] quite open-ended because he realizes that the body has to find its place in the frame. So, that was my job.

MC: You specialize in the Japanese form of dance butoh, which greatly informed Lily’s movements. Why was butoh so inspiring for this film?

MGR: I think of myself as an artist working with the body, and I think of choreography as painting the space with movement or sculpting time with movement. Butoh [for years after it was founded in the ‘50s was] quite male. Women only became involved from the 1970s onwards. Part of my work within butoh has also been to work as a feminist marker to think about How can this language be used to explore my own body, my own desire, my own eroticism, my own sexuality, my own darkness, my own shadow? How can I use all of these things as a language and as a tool to go inside and to express, not just on behalf of myself, but on behalf of other women?

Butoh was perfect for Nosferatu because it deals with transformations of the body. In some senses, we open the body to being inhabited by various forces, whether that's wind, rain, becoming a flower, an insect, or an animal. In the same way, Nosferatu is about allowing an entity to manifest. It felt like it was destiny that those two languages should meet somehow.

MC: That’s so interesting and makes sense since this version of Nosferatu sees Ellen through a feminist lens and more than a sacrificial lamb.

MGR: I was really interested in the medicalization of [Ellen’s] body. That's why both Rob and I leaned into looking at notions of hysteria and the documentation of hysteria in the 19th century, which tallied extremely well with the period in which [the film] is set. I was thinking about how that body is literally corsetted in. It's repressed, it's controlled, it's laced up, it's buttoned up—and how Lily might work against that and try to find her way out of it in some form.

MC: Did Lily-Rose Depp surprise you in any way while you were working together?

MGR: Lily was always a revelation. I remember that first rehearsal we were doing a lot of shaking—and shaking is quite exhausting. I remember Lily saying to me, ‘Marie, do you do this for a living? Oh, my God, this is really hard!’ But once we developed a language together, and she understood what was required, then she started to settle into it and find ways to be able to cope with the demand on her body.

I was surprised at her flexibility. I said to her, ‘How come you are so flexible? Do you do yoga or something?’ She said, ‘No, nothing.’ She's more flexible than the average dancer in her back and elsewhere. So I was able to go, ‘Right, that's it. Beautiful. I can use the arch of the hysteria.’

The scene [when she arches her back and levitates off the bed] we made very quickly. And then Lily insisted on putting her hand on [her neck]. It made sense—we had her hand there at the beginning [of the film].

MC: Was there a moment in rehearsal when the movements began to click for her or did it all come as naturally as the backbends?

MGR: It took a few rehearsals to find the core strength. The opening scene where she's lying in the earth on her side, that takes an awful lot of core strength to find the stability not to faceplant. When you have to roll onto your side, it's quite an art to keep the core steady so you can shake, hold this hand here, and shake your legs at the same time. So that took quite a few rehearsals, but once she got it, [she got it].

The scene that was the hardest was this shaking scene where she was with her husband in the living room. This was really hard because, in a way, it wasn't 100% choreographed. It wasn't like, ‘Put your hand here. Do that.’ It was more like she had to find a physical state inside of herself, which we can rehearse, but there's only so much you can rehearse before you have to do it along with the text and the actions of demolishing the living room. It was incredible how she managed to do that and find all the transformations. In the end, it’s Lily who has to glue it all together for herself as an actress and find all those little nuances.

MC: Was she rehearsing with you in a corset?

MGR: I was absolutely insistent from the very beginning that we work in a corset because I was very aware it would impact her ribcage, movement, breathing, but also bring its own beauty to how we might then deal with the movement itself.

MC: You worked with a few other cast members, including Emma Corrin on the scene when she succumbs to the plague. What was that like?

MGR: Gosh, yes, the rats. They had a caravan on site, so I was on the floor of their caravan saying, ‘Well, you could move like this,’ they’re looking at me standing up, of course then they has to go on the floor of this room and actually have rats on their body.

They’re wearing a night dress and the rats all go and sit on their crotch, the warmest place. So my job as a choreographer was to go in and literally move their body so that the rats would have a pathway to go up them a bit more and not settle there. It was the most bizarre moment on set. But Emma was so stoic about it, didn't flinch.

MC: Did you and Lily have conversations about the film’s themes of shame, repression, and desire, and how that manifests in movement?

MGR: Rob created novellas for each character. I never saw it, but they would've done the work of creating the scaffolding for that character in terms of the narrative. My job was to go in and create the physicality.

When you're working with physical movement, you're already working with emotions. You're working with very deep memories sometimes that can be triggered by movement. So, in a way, our conversation was entirely on the physical plane. There's a way of communicating where you don't need so many words.

Nonetheless, some of the major conversations we had were about the ending. The question of: Is she just this sacrificial maiden? [That is] true of the original version of Nosferatu where the woman is super passive, and she's basically sucked the life out of her, and then she's saved humanity. I had tried that version in rehearsal with Bill [Skarsgaard] where he falls out of shot, as in the original Nosferatu and Rob's original storyboarding. Rob and I were like, “Something’s missing here,’ and I said, ‘Look, at this point, she's had her blood half sucked out of her, so she's nearly dead.’ And we had to work really carefully to modulate her death.

I thought, Why doesn't she float back up into the frame and then bring her down with him? It’s almost like, ’Is she a ghost? Is she alive? Is she dead? Is she on the edge of existence?’ I felt that was a really interesting conclusion to the love that she actually genuinely feels for, not something external to herself, but actually a part of herself. It's a way of accepting herself, and that's what makes the ending so beautiful. It is not just a love story between two entities. It's a love story about herself; she's accepted something in herself.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

This story contains heavy spoilers for the entirety of The Substance. In Coralie Fargeat’s new feminist horror movie The Substance, harmful societal beauty standards are the real monsters. They (female objectification, the disposal of “the old,” the proliferation of an industry built on body modification) feed a beast of a cycle that leads Demi Moore’s fading TV personality character Elisabeth Sparkle to seek out a black market treatment called The Substance that promises to make her more beautiful. And in doing so, she undergoes a creature-feature-like transformation herself.

The Substance is a grotesque process—one involving syringes, fluids, and Elisabeth’s spine opening up to birth a younger double played by Margaret Qualley. Elisabeth and her counterpart, known as Sue, cannot be conscious simultaneously, so they each live for a week before switching places, with Sue detracting liquid from a gaping hole in Elisbeth’s spine to sustain herself. When Sue abuses The Substance, Elisabeth begins to age—starting with one unnerving, decrepit finger before spreading into creaky, nearly unusable limbs; and when Elisabeth fights back by binge-eating, Sue malfunctions so much so that she can pull chicken wings out of her navel.

In doing so, the film points to the painstakingly ugly lengths some will go to be revered as perfect. It’s executed to a spine-tingling, life-like extent that makes for a body horror film for the ages.

To bring her vision to life, Fargeat collaborated with prosthetics and makeup effects designer Pierre-Olivier Persin and his team at POP FX. Persin (who previously worked on Game of Thrones) tells Marie Claire that the project was a dream come true. “I remember reading in magazines like Fangoria interviews with the prosthetic artists who did The Fly,” Persin recalls I was 15-years-old in my bedroom and dreaming, looking at the pictures with a magnifying glass, trying to [understand how they did it].”

He adds, “This is not The Fly—it has different sensibilities—but it has that flavor.”

Persin and POP FX worked with Fargeat to design five stages of Elisabeth’s evolution, which they lovingly named “Requiem,” “The Finger,” “Gollum,” “Monstro,” and “Gremlin.” Operating out of their studio in Montreuil, France, as well as a second rental workshop space, they prioritized practical effects—like those out of The Fly and other classic horror movies—with him and Fargeat frequently sending each other clips on YouTube of old-school tricks they hoped to replicate.

Equally as important to the success of the film’s gory aesthetic was key makeup artist Stéphanie Guillon. While The Substance is a nightmarish thriller, it also lives in a splashy, surrealist version of modern-day L.A., and Guillon heralded the pristine beauty looks that enhance Elisabeth and Sue’s star power—especially as the double becomes an image-obsessed monster.

With The Substance now in theaters, Marie Claire spoke to Persin and Guillon—two longtime collaborators in French cinema—about crafting Elisabeth and Sue’s looks, building monstrous dummies and a blood rig, and signing up Demi Moore for five-hour sessions in a makeup chair.

Marie Claire: When developing Elisabeth and Sue’s beauty looks, how did you differentiate them?

Stéphanie Guillon: For Elisabeth, I had a bit of a fight with the director because I told her that she had to be beautiful in the beginning [of the film]. It had to be like, ‘Why would they [fire her]?’ Because she has everything, she's beautiful, she still has a show that's going on very well—so I wanted for her to be sparkling and beautiful. Coralie was telling me, ‘No, no, no, she cannot,’ and I said, ‘Coralie, I have to have the time for her to go down deep before she has all the prosthetics and all of that.’

For [Margaret’s character, Sue], I had all sorts of makeup. I was in Korea before [shooting], so I brought back a lot of stuff because they're very good at makeup. I wanted something very cheerful, very sparkling, and pop because that was what Coralie asked for. I made a lookbook with different sorts of makeup inspiration from the ‘80s mixed with [recent] Korean video clips. The sparkling stuff that I picked [was from] watching BLACKPINK videos. And then I also went to look at makeup artists who do a lot of fashion shows because they can do stuff that we don't do in the movies.

MC: When Sue starts abusing The Substance, Elisabeth starts aging. Was there a clear vision Coralie had of how that was supposed to look, or was the effects team able to come up with a plan and say, ‘Let’s start with her finger?’

Pierre-Olivier Persin: The design phase was very long. Coralie had a clear vision, but she didn't know what she wanted to see. Especially for Demi's transformation into a hag, she wanted to go too far too quickly. I thought we needed a progression to have a few stages before suddenly everything goes wild. There was a couple of fights about that too. [My perspective was] it'll be wild and insane eventually, so let's keep the holes from running at the beginning and hold the throttle.

MC: Was the unzipped spine on Elisabeth’s body and the hole in her back that Sue detracts liquid prosthetics on Demi Moore’s body, or was there a dummy built?

POP: It was a little bit of everything. We had quite sophisticated silicon dummies. We had two for the birth. We also had matching prosthetic makeup on the body double and some days we applied the makeup on Demi.

MC: For much of the movie, Demi is half-elderly-half-normal. How long did it take for her to get into makeup?

POP: When it was half the face, one arm, one foot, one leg, and the full-back prosthetic, it took five to six hours.

That makeup was more difficult than when she's completely gone because the full body is covered. But when it's just half of the face, I didn't want it to look like makeup from makeup school—when you are training students and you do half of the face aged and the other half is normal. I was really frightened of that. Also, when you add prosthetics to a face or body, you add volume. If you’ve built up half the body, but the other half is not built up, suddenly, the old arm that is supposed to be skinny looks bigger than the normal arm. So, it was a matter of trying to come up with the thinnest prosthetic as possible, while at the same time trying to be as gruesome as possible.

MC: While the body horror is shocking, the most stirring scene might be when Elisabeth smears her makeup out of frustration and starts to harm herself. What was it like doing her makeup for that scene?

SG: We did that, I think, 10 times. My primary concern was Demi’s face. So I prepared a lot of stuff that was easy for her. All of the pads were already wet with product for her to not have too much to start with. But Demi is Demi, so she went for it. So it was like, ‘Oh, my God, she's going to have eyelashes all around and all of that.’

My concern was she's going to hurt herself. At the end, I did something that I never did on a movie, ever. I told Coralie, ‘That's enough. You cannot do it anymore because she's going to have a rash all around the face.’ Coralie said, ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah, okay, okay, no problem.’ But of course after the 11th [take], she said, ‘We are going to do it once again,’ and I took the remover pad and I squashed everything, and I said, ‘I removed everything, that's over. You have already 11. You cannot have more because tomorrow she will have a red face.’ Normally you don't do that! But it was too much because it was very hard on her skin.

MC: It’s her lipstick that she smears, and lips become somewhat of an obsession of Elisabeth’s as she studies Sue’s and tries to copy them. Do you remember what brand of lipstick you used?

SG: It was Charlotte Tilbury. We used a lot of Charlotte Tilbury.

For Margaret, we used Danessa Myricks, especially for the eyes when she dances—because that stuff doesn't move. The nail polish was an American brand that I love, Zoya.

MC: Elisabeth’s transformation is jarring but it doesn’t necessarily become hagsploitation where the audience is disgusted by and scared of her when she looks elderly. Did you have any conversations with Coralie about that differentiation?

POP: Coralie was really concerned about Monstro, the creature in the end. She asked [another] company to do designs, and she was unhappy with them. So they called me, and I saw the designs and they were very good—but they were very masculine. I think Coralie really wanted something more feminine. I tried to put that sensibility in those designs rather than doing a rubber monster for the guys. I tried to add some humility in it, and then gracefulness, even if it's all crazy.

I don’t know if [Coralie] wanted to offend people, but she does not care if you go too far. As a prosthetic artist, many times we go very far with what we are doing, but she was pushing us more—more colors, more blood, more bumps, more. And she was quite hard with her characters. There's the commentary on society, but also there is a commentary on the behavior of those characters. It goes both ways.

MC: What was the process like designing the monster that Sue creates after using the remaining “activation” of The Substance in the final sequence?

POP: That was the hardest, and it took months. We designed completely from scratch. We did tons of maquettes in every way possible. We did old-school, plastic maquettes, hand-sculpted, state-of-the-art computer-generated maquettes, Photoshop—everything in between. In the end, it's an old-fashioned plastic maquette. I looked a little bit [to] Niki de Saint Phalle. She was a French sculptor from the ‘60s who had done female dancers with a fat body on tip-toes. [Coralie] wanted the feeling like the elephant with a dancer and with tons of breasts. So that was tricky.

[Filming it], we had a stunt double for the wide shots. At first, Coralie was like, ‘I want to put Margaret inside the suit,’ and I was like, ‘But it's going to be only one eye. She's going to be completely twisted.’ Coralie insisted that she wanted to have Margaret for the close-ups. I have to say, watching the movie, she was right because that's really a performance and you can see that's her.

MC: How did you create the explosion of blood that comes from Monstro in that scene?

POP: It was really a teamwork. There was a stunt crew, special effects—Jean Miel, the special effects supervisor, took care of all the blood rig because it was like a fire hose. It’s like what the firemen are using to put fire down; it was the same stuff with blood.

The set was built a certain way because we needed to hide massive tubes under the floor. What was really great with the movie was it was really willing to use as much practical effects as possible.

MC: You both spent a lot of time with Margaret and Demi in applying their makeup and prosthetics. Did you have any favorite memories working with them?

SG: [Demi] is someone with a very big heart. Working with her was a great pleasure for me—someone who will stay in my heart for a long time. Margaret is the same.

Demi also lets you work properly. For us French, it’s something! It's really different to work with English or American actors because the French ones are very spoiled! [laughs] For example, we were shooting the scene with Demi when she has half the face old age and goes to the shower. It was like five hours of makeup, we do the scene, and it’s not working properly, so we do another scene, and at the end of the day, Coralie says, ‘Okay, we’re going to go back to the first scene,’ So [Demi] has [to reapply] all the prosthetics from the morning. Demi told Coralie, ‘No, we are not going to do that because the prosthetic is now on me for so long, and it's not looking as good as this morning. So, to respect the work of the people who did it this morning, I think it's better to shoot it tomorrow.’ We were like, ‘Wow, we love you.’ That is something I've never seen on set in France.

She also did one thing [when] there was an issue with a body double who had to stand there for lighting stuff, and she had to be naked for the movie. [Demi] told her, ‘If you are uncomfortable with this, don't do it. If you are uncomfortable, you just tell me, and I’ll tell them that you have to do it with something on you.’

POP: When you [get prosthetics applied in my chair], it's like going to the dentist for six hours. So I'm not so sure that the pleasure was mutual, [laughs] but Demi is very witty and fun, and she's a trooper. Even for grueling five, six hours of makeup, she’s standing or in the chair. Many actors are mobile or bending their heads, looking down, and you are trying to glue very complicated prosthetics. She never did that—never, never ever. She’s with you all the way through, which is quite rare. She had her little chihuahua dog. Whatever she was wearing or if she had a blanket on, you could see something trembling and bulging eyes [peeking out].

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Even more than book-to-movie adaptations, video game adaptations have long been contentious. Not only are there extremely enthusiastic fan bases who want to see a similar experience that draws directly from the source material, but bringing their expansive, fantastical worlds to the silver and small screen can be a challenge. Plus, viewers unfamiliar with the games must stay engaged by a captivating story.

With all that said, some of our best recent movies and must-watch TV series have pulled from video games—both faithful renderings and loose adaptations. Over the past several decades, the subgenre has evolved impressively into some of the most thrilling from action, horror, sci-fi, and animated entertainment. Whether you're a gamer or not, many video game adaptations are worth watching, so, below, are the best movie and TV video game adaptations of all time.

'Arcane' (2021– )

Set in the League of Legends universe, Arcane is steampunk gorgeousness that reminds some viewers of Game of Thrones. Fans of the game loved it—and non-fans who like good, animated television also tuned in, which is a key sign of success.

WATCH IT

'Castlevania' (2017–2021)

This "dark fantasy" anime-inspired television series is a modernized vampire story. It's built a story and its characters over seasons, and it's driven by an intense and urgent storyline (which is a must for adaptations). The follow-up series, Castlevania: Nocturne, is also great.

WATCH IT

'The Cuphead Show!' (2017–2022)

Don't be fooled by the vintage style: This is about a cup-headed character and his brother who make a deal with the Devil. The series adaptation is light on plot but amazing to look at, with the kind of surrealism that makes for an enjoyable viewing experience.

WATCH IT

'Cyberpunk: Edgerunners' (2022)

The Cyberpunk 2077 role-playing game led to the Cyberpunk: Edgerunners animated series. It's in the same universe but a prequel, and is considered one of those rare miracles where the adaptation elevates the source material and makes it even richer and deeper.

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'Doom' (2005)

Doom centers around a first-person shooter space marine who fights various monsters (the first installment in the franchise debuted in 1993). Doom the 2005 movie was a box office bomb, and critics hated it, but it's got some gamer supporters. It's an early attempt at a video game adaptation; it just had some kinks to work out.

WATCH IT

'Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves' (2023)

Like some items on this list, the Dungeons & Dragons adaptation was a pleasant surprise. In the role-playing franchise (which technically originated as a tabletop game), there's a lot of potential in gameplay and character development—so casting Chris Pine, among others, was smart.

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'Fallout' (2024– )

The Fallout video game has one of the most intriguing post-apocalyptic premises ever. Set in post-nuclear fallout, the surviving humans now exist in a wasteland alongside former human "ghouls" who have been mutilated by radiation. After fans had been calling for an adaptation for a long time, the 2024 series starring Ella Purnell and Walton Goggins delivered.

WATCH IT

'Five Nights at Freddy's' (2023)

Five Nights at Freddy's has historically convoluted lore, but the gist is that you're trying to survive the night at a pizza restaurant filled with murder-y animatronics. Critics didn't love the movie—it's a lot of story to deal with—but fans of the game really dug it.

WATCH IT

'Gangs of London' (2020– )

Video games with open-world concepts, where a player can interact with an entire simulated environment, can make great adaptations. A fascinating (and highly gory) look at rival gangs, the British series Gangs of London has been highly praised for its gritty tone and plot.

WATCH IT

'Gran Turismo' (2023)

Gran Turismo is a racing simulation game where you "drive" various vehicles. Gran Turismo the movie is a story about a teenager (Archie Madekwe) who plays the simulation game well enough to become an actual race car driver (and is, very loosely, based on true events).

WATCH IT

'Halo' (2022–2024)

If you're unfamiliar with the Paramount+ Halo series starring Pablo Schreiber, you missed out on an overlooked series (the show was canceled after two seasons in 2024 but was critically lauded). It evolved from the first-person shooter source material, which may have been why some fans weren't as engaged.

WATCH IT

'Hitman' (2007)

Technically there are two film versions of the Hitman video game: this, and the 2015 film Hitman: Agent 47. The latter is less praised than this version, which makes a solid attempt at interpreting the convoluted story. Timothy Olyphant plays Agent 47, an engineered assassin, and he gives his 110 percent.

WATCH IT

'Lara Croft: Tomb Raider' (2001)

Several video game adaptations are panned at the time of their release and then reclaimed by later audiences (and proved by the box office to be appealing to audiences). Such is the case with Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, which finds Angelina Jolie as the tomb raider in question with a pretty good quest to drive the plot forward.

WATCH IT

'The Last of Us' (2023– )

It's hard to think of a bigger video game adaptation success than The Last of Us, which was a "crossover hit" in the biggest sense of the word. Fans of the game were riveted, but people who had never heard of the zombie franchise were also drawn in by the plot following a survivor of the apocalypse (Pedro Pascal) tasked with transporting a teenager (Bella Ramsey) across the wasteland of the U.S. Thanks to the leads' performances and the show's atmosphere, it's become appointment viewing TV and garnered recognition at the Emmys.

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'Mortal Kombat' (1995)

This 1995 Paul W. S. Anderson movie takes inspiration from Mortal Kombat and Mortal Kombat II. If you're unfamiliar, it sees martial artists participating in the titular fighting event to protect Earth—and it is over-the-top campiness. Fans of the game loved, and continue to love it.

WATCH IT

'Mortal Kombat' (2021)

The 2021 film reboot of the video game franchise (and successor to two original, quite campy movies) took itself more seriously and thus left critics a little cold. But it did well and is quite a dynamic martial arts film—despite distancing itself a bit from the source material.

WATCH IT

'Need for Speed' (2014)

Based on the racing game franchise, the 2014 Need for Speed movie was compared unfavorably to the Fast & the Furious movies. It's since been recognized as an underrated adaptation going for a little more depth while still giving you all the car chases you expect.

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'Pokémon Detective Pikachu' (2019)

This loose adaptation of the video game of the same name was the first live-action Pokémon movie. What's incredible about this movie is how much critics loved it—which can be rare for an adaptation—and audiences followed suit, making this a big audience hit. But, seriously, with animation this stunning, who wouldn't love these life-like renderings of pokémon?

WATCH IT

'Pokémon: The First Movie' (1999)

The animated version of Pokémon has been intensely successful, spanning over 25 years of new television series and several movies. It's probably one of, if not the most, successful aggregation of video games to on-screen content, and one of the first anime series popular in Western media.

WATCH IT

'Rampage' (2018)

This 2018 monster movie starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and an animated gorilla is loosely based on the game of the same name. Technically, in the video game, you play as a human who's been transformed into a giant monster, and the movie was dinged for being slightly less fun than that.

WATCH IT

'Resident Evil' (2002)

There have been so many Resident Evil movies that it's easy to lose track of them. The quality has varied quite a bit (although, Resident Evil: Apocalypse is quite good), but the biopunk premise of the first movie—an evil corporation accidentally causes the outbreak of a virus that turns people into zombies—is compelling enough to propel the story forward through its stranger elements.

WATCH IT

'Silent Hill' (2006)

If you like your video games to be scary, you probably already know about Silent Hill. But if you like horror movies (and even if you've never come across the game), seek out this underrated '00s movie that wasn't well-understood when it was released but is now reclaimed as eerie and riveting.

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'Sonic the Hedgehog' (2020)

You can firmly put this film in the "delightful surprise" category. Many are familiar with Sonic the Hedgehog, but few people expected the little blue guy to make for such a fun movie character. The movie did gangbusters at the box office.

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'Sonic the Hedgehog 2' (2022)

It should come as no surprise that after the success of the first Sonic the Hedgehog movie, a sequel was greenlit and came out in 2022. It sent a bunch of box office records and was similarly praised for its sense of humor—if criticized for being a little on the long side.

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'Street Fighter' (1994)

Street Fighter is widely acknowledged to be so-bad-it's-hilarious kind of movie; it was an adaptation of the Street Fighter II fighting game that kids growing up in the '90s are probably familiar with. The movie is not really faithful to the source material, let's say.

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'Super Mario Bros.' (1993)

The 1993 "adaptation" of the Super Mario video game is somewhat of a hilarious mess that doesn't have many of the game's elements. Instead, it delves into Mario and Luigi's origin story and features various creature effects. Some fans have reclaimed it, and it's still a foretelling of the future popularity of video game adaptations.

WATCH IT

'The Super Mario Bros. Movie' (2023)

This 2023 movie was a major success at the box office—surpassing Frozen to become the second highest-grossing animated film of all time—which makes sense, given the ubiquity and longevity of the Mario franchise. Because it's animated, it was faithful to the game in the look and feel. Critics called the plot flimsy, but kids loved it.

WATCH IT

'Tomb Raider' (2018)

The rebooted Lara Croft movie took itself somewhat more "seriously" than the three Angelina Jolie films. Alicia Vikander took on the lead role, which drew mixed responses; the grittier, more realistic set pieces also made some reviewers long for the original. But others liked the new vibe, and the film performed well.

WATCH IT

'Twisted Metal' (2023– )

The "vehicular combat" video games made for an intriguing television series starring Anthony Mackie. He plays "John Doe," a delivery driver with amnesia tasked with delivering a package across the post-apocalyptic United States, which goes about as well as it sounds.

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'Uncharted' (2022)

This historical fiction treasure-hunting franchise sounds like Lara Croft for the modern generation. The reality is a little more complex; critics thought it was a little lacking in the plot department, but fans of the games came through and made it a box office smash.

WATCH IT

'Warcraft' (2016)

This is considered a relatively faithful adaptation of Warcraft—which was to its detriment since there was a lot of lore (and the characters therein) to flesh out. Critics didn't care for the script either, but it was a box office hit and is considered by some to be underrated.

WATCH IT

'Werewolves Within' (2021)

If you missed this 2021 film, seek it out. The original game is a "social deduction" premise, where you guess who the hidden werewolf is. That inspired this Clue-like buddy comedy premise, and the premise lends itself well to an ensemble movie, which features a hilarious cast led by Cheyenne Jackson and Sam Richardson.

WATCH IT

This story contains heavy spoilers for Longlegs. Osgood Perkins’ nightmarish new horror sensation Longlegs begins with a lyric from the 1971 hit “Get It On (Bang a Gong)” by the glam-rock band T. Rex: “You've got the teeth of the hydra upon you / You're dirty, sweet, and you're my girl.” Their music opens and closes the film, harkening back to the Satanic Panic conspiracy that rock music featured subliminal messages—but it's the connotations of girlishness and impurity that crawl under your skin in that first moment, and throughout the film.

Perkins’ new film (released by NEON on July 12) is largely about the stories our parents tell us, but also seemingly has a feminist horror bent. Not only is Longlegs interested in exploring the essence of evil and how it manifests, as many classic horror movies have done before, but its Satanic themes can be interpreted as critiquing the traditionalist, religious expectation of the nuclear family structure and belief that girls should be docile and pure. Frequently, the film following the investigation of FBI Agent Lee Harker (Maika Monroe) into the mysterious, cipher-obsessed serial killer known as Longlegs (Nicholas Cage) features references to girls and “little things” needing to be safe from the “cruel world.” By the end, that all comes to a head and you feel unclean yourself at what you’ve witnessed.

The confounding case on Lee’s desk revolves around a string of murders committed across decades in the Pacific Northwest in which a father kills his entire family and himself. They always happen within six days of the daughter’s 9th birthday, which always falls on the 14th of the month, and a cipher signed by “Longlegs” is always left at the crime scene. Lee becomes convinced that Longlegs has been somehow committing the murders outside of the homes, leading her onto a tireless search to discover his identity and how he’s been manipulating families for so long.

Eventually, Lee’s detective work leads her to revisit an old farmhouse where one of the murders happened, which is where she finds an immaculately crafted doll that resembles the slain daughter. Inside the doll, she and her team at the FBI find a metallic chrome ball, which Lee believes is how Longlegs does his bidding.

As Lee obsesses over the case, she also finds herself reflecting upon her childhood and her mother Ruth (Alicia Witt) who she’s distanced herself from. She visits her, finding her seemingly in poor mental health and failing to take care of her home. Ruth, a devout Christian, asks Lee if she’s been doing her prayers to which Lee says she stopped doing them a long time ago, and that they always scared her when she was small.

At her mother’s house, Lee finds an old photo that triggers a memory that Longlegs visited her ahead of her birthday—January 14—before she turned 9. She remembers that he approached her when she was playing outside with a camera—which proves to be the scene that opens the film. Lee snapped a photo of the stranger and, although she cut off much of his face, his stark white completion and long hair are enough to use as evidence to find him in the present.

When the FBI puts out a search, Longlegs—whose real name is Dale Ferdinand Cobble—senses they’re coming for him and waits by the side of the road. As Lee asks to interrogate him one-on-one, he muses about how he’s helping “a friend of a friend,” or “the man downstairs,” which is meant to be Satan himself. At this point, Lee has assessed that the mysterious perpetrator has an accomplice who brings the doll with its demonic device into the victims’ homes, so she demands he tell her who it is. Eerily, Longlegs says she should talk to her mother. Before she can get any more information out of him, he recites Revelation 13:1, which describes two beasts rising out of the sea to convince humanity to pledge allegiance to Satan, implying it’s how he sees himself and his accomplice. He then gruesomely kills himself by slamming his head against the interrogation room table.

Terrified and realizing just how much she may have forgotten about her childhood, Lee visits her mother yet again, only to find her with a doll of 9-year-old Lee. In a storybook-like tone, she explains that Longlegs wanted to make the Harkers his victims until Ruth convinced him to let her help him so she could protect her daughter. He then lived out of and crafted the life-like dolls in their basement, and Ruth began posing as a nun offering a gift from the church to the families that met their criteria.

In the film’s final moments, Lee realizes that Ruth is continuing the deal she made with Longlegs by targeting Lee’s boss Agent Carter (Blair Underwood) and his family on his daughter Ruby’s (Ava Kelders) birthday. Upon arriving, she sees that Ruth has already given Ruby the doll and that Carter is acting peculiarly. Not before long, he kills his wife (Carmel Amit) and Lee shoots him. Her mother yells that Lee will be damned if she doesn’t murder the entire Carter family, so she tells her mother that her prayers were always been useless and kills her in self-defense. Then, when Lee looks at Ruby’s doll—which she’s already attached to—the agent freezes and is unable to shoot it. Still, she grabs Ruby and takes her out of the crime scene, and just before the film ends, it cuts to a final wail of, “Hail Satan!” from Longlegs in the interrogation room.

As Lee is forced to kill her mother, it’s as if Satan’s grand scheme all along was to terrorize Lee from girlhood to womanhood so much that she needed to kill her mother; for his final act, he’ll show her just how pervasive evil can be. Staring at Ruby’s doll and unable to destroy it, it’s like she’s facing the trauma she’s suppressed her entire life. Despite getting away, it’s unclear whether Ruby is possessed by her doll that was never destroyed—or even if Lee still is, considering how much of her childhood she misremembered because her doll was hidden at her childhood house. Simply put: Evil still looms.

Frequently, Lee is confronted with darkness; it was below her basement steps for years, after all. When she tries to question a survivor from one of Longlegs’ massacres, the now nearly catatonic Carrie Anne Camera (Kiernan Shipka), Carrie Anne tells her, “You’re not afraid of a little bit of dark because you are the dark.” While Lee is nervous around Carrie Anne, they share a great deal in common: The two of them had their girlhoods taken from them and have been punished by those so committed to their faith for no reason other than growing up and away from their innocence.

As Lee says she only felt scared when her mother would spew prayers about how she should remain nothing short of safe, devout, and good when she was a child, Perkins certainly seems interested in how stories told by our parents affect us all. Although, it’s hard to ignore that all of Longlegs’ victims are girls. The gendered messaging even feeds into the way the serial killers’ dolls that he so lovingly crafts are cemented in porcelain-perfect eternal girlhood, and how he even has even altered his looks to have drastic feminine attributes—like he’s adhering to a sort of beauty standard to impress the Devil himself.

Like Lee feeling wrong listening to her mother’s scripture, by the end of Longlegs, it’s as if we’re made to feel unholy for what we’ve just witnessed.

This story contains moderate spoilers for MaXXXine. In MaXXXine, even as the titular aspiring actress played by Mia Goth finds herself and everyone around her being hunted by a killer, she refuses to be a victim. She’s the star of her own cinematic universe, and as she frequently repeats in the film, “I will not accept a life I do not deserve,” you can expect an untimely, gruesome death is not a part of her final act.

Rather, it’s clear that Maxine Minx will go to extreme lengths of self-preservation while investigating the murderer on her trail so she can step into the spotlight as she sees fit. In doing so, the new A24 horror film—Goth’s and writer/director Ti West third and final entry in their collaborative X trilogy—takes heavy inspiration from the Italian subgenre Giallo. (It marks the third time in the series that West has paid homage to a bygone era of filmmaking; 2022’s X took direct influence from classic horror slashers and Pearl was a nightmarish take on Technicolor.) But here, MaXXXine flips the script on Giallo.

The ‘60s-’80s Italian horror era is categorized as a noir-slasher hybrid, featuring signature splashy, graphic imagery (look to the filmographies of Dario Argento, Mario Bava, among others). And considering that the third X movie is set in 1985 L.A. when cocaine was abundant, the Satanic Panic and Night Stalker were terrorizing the city, and sleaze ruled the heyday of the porn and B-movie industries, the film very much lives in that same ostentatious, bloodred world. The homage runs so deep that the film’s killer even wears black leather gloves and a trench coat like many Giallo villains do. But as Maxine tries to thwart her stalker when she lands her first non-adult-film role as the lead in the horror sequel The Puritan II, MaXXXine forgoes one defining quality of Giallo: its sexploitation and brutal depictions of violence at the expense of women.

Many of the grisly depictions of violence and death in Maxxxine are wielded by the aspiring starlet herself in acts of self-defense. Instead of showing copious terrified, scantily clad women meeting their demise at the hands of greedy, vengeful men or caricatures of mentally unstable women as the Giallo titles Blood and Black Lace, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, The New York Ripper, Torso, and more have done, it’s the men who wrong Maxine who end up being on the other side of the most gory attacks.

The film makes this clear early on in a scene in which Maxine gives the performance of a lifetime to an audience of one. Walking home from work after her colleague Tabby (Halsey) advises against it because of the looming threat of the Night Stalker, she winds up in an alley with a man intent on harming her. She surprises him by pulling out a gun, which she’s held onto since being the sole survivor of the infamous farmhouse massacre in the events of X. Instantly, she holds the power and makes both her attacker and the audience squirm by demanding he sucks on the barrel of her gun and lie down “ass up.” Even when she appears satisfied, she’s not done with him and steps on his testicles with her stilettos as she walks away—making for one of the most unsettling, squeamish moments in horror this year. (But, hey, how many topless women have died by a phallic weapon in horror movies in the past?)

Later, when Maxine’s had enough with the private investigator (Kevin Bacon) hired to keep an eye on her, she lets him know. After he follows her onto the Universal Studios lot where The Puritan II is being filmed one too many times, she gets out of her convertible to key, not his vehicle, but his face. And when he still won’t leave her alone, she asks a handful of her associates for their help in getting rid of him—by crushing him to death while in the car he’s been hiding behind in a junkyard, no less. She stares on, unphased, as bright red blood pours out in a steady stream.

Yes, there are many instances in Giallo’s history, including Argento’s significant film Deep Red, where the murderer ends up being a woman—but the reveal is often entrenched in misogyny surrounding how “crazy” a woman may become if she doesn’t adhere to societal standards. MaXXXine instead applies the X trilogy’s longrunning and signature feminist horror lens, as time and time again, the burgeoning star of the silver screen goes to lengths to protect herself so no one has the opportunity to interfere with the path she’s worked tirelessly for. With Goth having her first production credit on the trilogy with the new release, after previously co-writing series stand-out Pearl, you can’t help but feel her stamp on the franchise—especially as she’s spoken out previously about being fascinated with “female rage” in her career.

Meanwhile West—in all three X movies but in MaXXXine most starkly—appears to be interested in societal discomfort surrounding sex. For instance, Maxine is the new lead in a franchise about Puritanism and is cast in part because the director (Elizabeth Debicki) liked the idea of stirring controversy by hiring a sex worker. And as they’re filming, devout protestors picket their production outside of the studio lot. The (albeit unsurprising) reveal of the killer’s identity continues to play into this, especially the expectation that girls grow up to be women who are tame, chaste, and pure—all of which, Maxine Minx is not. But even still, in a movie so fascinated with the way we think about sex and sleaze, West only goes full sexploitation when a man tries to attack Goth’s character, and she stomps, literally, on his masculinity.

In the finale, as Maxine goes head-to-head with the perpetrator, and police try to interfere and tell her that backup is on the way, she declares, “So am I.” Classic Giallo would have seen the character wailing in fear while bloodied to a pulp, but yet again, the X final girl refuses the role of the victim, taking nothing less than the top billing.

When a young girl asks Maika Monroe’s character Lee Harker if it’s “scary being a lady FBI agent” in Longlegs, she succinctly replies, “Yes, it is.” The new horror sensation from Osgood Perkins follows Lee’s tireless investigation into the return of a mysterious serial killer who leaves a trail of ciphers (Nicolas Cage), while she’s also processing the terror from a trauma she thought she’d suppressed. Monroe, though, may as well be fearless.

Since her 2014 breakout roles in It Follows and The Guest, two indie hits that became contemporary classic horror movies and helped to pioneer the “elevated horror” genre, the California-native has been a bonafide scream queen. ( Before that, she was one of the sole young women to pursue a career in the extreme sport of kiteboarding.) But in the 10 years since becoming one of the most captivating performers in horror,, Monroe’s largely remained an indie darling with an eye for emerging, visionary directors purposefully choosing complex roles that toy with the concept of the final girl.

She continues that legacy with Longlegs. While Lee has committed to taking on a complicated, dangerous case, she’s immensely insular, calculated, and timid—unlike other thriller icons who carry a certain ambitious strength about themselves (consider the easy comparison of Clarice Starling in The Silence of the Lambs). Perkins allowed Monroe to craft much of Lee herself, allowing the character to be more realistic and nuanced. Monroe was enticed by the film to begin with because she could see how “special” the world the director built was, and because she found its feminist horror bent that questioned traditionalist religious views of women “very intriguing.”

While Monroe didn’t see her co-star Cage until well into the shoot, considering their little shared screentime and because he went method playing the Satanic Longlegs, she says she “was in awe” the entire experience. “Working with Nic, it’s something I’ll never forget,” she tells Marie Claire. “He’s a person I grew up watching—an absolute icon—and then him completely transforming for the role, it felt like a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”

The success Longlegs has garnered is a rarity—opening to $22.6 million at the box office, the biggest debut for an independent horror movie in a decade—after its intriguing, months-long marketing campaign made it one of the year’s most highly anticipated releases. It’s not unlike the moment Monroe experienced 10 years ago. But she’s game for it all, including whatever scary project comes her way next—as long as she can “finish the day, go home, have a drink, and watch a rom-com” to pull out of her character.

Here, Monroe spoke to Marie Claire about how she crafted Lee, her affinity for horror, and being dubbed a scream queen.

Marie Claire: In the past, you’ve said you considered quitting acting, but when 2019’s Villains came along, it got you excited about the craft again. Is Longlegs another project where you felt in touch with that passion again?

Maika Monroe: I did so many projects back-to-back and had some not-so-great experiences. And I think [following] that was like, ‘I want to be very specific on the filmmakers that I work with, the people that I surround myself with.’ Because it's a very intimate place, very vulnerable place. I think that stepping onto the Villains set, there were two directors, they were so involved, and it was such a collaboration. We had so much fun on set and it just brought back this spark.

[It was] similar with Longlegs where it's just being on a set where you're like, ‘I feel like we're making something special.’ And working with a director who has this super strong vision and yet still is so open to all your ideas. It was the best.

MC: Perkins has said he was very receptive to you crafting a great deal of Lee Harker’s yourself, and the character’s a lot more reserved and gentler than the typical female lead in a detective movie. How did you go about bringing Lee to life?

MM: A really important part was to focus on her childhood. I think for anyone, their childhood is very informative to who they become. In therapy, always when I started with a new therapist, they're like, ‘Okay, when you were 5-years-old, what happened?’ And I'm like,

‘Oh, my God. Okay! Yeah!’ Especially for Lee, her childhood was very traumatic, and I think that's very informative to how she moves through life, so that’s where I started with her and discovering her.

There were certain moments in the script, whether the audience picks it up or not, that I wanted to have flashes of the previous trauma trickle in. She suppresses a lot, a lot, a lot, which is very common for people to go through incredibly traumatic experiences, so that was really important to me.

MC: You’ve said that you drew a lot of inspiration from Lisbeth Salander in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, but were there any other thrillers that you revisited while preparing?

MM: I rewatched a lot of crime thriller movies that I saw growing up: Se7en and Memento. I don't know if any necessarily helped with the character—more maybe the world and stepping into the FBI of it all. It is one of those moments where, being on this set, I felt like a child again on my first movie set because I was so excited. It was like a dream to be an FBI agent on these crime scenes.

MC: Did you make a playlist or anything like that to get into Lee’s headspace?

MM: Actually, Oz made a playlist that had a bunch of T-Rex and other niche, little rock bands. I love having music to help get into character, into the zone, so that was great to have.

MC: It’s hard to imagine Lee herself ever listening to music, though.

MM: No, I don't think she does. I really don't. I think it's very quiet.

MC: Lee is similar to a lot of the other horror movie characters you’ve played, in that they don’t necessarily fit the traditional, strong final girl trope. Is that more nuanced approach to such an iconic genre figure something you’ve connected with?

MM: Definitely. The horror genre has come such a long way. Even just in the past 10 years, to me, [horror has been] some of the most interesting roles that I read, most interesting scripts. It's just not this sort of typical one-note character—whether it's the Tough Girl or this or that. It's much more complicated and there's such a beauty in that. I love roles like that.

MC: Throughout her investigation, Lee is in some ways drawn to the case and the darkness behind it more and more. With all of these horror projects you choose, do you feel drawn to dark concepts at all or see horror as a way to process our reality?

MM: That's what I love about this genre. It's using real-life trauma and then putting it into these insane, preposterous stories, but yet grounded in reality. That’s definitely something that draws me to it. I really don't know why— there's something in these roles that's challenging, that's fulfilling, that I keep coming back for more.

MC: A lot of the final girls you’ve played are often outsiders in a way. Before you started acting, you were an accomplished kiteboarder and one of the few girls in the sport. Did you feel like an outsider growing up and do you think that’s informed your interest in these characters?

MM: I mean growing up I was such a nerd, such a dork. I had braces for way too long. When I went to high school, I had one other super artsy friend. We were the best of friends, but again, I was never the popular girl, never the cool girl. I never really felt comfortable. And that's sort of why kiteboarding came into my life. That was something that I loved. I finished high school online my senior year to go do that. And then acting came in. I'm sure that has played a part in roles that I connect with or relate to.

MC: Is there a final girl you wish you could have played?

MM: I don’t know if this is a final girl—I've been talking about this movie so much because I'm so obsessed with it. Do you know the French movie Titane?

MC: Yes! Julia Ducournau is one of my favorite filmmakers and her movie Raw is one of my favorites.

MM: Yes, both those movies, absolutely obsessed. Julia, the director, I think is fucking brilliant and those two roles in both those films, I'm like, ‘What incredible female roles.’ Those are to die for. I can't wait to see what she does next, too. I think she's pushing the needle in a way that is so necessary for film.

MC: You’ve also been in a lot of movies that people describe like, “They just don’t make movies like this anymore!” Your Instagram is full of throwback shots of actors and photos of Stanley Kubrick on set. Is choosing projects like that intentional?

MM: I feel like it just happened. At this point in my career, the filmmaker is what I look at and what's most important to me. With Watcher, I saw the director [Chloe Okuno]’s short film called Slut, which is incredible. You could see she had such a vision and this throwback horror feel. It was such a strong view, and it was so beautiful. I was like, ‘I need to work with this person.’ So I think I pay attention to upcoming filmmakers and try to watch a lot of shorts and see what the next generation coming in is doing. [I like] finding things that are unique and pushing the needle forward and that make people think in a different way maybe.

MC: You mentioned Julia Ducournau, but who are other rising filmmakers you’re paying attention to and would like to work with?

MM: Julia’s up there. I loved Possessor by Brandon Cronenberg. I thought that movie was exceptional. Ari Aster is incredible. He's not necessarily new, but he's just so brilliant. I think there's this next wave of horror directors that are amazing. It's a very exciting space to be in.

MC: Do you have aspirations to get behind the camera yourself?

MM: I would love to. It's something I've thought about for a long time, but it didn't feel right, or I didn't feel ready. But at the end of last year, I shot my first short film. It was incredible and challenging, and I learned so much, so that's a place that I want to very slowly step into.

Also, producing is something that I'm going to start getting into—just being more involved because why am I not? I think it's a space that I really want to step into, so I'm excited.

MC: This year is a decade since It Follows and The Guest premiered at festivals, marking your breakout roles and being dubbed a scream queen. Does it feel like a full circle moment to be in the most highly-anticipated horror movie of the year now?

MM: I can't really believe it. I'm still like, ‘What's happening?’ But it's just been absolutely incredible to see the response start coming in, and people having such strong reactions to it and loving it. I mean, that's all you can hope for in making a film. I feel very lucky.

MC: If you could go back to 2014 before the release and pandemonium of your first two hit movies, what would you tell yourself?

MM: It's going to be okay. Oh, man, there are so many ups and downs, but you just got to trust the process.

There’s no denying that it can be pretty scary to be a woman. We, unfortunately, need not look past our realities to know that, but sometimes there’s nothing like a classic horror movie to put into perspective how terrifying our real-life fears and challenges are.

With their scream queen leads and nuanced stories, there’s a whole subset within the genre known as feminist horror. While some franchises may center around the male gaze and a handful of older filmers may have included shameful messaging (ever notice the first kill in a slasher is the character who has sex?), horror also has a long history of being feminist. From its trope of “the final girl” who resiliently faces off with the villain to its themes exploring puberty and empowerment and the many up-and-coming filmmakers within the genre today, many scary movies are centered around women’s stories. Below, we’ve rounded up a handful of the very best feminist horror movies that we consider must-watch.

'Alien' (1979)

Has there ever been a more badass character in sci-fi/horror than Ripley? We don’t think so! Sigourney Weaver stars in this space movie as a member of a seven-piece crew on a mission to explore a new moon and the horrors that await them when they encounter traces of life. When her teammates don’t listen to her warnings, it ends up being a one-woman mission (along with her cat Jones!), and nothing’s more frightening than when no one else can hear you scream.

WATCH IT

'Black Christmas' (1974)

Texas Chainsaw Massacre is the first-ever slasher, and Halloween gets a lot of credit for bringing the genre into the mainstream, but in reality, Black Christmas came before it. Released just several months after TCM, this home invasion thriller starring ‘70s icons Olivia Hussey and Margot Kidder is set at a sorority house just before the winter holiday break. The co-eds start getting obscene phone calls and murders ensue, leading to a rallying of sisterhood to stop the killings.

WATCH IT

'Carrie' (1976)

Being a teenage girl is a nightmare, and that’s exactly what this film based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name is all about. Brian De Palma expertly adapts the book about a bullied girl with telepathic abilities (Sissie Spacek) and an abusive, religious mother (Piper Laurie), making the horrors in the girls' locker room as real as the supernatural. She’s forever the prom queen in our hearts.

WATCH IT

'Ginger Snaps' (2000)

Ginger Snaps walked so Jennifer’s Body could run. (In fact, one high school hallway shot nearly mirrors one in the 2009 movie.) Like Carrie, it’s a classic within the puberty horror genre—about a teenage girl undergoing rapid change and how disturbing that can be. Except, after an encounter with a wild beast, outcast Ginger (Katharine Isabelle) develops a tail, starts turning into a werewolf, and develops a magnetism that her male classmates can’t ignore.

WATCH IT

'A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night' (2014)

When you hear the phrase “a girl walks home alone at night,” it implies that something awful is lurking around the corner, and bound to meet her demise. Ana Lily Amirpour’s film flips the script on that perception: In this Persian-language indie favorite, the girl walking home is a vampire (Sheila Vand) holding all the power. Set in an Iranian ghost town, she lurks the streets on her skateboard, finding men to feast on, including those dealing with their own forms of addiction.

WATCH IT

'The Invisible Man' (2020)

Inspired by the concept from H. G. Wells' 1897 novel, Elisabeth Moss stars as a woman who flees her abusive, crazed scientist/tech boss ex-boyfriend (Oliver Jackson-Cohen)—only to be haunted by him. Having invented a suit that makes him invisible, he stalks and torments her to extremely eerie results, until she discovers how to win at his game.

WATCH IT

'It Follows' (2015)

No one can see what “it” is in this teen scream, but it starts to haunt you once you’ve had sex (so it’s a pretty obvious stand-in for the shame surrounding teen sex and STIs). The movie is a humble, oddball of an indie film centered around high schooler Jay, played by Maika Monroe who instantly became a modern scream queen because of her performance. With its larger themes, It Follows and filmmaker David Robert Mitchell unquestionably changed the horror game upon this movie’s release, inspiring the “elevated horror” genre we know today.

WATCH IT

'Jennifer’s Body' (2009)

When Jennifer’s Body was released, misogynistic critics couldn’t comprehend the genius of the Diablo Cody-penned movie directed by Karyn Kusama—but thank goodness the film has since been reevaluated for its greatness. Megan Fox stars as the titular Jennifer, whose body becomes a vessel for a demon after she’s assaulted, and she starts killing off boys at school in response. As her BFF, the awkward Needy (Amanda Seyfriend), takes matters into her own hands, it turns into a campy cat-and-mouse game, but this was a smart movie about assault long before it was more openly discussed in Hollywood.

WATCH IT

'The Love Witch' (2016)

Anna Biller’s The Love Witch is much more of a comedy than it is a horror movie, but it’s a satire that’ll cast a spell on you. Filmed in technicolor and set in a ‘60s-inspired world, it follows a young witch named Elaine (Samantha Robinson) who is desperate to find love. When men fail her time and time again, whether they simply be pisces or forcing her to adhere to specific expectations, she finds herself with blood on her hands—but all the more powerful as a witch.

WATCH IT

'Midsommar' (2019)

Not many horror movies are set in the daytime, but leave it to genre master Ari Aster to make one of the freakiest cult films of all time set at a sunny Sweden festival. When Dani (Florence Pugh) is grieving the death of her entire family, she’s surprised to learn her boyfriend (Jack Reynor) is abandoning her to travel with his friends to research a midsummer festival in a desolate location, so he reluctantly brings her along. Immediately upon arrival, things get weird, and Midsommar unfolds into a folk horror examination of grief, found family, and bad boyfriends.

WATCH IT

'Pearl: An X-Traordinary Origin' (2022)

Pearl, the second film in Ti West’s X trilogy, can be watched as a standalone movie or a fun prequel to the series. On its own, the slasher set in the 1920s, Spanish flu-era Texas is a wild romp and features the most overt feminist themes of the three movies as an examination of feminine rage. Series lead Mia Goth returns as the titular Pearl, a farm-wife-to-be who has dreams of the silver screen. She’s a bit quirky and willing to do anything to be a star, so she’ll have you screaming before she takes her final bow. And you’ll never look at scarecrows the same.

WATCH IT

'Raw' (2016)

When Julia Ducournau’s feature film directorial debut premiered at Cannes, audiences couldn’t stop talking about how squeamish it made them. They exaggerated the level of gore here—but it is the kind of movie that’ll make your stomach turn. When Justine (Garance Marillier) goes to veterinary school and undergoes a hazing ritual in which she’s forced to eat raw meat, despite being a vegetarian, she develops a taste for flesh—one that becomes unbearable and finds her feasting on humans. An allegory for one’s sexual awakening, you’ll feel well-fed the whole way through.

WATCH IT

'Ready or Not' (2019)

You get married, and on your wedding night, find out your in-laws aren’t just hypothetical nightmares, but are out to kill you. What do you do? That’s what happens to Grace (Samara Weaving) when she marries into the wealthy Le Domas board game family dynasty, who have a tradition of “playing a game” at the end of every family wedding. When Grace selects hide-and-go-seek, it becomes a hunt to the death—and an action-filled, sinisterly funny f-the-rich movie from the horror collective Radio Silence plays out.

WATCH IT

'Rosemary’s Baby' (1968)

Never ignore a mother’s instinct. Rosemary’s Baby is a certified classic that has inspired countless of other horror movies—and is a notable fashion film—about a Manhattanite woman (Mia Farrow) who is convinced the child she is pregnant with is not of this world.

WATCH IT

'The Slumber Party Massacre' (1982)

This ‘80s movie directed by Amy Holden Jones and written by Rita Mae Brown toys with all the expectations that might come to mind when you hear its title. Rather than being an exploitative slasher, it takes a stab at being satirical of the sub-genre (the weapon is a phallic power drill) and uplifts the women who are frequently victims in it. While it’s a parody, it still plays like a horror movie, so bonkers kills and scares still abound.

WATCH IT

'Suspiria' (2018)

Dario Argento’s splashy 1977 original is legendary, but Luca Guadagnino’s remake of the story of an American dancer named Susie’s enrollment at a mysterious German school for dance gave it a feminist update. While the original Susie (Jessica Harper) is more of a vessel for all of the horrors that unfold behind closed doors at Tanz Akademie, the version played by Dakota Johnson steps into her power. The overall mood is dark and dreary, and it features some of the most contortionistic body horror, but the payoff deserves a standing ovation.

WATCH IT

'The VVitch' (2015)

Set in colonial New England, a teenage girl named Thomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy in her breakout role) becomes the subject of scrutiny within her own family when they accuse her of being a witch. As Robert Eggers’ debut feature, it cemented him as a horror auteur with an impeccable taste for mood, period accuracy, and language. And as a story about a young woman facing disbelief and mob mentality—and stepping into one’s divine feminine—it’s also one of the best witch narratives ever crafted. “Live deliciously” and watch it.

WATCH IT

The harm of unrealistic beauty standards placed on women is nothing new, but one film that premiered in competition at Cannes Film Festival this year is shocking audiences with its grotesque depiction of just how horrific they can be for aging women.

French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat's second feature The Substance, a body horror film starring Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley, premiered on May 19 and is one of the most divisive, conversation-starting films at this year's festival. According to Deadline, the film received a 13-minute standing ovation, the longest of the festival thus far, with praise largely geared toward Moore. It's also generated initial reactions ranging from "bad" and "misogynistic" to a "brilliant feminist Hollywood satire," with reviews noting how "magnificently tasteless" it is and calling it "the grossest movie at Cannes" in the best way.

It's no wonder The Substance is generating headlines. In the film, Moore (who made her Cannes debut this year) plays Elisabeth Sparkle, an actress-turned-TV-workout-instructor who gets fired from her network because they feel she's aged out of her role. Furious at the decision, relayed to her by a network boss played by Dennis Quaid, she undergoes a procedure available in the film's surrealist version of L.A. called The Substance. After hooking herself up to various disturbing injectibles and tubes, her skin splits down her spine and a new, younger version of herself (played by Qualley) appears. While she doesn't entirely replace Elisabeth, the shinier model goes and gets a job at her old TV network, and, as Variety reported, a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde-inspired story about ageism, beauty, and the ways women are meant to self-hate plays out.

Fargeat, who last released the rape vengeance thriller Revenge in 2017, has been said to not hold back in her body horror depictions, and individual scenes have particularly sparked conversation. In one, Moore and Qualley face off in a supposedly very bloody fight in the nude.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Moore spoke in a press conference about how the film "pushed [her] out of the comfort zone," but felt its abrasive imagery and vulnerable scenes were "necessary to tell this story."

She and Fargeat attributed the film's no-holds-barred approach as necessary to illustrate its central theme, or what they described as a critique of " the male perspective of the ideal woman."

"I don’t know any woman that doesn’t have an eating disorder or some other thing that they do that does violence to their bodies," the writer/director said as she explained that she needed to portray the film's events "in an extreme way because I think this violence is very extreme."

While festival-goers can't seem to stop talking about The Substance, audiences will be able to see it for themselves sometime later this year. In the U.S., the indie streaming service/distributor Mubi has acquired it for release. Mubi has also already dropped a teaser, which sees Elisabeth in a luxe waiting room as she watches an ominous video about the sci-fi cosmetic surgery that promises a "better version of yourself" with "one single injection."

Whenever it does get a release date, we can't wait for this one to make our skin crawl.

Travis Kelce has been diversifying his professional portfolio as of late—the Kansas City Chiefs tight end is now hosting a reboot of the popular game show Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader? for Amazon Prime Video (his version will be called Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?), is producing documentaries (like one about Jean-Michel Basquiat called King Pleasure), co-hosting a podcast, “New Heights,” with his brother Jason, and, now, has taken on his first major acting role—in a Ryan Murphy-produced horror series, to boot.

The Hollywood Reporter confirms Kelce’s casting in Grotesquerie, a forthcoming show co-starring Niecy Nash-Betts and Courtney B. Vance on FX. Nash-Betts confirmed Kelce’s involvement in the show in an Instagram video posted yesterday, although details remain scant and no details have been revealed about what role Kelce specifically will be playing. We do, however, have this teaser Murphy dropped back in February, featuring Nash-Betts’ voice “sounding very disturbed about a crime scene,” The Hollywood Reporter writes.

In Nash-Betts’ clip on social media, Kelce appears in a white shirt, wearing a big smile and revealing he’s “jumping into new territory.” Thankfully, he’s in good hands—Murphy is no stranger to the horror genre, having created the American Horror Story franchise. A former reality star (hello Catching Kelce!), Kelce continues to dip his toe into scripted projects, like hosting Saturday Night Live or producing the indie film My Dead Friend Zoe, which premiered at SXSW in March. But this does, indeed, mark new territory for one-half of the most famous couple in the world (Kelce dates some singer-songwriter you may have heard of named Taylor Swift). 

Kelce showed his excitement by reposting Nash-Betts’ video via his Instagram Story and adding the caption “Steppin into a new world with one of the legends!” tagging Nash-Betts in the process.

According to Deadline, Grotesquerie is slated for a fall premiere—just in time for Kelce to return to the field as (yet again) a defending Super Bowl champion with the Chiefs. 

“I like to have exciting things going on,” Kelce told People. “And sure enough, I’m out here in the entertainment world trying to dabble into that before I get back locked in on football and knowing that that’s going to be my focus until I’m done playing.” He added, “But to dabble around in the entertainment space is something that I’m really interested in.”

One of the most popular actresses on the planet is sharing the wealth of her Hollywood success with a few of her nearest and dearest family members.

While stopping by Studio 1A to chat with the TODAY co-hosts, the Euphoria star said she managed to find a way for her grandmothers to be part of her new horror movie, Immaculate.

"I flew them to Italy, and they got to come visit me on set," Sweeney said. "I made them extras as nuns, and then I brought them to the premiere in L.A. They were just so excited."

In the film, Sweeney plays a nun who witnesses an ominous "miracle" of sorts—a far departure from her most recent work, which Sweeney said is one of the many reasons why she was excited about the role.

"It's a challenging character," she continued. "I's an interesting story. I loved the horror genre. It's exciting."

Sweeney admits that even with her grandmothers on set to lighten the mood as extras, the film is dark and not for the faint of heart.

"I think that there's going to be a mixed reaction, and I like that," she said of the movie's controversial ending, and while acknowledging that she "pushed the boundaries" with her role in the film.

"I like when movies or endings create a discussion—a debate," she continued. "I think it's going to be a wild ride for some people. We like to push the limits—we wanted to go to some places."

In addition to Immaculate, Sweeney is also gearing up for the Netflix release date of her blockbuster romantic comedy Anyone but You. The film was originally released last Christmas and will be available for streaming on Netflix on April 23, Variety reports.

Sweeney flying her grandmothers to Italy and play a small part in her foray into the horror movie genre is hardly surprising, given her previous comments about family, fame and loyalty.

In a previous interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the star said the entertainment industry is "built to try to make you backstab people."

“It’s insane," she said at the time. "My agent is my best teammate, and I’ll have her forever. I see how people are like: ‘We support each other.' And I’m like: ‘No. You f****** don’t.’"

Many of today's most innovative, heart-racing stories are being told in the horror genre, and 2024 continued that trend. While scary movie fans went into the year excited for highly anticipated sequels, many indie darlings emerged from festivals as ones-to-watch and became phenomenons in their own right.

Whether you prefer movies rich in jump scares or flicks even scaredy cats can handle, horror movies offered something for everyone this year, from serial killer films, slasher flicks, psychological thrillers, and creature features—many of which had feminist angles. To give you further nightmare fuel, below are the best horror movies of 2024 and how to watch them. (If you're looking for more scares, check out the best horror movies of 2023 to watch now on streaming.)

'Abigail'

Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, who directed 2019's horror-comedy Ready or Not, returned this year with a new terrifyingly funny tale. Abigal follows a group of kidnappers who take the 12-year-old daughter (Alisha Weir) of a crime boss. "In an isolated mansion, the captors start to dwindle, one by one, and they discover, to their mounting horror, that they’re locked inside with no normal little girl," per the film's description.

WATCH IT

'Alien: Romulus'

Fede Álvarez's installment in the Alien franchise is a standalone story set in the timeframe between the franchise's first and second films. It centers on “a group of young people on a distant world, who find themselves in a confrontation with the most terrifying life form in the universe," per Variety, and you can expect it to bring on the gore.

WATCH IT

'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice'

This long-awaited revival brings back the titular ghoul (Michael Keaton) and the Deetzes for another twisted comedy-horror adventure. In 2024, the now-adult Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) reunites with her stepmother Delia (Catherine O'Hara) and her estranged teen daughter Astrid (new addition Jenna Ortega) in the wake of a tragedy. We'll leave spoilers to a minimum, but things get spooky.

WATCH IT

'Cuckoo'

This indie flick follows Gretchen (Hunter Schafer), a 17-year-old who moves to the German Alps with her father and her new stepfamily. "Something doesn't seem right in this tranquil vacation paradise, [as] Gretchen is plagued by strange noises and bloody visions until she discovers a shocking secret that also concerns her own family," per the film's description.

WATCH IT

'Exhuma'

This Korean horror movie (and one of the best Korean films of the year) is a supernatural thrill ride based on the practices of Korean shamanism. When the newborn child of a wealthy family contracts a mysterious illness, they hire a renowned shaman (Kim Go-eun), who traces the source to an ancestor's long-hidden grave. She brings on a geomancer (Choi Min-shik) and a mortician (Yoo Hae-jin) to exhume and relocate the remains, not knowing that the grave holds a centuries-old evil.

WATCH IT

'The First Omen'

The latest film in the supernatural horror franchise The Omen is its first prequel story. "When a young American woman is sent to Rome to begin a life of service to the church, she encounters a darkness that causes her to question her own faith and uncovers a terrifying conspiracy that hopes to bring about the birth of evil incarnate," per the film's description.

WATCH IT

'Handling the Undead'

This Norwegian zombie horror starring The Worst Person in the World breakout star Renate Reinsve hit theaters nationwide this year after earning rave reviews at Sundance. "On a hot summer day in Oslo, the newly dead awaken. Three families faced with loss try to figure out what this resurrection means and if their loved ones really are back," per the film's description.

WATCH IT

'Heretic'

Heretic has everything: Hugh Grant waxing poetic about Monopoly and Lana Del Rey, Radiohead’s “Creep” on repeat, a long bit involving a blueberry candle, and Mormon missionaries navigating an atheist’s mind games. Chloe East and Sophie Thatcher play the missionaries, who find themselves held hostage by the sadistic Mr. Reed (Grant), who’s committed his life to finding the “one true religion.” The A24 film takes many turns and balances an eerie yet humorous tone; have faith that the labyrinthian religious horror movie is worth descending into.

SEE IT IN THEATERS

'Humane'

Caitlin Cronenberg's (daughter of David Cronenberg) feature-length debut takes place soon after "a global ecological collapse has forced world leaders to take extreme measures to reduce the earth’s population," per the film's description. "In a wealthy enclave, a recently retired newsman has invited his grown children to dinner to announce his intentions to enlist in the nation’s new euthanasia program. But when the father’s plan goes horribly awry, tensions flare and chaos erupts among his children."

WATCH IT

'I Saw the TV Glow'

Jane Schoenbrun's acclaimed LGBTQ+ film follows teenagers Owen (Justice Smith) and Maddy (Brigette Lundy-Paine) as they bond over their love of a television series. After the show is mysteriously canceled, their reality begins to blur—amounting to a beguiling, heartbreaking look at accepting the transformations we shouldn't shy from and the impact media can have on our own coming-of-age stories. Plus, this film has one of the greatest soundtracks of the year (with several of the artists featured on it making cameos in the film).

WATCH IT

'Immaculate'

This chilling Catholic horror film follows a devout American nun (Syndey Sweeney) who joins a remote convent in the picturesque Italian countryside. Per the film's description, "Cecilia's warm welcome quickly devolves into a nightmare as it becomes clear her new home harbors a sinister secret and unspeakable horrors."

WATCH IT

'In a Violent Nature'

This brutal, stomach-turning slasher follows an undead serial killer (Ry Barrett) through his point of view. Per the official description, "When a locket is removed from a collapsed fire tower in the woods that entombs the rotting corpse of Johnny, a vengeful spirit spurred on by a horrific 60-year-old crime, his body is resurrected and becomes hellbent on retrieving it. The undead golem hones in on the group of vacationing teens responsible for the theft and proceeds to methodically slaughter them one by one in his mission to get it back—along with anyone in his way."

WATCH IT

'It's What’s Inside'

It’s What’s Inside is a body-swapping movie for Gen Z. When a group of friends gather before one of their besties’ wedding, a former classmate they haven’t seen since college shows up and shakes up the party by bringing a device that allows them to switch bodies. They turn it into a game in which they have to guess who is inside who, and soon enough, drama and sci-fi-horror disaster arise.

WATCH IT

'Late Night with the Devil'

Jack Delroy (David Dastmalchian) hosts Night Owls, a syndicated '70s late-night show struggling to get its ratings up. To entice crowds, he stages a Halloween episode featuring a girl (Ingrid Torelli) who claims to be possessed by Satan. The terrifying evening is documented in this unpredictable film, which uses documentary-style elements to follow what's happening both in front of and behind the Night Owls cameras.

WATCH IT

'Lisa Frankenstein'

Written by Diablo Cody, Lisa Frankenstein veers much more toward comedy (it’s one of this year’s best!) than it does horror, but it’s goth as hell (complimentary!) and there are a couple of scares that will leave you hollering. Inspired by the classic Mary Shelley tale and ‘80s horror B-movies, Kathryn Newton stars as Lisa, a new wave-loving, goth girl outcast at her ‘80s high school who brings back a boy (Cole Sprouse) from the dead at the local cemetery she frequents. If you fashion yourself a cinephile who wishes movies were camp again, well, most so-called campy movies pale in comparison to Lisa Frankenstein’s campiness.

WATCH IT

'Longlegs'

A young FBI agent (Maika Monroe) investigates a serial killer (Nicholas Cage) who's roamed the Pacific Northwest for decades, murdering families with a daughter whose birthday falls on the 14th. As she follows the killer's trail of chilling, Satanic ciphers, the case approaches a truly terrifying ending.

WATCH IT

'MaXXXine'

2024 saw the release of the third and final film in Ti West and Mia Goth’s collaborative X trilogy. After focusing on the villain’s origin from the first movie in the 2022 sequel Pearl, they turned to what came of X’s final girl Maxine after she made it off the farm alive. Set in the ‘80s, the wonderfully sleazy, giallo-inspired movie sees the titular character as she transitions from the adult film industry to her first leading role in a B-horror movie—all the while with a serial killer on her trail. Though it’s messier and feels less earned than the first two X movies, we’ll take any on-screen female rage depictions from Goth that we can get.

WATCH IT

'Never Let Go'

This survivalist thriller is set in a world in ruins after a mysterious, unspeakable evil has taken over. A mother (Halle Berry) and her two sons (Percy Daggs IV and Anthony B. Jenkins) have survived by staying connected (literally, by ropes) to each other and their house at all times. However, when one of the boys begins to doubt that the evil force exists, the bond that's kept them alive is severed.

WATCH IT

'Nosferatu'

The Witch and The Lighthouse director Robert Eggers helms this rendition of the classic vampire tale. It's everything you could want from an Eggers film—from copious rats to eerie shadows to detailed, period-accurate costume and production design—and it all paints a haunting erotic-horror portrait. As the object of bloodsucker Count Orlock's (Bill Skarsgård) affection, Lily-Rose Depp is a revelation as a woman equally in fear and entranced by what comes to her in the nighttime.

SEE IT IN THEATERS

'Out of Darkness'

This acclaimed horror indie, set 45,000 years ago, follows a community of prehistoric humans searching for a new home in an inhospitable tundra. When night falls, the group is stalked by a terrifying enemy.

WATCH IT

'A Quiet Place: Day One'

This prequel spin-off to the hit horror-thriller franchise brings the initial chaos of the society-ending alien invasion to the big screen. It follows a group of strangers (with Lupita Nyong'o and Joseph Quinn among them) as they band together as the sound-sensitive monsters touch down in N.Y.C.

WATCH IT

'Smile 2'

Smile was one of the biggest box-office horror hits of 2022, and a sequel was quickly greenlit. This installment stars Naomi Scott as Riley, a global pop star set to embark on a huge world tour. While on the road, her life unravels as she faces her dark past due to "increasingly terrifying and unexplainable events," per the film's description.

WATCH IT

'Speak No Evil'

As most film fans who've stepped into a theater over the last few months are aware, this remake of the acclaimed Danish horror film Gæsterne, per Deadline, follows "a family invited for a weekend at an idyllic country house—a dream holiday that warps into a snarled psychological nightmare."

WATCH IT

'The Substance'

Elisabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore), a former fitness star facing the end of her career, gets a second chance at stardom when she learns about a mysterious drug that splits her into two forms: her current body and a gorgeous 20-something double called Sue (Margaret Qualley). Inevitably, monstrous disaster ensues. With wild prosthetics set against a flashy alternate version of L.A., filmmaker Coralie Fargaet's film is brash, bold, and wickedly funny as it uses body horror to take down unachievable beauty standards.

WATCH IT

'Strange Darling'

You should go into Strange Darling knowing absolutely nothing...besides the fact that this little-marketed horror flick—which takes inspiration from '70s and '80s serial killer B-movies—became an immediate word-of-mouth sensation upon its release. For anyone who needs more of a hint, know that the film is told out of order and centers a one-night stand turned into a hunt to the death.

WATCH IT

'Trap'

In M. Night Shyamalan's psychological thriller, mild-mannered dad Cooper (Josh Hartnett) takes his teen daughter Riley (Ariel Donoghue) to a concert thrown by her favorite artist (played by Saleka Shyamalan, the director's daughter). However, in this Shyamalan flick, the twists come at the start: The concert is a trap for the FBI to catch a serial killer, and the killer is Cooper.

WATCH IT

Kathryn Newton and Cole Sprouse have a lot more in common than their starring roles in Valentine's Day most horrifying date-night flick. They both came up as child actors (though a few years apart), they're both artistically inclined, and they both have the coolest stories. It's no wonder they have such chemistry playing a misunderstood high schooler and her reanimated corpse crush in Lisa Frankenstein, which hits theaters on February 9. Directed by Zelda Williams, and written by Jennifer's Body scribe Diablo Cody, the new Focus Features film introduces Lisa and her monster's ghoulish love story, as their joint quest for happiness brings about a bit more bloodshed than the average rom-com. This campy, irreverent comedy has it all: a magic tanning bed, bubblegum pink '80s aesthetics, a leotard-clad evil stepmother (played by Carla Gugino), and dazzling performances by Newton and Sprouse, two esteemed veterans within Young Hollywood.

Ahead of the film's release, we sat down with the duo to test their friendship with a trivia game we call How Well Do You Know Your Co-Star? They laughed their way through the friendly competition, as they answered questions about each others' first jobs, first concerts, and early red carpets. (If anyone can find Sprouse's first diaper commercial, we'd be grateful.)

Watch the full challenge, above, then head to your local theater to catch the flick.

Jacob Elordi will follow up his buzzworthy roles in 2023's Priscilla and Saltburn by joining one of Netflix's most highly-anticipated films. The streaming giant announced that the Euphoria star has signed on to Guillermo del Toro's upcoming feature-length spin on Frankenstein, where Elordi will play the mad scientist's creation. With Elordi teaming up with the beloved horror director (and all-time great Twitter user), odds are the 6'5'' actor will pull off an astounding performance.

The horror flick was first announced last year, with Deadline reporting in March 2023 that Oscar Isaac, Mia Goth, and Andrew Garfield were in talks to join the project. The outlet confirmed Sunday that Elordi will replace Garfield after the Amazing Spider-Man actor dropped out due to scheduling conflicts. Alongside Elordi, Isaac will play scientist Victor Frankenstein, while scream queen Mia Goth is expected to play the creator's love interest.

Inglorious Basterds star Christoph Waltz will also play an undisclosed role, with Felix Kammerer, Lars Mikkelsen, David Bradley, and Christian Convery set to round out the cast.

Elordi spent the second half of 2023 picking up accolades for his performances in both Saltburn and Priscilla. In a December 2023 Vanity Fair interview, the actor opened up about what he's looking for next in his career.

"I think it’s always changing," he told the outlet. "The one thing that I’m lucky enough now to have is the ability to kind of choose a little bit. I just want to work with artists. I’ve loved art my whole life, really, and I just want to work with filmmakers who have a specific point of view, or a feeling about something, and they want to leave that mark on the world and in history. That’s what movies are to me."

Alerting all cinephiles, new Jordan Peele news has dropped. Ever since the former Key & Peele star released his Oscar-winning horror satire Get Out (and inspired a new trend within the genre), Peele's movies have been instant-adds to every film buff's watchlist. Fans have been eagerly awaiting his follow-up to 2022's Nope, and according to the filmmaker himself, his fourth project may be his best so far.

Peele recently appeared on the "Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend" podcast, where host O'Brien did all of us a solid and asked the director about his upcoming film. The movie was first announced in March 2023 and was even slated for a Christmas Day 2024 release. Though last summer's Hollywood strikes delayed progress on the film, Peele assured that he has high expectations about the new project.

"Obviously, it’s been an interesting year because the writer’s strike had had me in a state of listening, and that’s where I need to be," Peele said, per Variety. "I do feel like my next project is clear to me, and I’m psyched that I have another film that, you know, could be my favorite movie if I make it right."

Due to the delays, the Untitled Fourth Jordan Peele Movie has been pushed from its 2024 release slot, along with another film from Peele's production studio, Monkeypaw. Filming on Peele's upcoming movie is expected to begin later this year but there hasn't been any news yet about casting. (Peele's known for being fairly secretive about his movies; audiences had no clue what to expect for Get Out, Us, or Nope until the first trailer dropped.)

All we do know currently is there's a very high chance the movie will be another thriller or horror film that turns an uncomfortable mirror on a particular aspect of living in the 21st century. Peele had previously teased that he had four "social thrillers" planned after Get Out, and in an Associated Press interview in 2022, Peele confirmed that he isn't planning on switching to a new genre any time soon.

"I feel like I’m off to the races," he said. "I just don’t know if I could limit how many films I have that are me. I’m starting to lose sight of what I would be doing if I wasn’t doing movies like this. So I would say the project has extended."

Warning: Spoilers for The Fall of the House of Usher included throughout. Mike Flanagan's latest horror series The Fall of the House of Usher is about a powerful family doomed for ruin. The dark thrill ride—which is inspired by the works of Edgar Allan Poe and mixes classic, bone-chilling horror with Succession levels of social critique—follows the Ushers, a multi-generational family at the helm of a pharmaceutical empire led by self-made, corrupt CEO Roderick (Bruce Greenwood). Over the course of eight episodes, viewers see the scope of the family's reach, as they've become ultra-wealthy off of a painkiller that has contributed massively to the show universe's opioid epidemic. We also see each of Roderick's six children fall victim to unthinkable fatalities, each one centered on the specific sibling's vices, insecurities, and perversions fueled by greed. The center of all of this mayhem and destruction is one mysterious woman, a shape-shifting avenging angel of sorts, known as Verna (played by Carla Gugino).

Verna's true identity is the complex mystery threading all of the deaths together, as viewers wonder why the figure is targeting the Ushers and what her decades-long history is with Roderick and his calculating twin sister Madeline (Mary McDonnell). It isn't til the finale that TFHU finally answers the many questions about Verna that have built up throughout the series, while also leaving some aspects of her character up to interpretation. And of course, we eventually learn what iconic Poe character serves as her inspiration. Read on for a breakdown of everything Verna represents in The Fall of the House of Usher.

She brings unimaginable death to the Usher family.

While Verna is the name credited to Gugino's character, the mysterious figure goes unnamed throughout the series, which plays out through layers of flashbacks showing how the elder Ushers rose to power and how the second generation meets its downfall. As each of the Usher siblings meet their gruesome, gruesome deaths (my favorite was Victorine's Tell-Tale Heart-inspired episode, if anyone was wondering), Verna shows up as the instigator and the final blow to their mortality (and often their sanity). Sure, each of the siblings have already set the stage for their destruction, but Verna provides the final push, the final snap.

Roderick and Madeline eventually figure out that it's Verna coming after their enforcer Arthur Pym (Mark Hamill) finds footage of her at each of the crime scenes. It becomes clear that she wants to be caught, as eventually she appears before and taunts both Roderick and Madeline with the knowledge that the brother and sister themselves doomed each of their predecessors to death. However, viewers don't find out just why this woman is out to destroy the Ushers until episode 8, "The Raven."

She first met Roderick and Madeline Usher on the night they solidified their future.

On New Year's Eve 1980, Roderick and Madeline (played in their younger versions by Zach Gilford and Willa Fitzgerald) attend a party where he's celebrated as the future of Fortunato, after he sabotages Dupin's (Malcolm Goodwin) investigation into the company's fraud. Following the corporation's victory, Roderick's boss Rufus Griswold (Michael Trucco) proclaims that Roderick's now his right-hand man and the person he trusts more in the world, and he even is going to build adjoining offices in the company's new building. It's a bit much, but it very clearly signals that Roderick has gained enough power that it's time for him to enact his and Madeline's plan to make the transition from partner to sole CEO. And for Edgar Allan Poe nerds, the show teases their plot as Madeline presents Rufus with a bottle of Amontillado wine.

Madeline soon seduces an obviously-drugged Rufus and leads him to a wing of the new building that's still under construction. The pharmaceutical exec passes out, and when he comes to, Madeline and Roderick have him shackled and are about to finish the brick wall that will entomb him in the new building. The duo plans to tell the board about Rufus's legit crimes (including several layers of corruption as well as grave-robbing and setting up Roderick as a patsy), and explain that he fled to some island without extradition rather than face the Feds. With Rufus gone (and dead, though only Madeline and Roderick would know), the board would nominate his best possible successor: Roderick, who's already escaped the wrath of the Feds once.

After leaving Rufus to his death, the twins head to a neighborhood bar for an alibi, where, working behind the bar, is Verna. She befriends the duo throughout the night, and when they're eventually the last ones remaining, she offers a deal to them. They'll get away with killing Rufus and achieve all of their goals, with luxury and comfort beyond their wildest dreams and no legal consequences their entire life. In exchange, the price is deferred to the next generation, with the bill coming due right before Roderick dies. His bloodline dies with him, including Madeline.

After Verna lays out the terms, both of the Ushers quickly agree to it. Verna even pours them some absurdly expensive cognac to seal the deal. As they walk out of the bar at daybreak, both Madeline and Roderick consider their trippy conversation, and Roderick wonders aloud if she meant everything she said. Before he can even complete the question, they turn back and see a derelict, boarded-up building where the bar stood just seconds ago. The only trace that's left? An image of a black raven, printed above the graffitied boards.

She's inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's most famous character.

Episode 8, "The Raven," includes the show's most heartbreaking death, as Verna's story finally matches up to the legendary poem of the same name. Roderick's granddaughter Lenore (named after the heroine from Poe's poem) is the only lovable, non-corrupted Usher throughout the series, and even the patriarch admits she's the "best" of them. Unfortunately, she's also a part of his bloodline, so Verna comes for her on the night of Victorine, Tamerlane, and her father Frederick's funeral. In the emotional scene, which takes place in a guest room at Roderick's mansion, Verna admits that this is the part of her job that brings her no joy, and tells the teenager that her mother Morri will survive from the acid burns she suffered in episode 2. Morri will go on to found a nonprofit that will do genuinely good work and affect millions of lives, all inspired by Lenore and baring her name. Lenore is left with that last glimmer of a hopeful future before she dies peacefully in an instant sleep.

Soon after, Roderick discovers his granddaughter's body and is devastated, showing a more emotional response than he did to any of his six children's deaths. As thunder roars outside and flashes of lightning illuminate the room, Roderick sees a raven perched in the corner. The raven, one of Verna's forms, flees and he follows it to the living room, where the CEO brandishes a fire iron ready to attack. As he stares at the raven, he begins to see classic Haunting of Hill House-style visions of Lenore's spirit all around him. The raven moves to perch atop a marble bust above his fireplace, and a vision of Lenore's dead body appears between the man and the bird. Roderick breaks down into tears as all this happens, while his voiceover recites the poem's final stanza.

"And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting/ On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;/ And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon’s that is dreaming,/ And the lamp-light o’er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;/ And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor/ Shall be lifted—nevermore!"

If that isn't creepy enough, the present-day timeline also shows that Verna is still taunting him about Lenore's death. The show takes place through a story within a story, as Roderick recounts each of his children's deaths to his lifelong foe Dupin (Carl Lumbly). After hearing of Lenore's demise, Dupin says that's impossible, as Lenore's been texting Roderick all night. However, it turns out that Madeline has been working on a sentient AI (kill me) built from a person's social media profiles, and used Lenore's info as a beta test. The AI has been texting Roderick nonstop, but it's broken and is only delivering misspelled variations of the poem's famous repeating word, "Nevermore."

She's been dealing with the world's most wealthy families for decades.

So, what is Verna exactly? Be she a demon, the Raven, or the "Devil at the Crossroads" myth personified, her M.O. is offering corrupted people their wildest dreams fulfilled, in return for something other than their soul (which, in the case of Madeline and Roderick, was already lost when they killed Rufus Griswold earlier that night). In the surprisingly tender scene between Verna and Pym, she explains that she asks the people she deals with for "true assets": spouses, children, familial connections. "Everyone loves something, and in that love is collateral," she explains.

TFHU is overrun with pop culture references, and this touch of real life breaking through is also part of Verna's backstory. In episode 6, Pym presents Madeline with all of the info he finds on the mystery woman, including pictures of Verna with famous figures from throughout history. The notable list includes business tycoons, political dynasties, and ultra-wealthy families whose fortunes have been built on rivers of exploitation, discrimination, poverty, and directly or indirectly, death and suffering of the many to enrich the few. Verna even mentions one of her "clients" directly in the conversation with Pym, saying that she told one of these charges he could "stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and it won't cost [him] a thing." (Yes, she means the former president.)

The full list mentioned as Verna's "clients" includes:

One of the reason TFHU has drawn so much comparison to Succession since its premiere is that Flanagan (who's a credited writer on seven of the season's eight episodes) spends the entire series pointing a condemning finger at the Ushers, extending his satirical gaze to the real-life one percent. In one of the show's final scenes, which takes place on the same rainy night of Lenore's death, Verna crafts a physical representation of the many people who have lost their lives due to their addiction to the Ushers' painkiller Ligadone. She shows Roderick people falling from the sky, representing the one person every five minutes—in the States at least—to die in the opioid epidemic spurred by the drug. Then she opens the scope to the whole world and the bodies are numerous as rain. Verna makes it clear that this is Roderick's legacy. This is what he did with the endless power and lifelong get-out-of-jail-free card he traded his children's lives for. (Literally in two cases, as Frederick and Tamerlane were already alive when he made the deal.) That's what Verna is, in this story of wealth, greed, and death. She's consequences.

Raise your hand if you also got a bit confused keeping track of all the Ushers popping up in the first episode of Netflix's new horror series The Fall of the House of Usher. Mike Flanagan's latest terrifying series, which was inspired by the works of Edgar Allan Poe, centers on the sprawling Usher family, led by twins Madeline (Mary McDonnell) and Roderick Usher. The series takes place across multiple timelines as it uncovers the spans of the twins' lives and how they built Fortunata Pharmaceuticals into a billion-dollar corporation, paving the way for Roderick's six children (and one grandchild) to enjoy lives of luxury and financial support in their own efforts to amass more wealth—I mean, change the world.

Between the diversity of the mixed family (only two of Roderick's kids have the same mother) and their inventive names (all taken from Poe's works), it can be a bit hard to keep track of all the Ushers as the chilling series unfolds. For anyone who needs a primer, here's a guide to the family tree of the House of Usher. (To learn more about the actors and where else you can find them in the Flanaverse, see our breakdown of the The Fall of the House of Usher cast.)

The 50s

Eliza Usher (Annabeth Gish)

Name Reference: Poe's own mother

Roderick and Madeline's mother Eliza worked as the personal secretary to the CEO Longfellow of Fortunato Pharmaceuticals for over 20 years, and she gave birth to the twins following an illicit affair with her boss. The fervently religious mother of two dies when the children are teenagers, succumbing to a years-long illness after refusing to get treated by doctors.

William Longfellow (Robert Longstreet)

Name Reference: possibly Poe's one-sided rival Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Longfellow is presented as a cruel men, who compares children to beefsteaks in an argument for corporal punishment as discipline. As children, Roderick and Madeline are forbidden from going anywhere near his house. When Eliza falls ill, they break the rule to ask him for assistance, and he turns them away. However, he soon meets his demise, via a brutal attack from Eliza herself. Later in life, Roderick is inspired by Longfellow to claim all of his children, no matter who their mothers are.

The Late 70s

Young Roderick Usher (Zach Gilford)

Name Reference: the show's main inspiration, Poe's 1839 story "The Fall of the House of Usher"

As a young man, Roderick works in the mail room of Fortunato, and lives with his stay-at-home wife Annabel Lee (Katie Parker) and their children Frederick and Tamerlane. One day Roderick meets with Longfellow's successor Rufus Griswold (Michael Trucco) and pitches Ligadone, a delayed-release opioid (which was possibly inspired by OxyContin). He believes that he's destined to change the world, and he climbs his way up the ladder at Fortunato while the company's being investigated for medical fraud. At the beginning of 1980 (after an eventful New Year's Eve), he's named CEO of Fortunato and begins his journey of building the company into a billion-dollar behemoth.

Young Madeline Usher (Willa Fitzgerald)

Name Reference: also "The Fall of the House of Usher"

Madeline is ambitious and calculating woman who is undermined by the boys' club of the tech world besides her skill in algorithmic computing. She wants to accomplish all of her wildest dreams without having to serve any man, either as their wife or their subordinate. She remains close with Roderick throughout their lives, and is always there to push her twin brother down the more ambitious path when he falters. She's also instrumental in the events of New Year's Eve.

Annabel Lee (Katie Parker)

Name Reference: Poe's 1849 love poem of the same name

Roderick's wife Annabel is a kind-hearted, moral, nurturing soul who sees the best in the world, including her husband, who recites poetry to her. (Mostly the Poe poem which shares her name.) She believes that money isn't that important and that the love and safety of family is all a person needs, but when she learns more about Fortunato's (and eventually her husband's) misdeeds, she argues for doing what's right over what would bring power and fortune.

Present Day

Roderick Usher (Bruce Greenwood)

Name Reference: the show's main inspiration, Poe's 1839 story "The Fall of the House of Usher"

After over 40 years as CEO, Roderick has built immeasurable wealth for his family and Fortunata, all off of Ligadone. Though the super-addictive drug has spurred an opioid epidemic, Roderick has evaded police prosecution all these years. He's also unrepentant about the pain and suffering his drug has brought to millions, even in the face of a federal trial brought by Asst. U.S. Attorney Auguste Dupin (Carl Lumbly). However, as his six children begin perishing in fatal accidents, it becomes clear that the Usher empire is built on a pile of secrets, and that Roderick must now face the ghosts of his past.

Madeline Usher (Mary McDonnell)

Name Reference: also "The Fall of the House of Usher"

Madeline is now the COO of Fortunata and the brains behind her and Roderick's partnership. The twins run both the Usher family and the pharmaceutical giant with an iron fist, thanks partly to their unflinchingly loyal lawyer and enforcer Arthur Pym (Mark Hamill). In addition to her work, Mad also works on several passion projects, including her research on algorithms and artificial intelligence as a form of immortality. Though she and Roderick have built Fortunata together, her vow to never to let a man have power over her extends to her twin brother, and she wouldn't hesitate to push him under the bus if the need ever arises.

Frederick Usher (Henry Thomas)

Name Reference: Poe's 1832 story "Metzengerstein: A Tale in Imitation of the German"

Episode: "The Pit and the Pendulum"

Frederick (often called Frauderick, Dickwad, and Sweaty Freddie by his siblings) is the eldest son of Roderick and Annabel Lee. As the eldest (and eldest legitimate) child, he's the heir apparent to the CEO role, but his anxious demeanor means he's less suited for the job as some of his other siblings. Still, he's an exec at the company and is set to take the throne, as long as his charmed life doesn't fall down around him. He's is married to former model Morella "Morrie" Usher (Crystal Balint), who Roderick enjoys both for her charm and her impressive illusion cakes. (Just a quirk, or some Is It Cake? stealth marketing?) He and Morrie also share their daughter, Lenore (see below).

Tamerlane Usher (Samantha Sloyan)

Name Reference: Poe's first book Tamerlane and Other Stories (1827), as well as the titular poen "Tamerlane"

Episode: "Goldbug"

Tamerlane, Roderick and Annabel Lee's second child, is the Shiv of the Usher family, who has eschewed Fortunato to make her own way after seemingly being passed over for heir in favor of Frederick (despite her being much more cutthroat than her elder brother). Instead, she plans to build her own Goop-equivalent luxury lifestyle brand, Goldbug, into a new empire. To help, she's found the perfect strategic partnership, via her fitness influencer husband Bill T. Wilson (Matt Biedel), a.k.a. BillT, and his many subscribers. To take the edge off, she and Bill have an... unconventional sex life.

Victorine LaFourcade (T'Nia Miller)

Name Reference: Poe's 1844 story "The Premature Burial" 

Episode: The Tell-Tale Heart

Victorine is the oldest of Roderick's four children outside of his marriage to Annabel Lee, and Frederick and Tamerlane have dubbed them the "bastards." (Roderick never remarried until Juno Usher, who we'll meet below.) The Brit deeply values her father's approval both emotionally and monetarily, as he's funding her cutting-edge medical research. She and her girlfriend, Dr. Allessandra Ruiz (Paola Núñez), are conducting animal testing on a heart mesh with the potential to change modern medicine, and Victorine is determined to get the device approved, medical procedure (or ethics) be damned.

Napoleon "Leo" Usher (Rahul Kohli)

Name Reference: Poe's 1844 story "The Spectacles" (The Poe character's full name is Napoleon Bonaparte Simpson.)

Episode: "The Black Cat"

Leo is the closest Usher sibling to a full socialite, as he's famous for his British charm, his hard-partying antics, and his impressive career in the video game industry. (His sister Camille dubs him Xbox Gatsby, which, yes.) He shuts out any negative emotions in his life with drugs and sex, but the drugs are starting to concern his live-in partner Julius (Daniel Chae Jun).

Camille L'Espanaye (Kate Siegel)

Name Reference: Poe's 1841 story "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" (This story also includes the first appearance of Poe, and later TFHU's, detective C. Auguste Dupin.)

Episode: "Murder at the Rue Morgue"

Camille is Fortunato and the Usher family's PR maven, who spins the empire's bad behavior into more favorable (or at least palatable) press coverage. She's extremely skilled at her job and believes that information is everything, which means she also keeps faithful records of any dirt she can dig up on everyone closest to her. At the start of the series, her efforts are focused on Lumbly's latest case against Fortunato, which she monitors with the help of her full-service assistants Toby (Igby Rigney) and Tina (Aya Furukawa).

Prospero "Perry" Usher (Sauriyan Sapkota)

Name Reference: "The Masque of the Red Death" (Also Poe enlisted in the U.S. Army under the name Edgar A. Perry in 1827.)

Episode: "The Masque of the Red Death"

While most of the Usher "bastards" learned of their parentage when they were in their late teens (Leo was 18, Camille 20), Perry was only 16 when he joined the world of unthinkable luxury and abundance. His playboy lifestyle takes after Leo—the sibling he's also closest to—and he plans to turn his life into the ultimate party. Each of Roderick's children gets funding for their own business venture once they come of age, and Perry plans to build a network of ultra-decadent nightclubs. However, it takes a lot to please Roderick, and Perry's quest for the ultimate rager may go a bit haywire.

Morella "Morrie" Usher (Crystal Balint)

Name Reference: Poe's 1835 story of the same name

Morrie used to be a model and actor, but she has settled into her life as Frederick's devoted wife and Lenore's loving mother. At the start of the series, she spends her days bonding with Lenore and making a cake shaped like a pharmaceutical case law book to cheer Roderick up amid the trial. However, a part of her longs to feel the thrills of her old life, and a secret night out ends in tragedy. In the aftermath, she has to deal with her husband's true nature, as it reveals itself.

Lenore Usher (Kyleigh Curran)

Name Reference: The lost love of the protagonist of Poe's 1845 poem "The Raven"

Roderick often refers to his sole grandchild Lenore as the "best" of the family, and she's definitely the least corrupted Usher. The teenage daughter of Frederick and Morella is kind-hearted and morally strong, and even though she's the youngest, she understands and disagrees with Fortunato's wrongdoings. If every Usher is destined to follow Roderick's mandate to "change the world," Lenore's the show's best chance for a better one.

Juno Usher (Ruth Codd)

After Annabel Lee left Roderick sometime during Frederick and Tamerlane's childhoods, the patriarch remained unmarried for all those years... until Juno. He met the former heroin addict in the hospital following a severe accident which led to the loss of her leg, as well as her dependency on Ligodone. Roderick's motive for marrying her is never explicitly laid out, but he mentions several times that Ligodone must be safe if his own wife takes a dose much higher than the average patient. Due to the significant age difference and the freshness of the marriage, all of the Usher children shun her (except for Frederick, who she says is likely "kissing ass").

Horror fans, time to gather around the TV; Mike Flanagan's latest terrifying series has just hit Netflix. This time, the writer and director who has become a fan favorite for his creepy, bone-chilling miniseries draws inspiration from Edgar Allan Poe, in eight episodes filled with jaw-dropping, horrific scenes as well as a surprising amount of pop culture references for a Flanaverse show. Adapted from Poe's short story of the same name and filled with details from Poe's other works, The Fall of the House of Usher follows the ruthless duo of Roderick (Bruce Greenwood) and Madeline Usher (Mary McConnell), a pair of siblings who have built Fortunato Pharmaceuticals into a wealthy empire (as well as a leading figure in the show universe's opioid pandemic—there's not many degrees of separation between the Ushers and the Sacklers). When each of Roderick's children begin to die in a series of tragic events, the corrupt CEO must reckon with the secrets of his past, as well as the reappearance of a mysterious woman (Carla Gugino).

As is "Flanaverse" tradition, several of Flanagan's frequent collaborators have returned to fill out this troubled, dysfunctional family which makes the Roys look like the Brady Bunch. In addition to many familiar faces from shows like The Haunting of Hill House and The Midnight Club, the show also brings on several award-winning veteran actors, including a living sci-fi legend. Read on for an introduction to the wide-ranging cast of The Fall of the House of Usher.

The Ushers

Bruce Greenwood as Roderick Usher

Previous Flanaverse Shows: N/A

Instagram: @officialbrucegreenwood

Roderick Usher is the patriarch of the Usher family and CEO of Fortunato Pharmaceuticals. After acquiring Fortunato with the help of his twin sister, Madeline, the Usher family has found success and wealth at the cost of the greater good. An ambitious and driven man, Roderick expects the most out of his six children, giving them access to every resource imaginable — except his fatherly affection.

Greenwood is a veteran actor who currently stars as Dr. Randolph Bell in the Fox medical drama The Resident. He has also appeared in the series Mad Men and The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, as well as numerous movies including Star Trek; Star Trek Into Darkness; I, Robot; The Place Beyond the Pines; Flight; The Post; and Kingsman: The Golden Circle. Though he hasn't appeared in any of Flanagan's Netflix series, he previously worked with the filmmaker on the 2019 adaptation of Stephen King's Doctor Sleep, and also played the titular Gerald in the 2015 horror film Gerald's Game.

Mary McDonnell as Madeline Usher

Previous Flanaverse Shows: N/A

Instagram: @theladybam

Intelligent and calculating Madeline is the brains behind both the elder Ushers and Fortunato. She loves Roderick and is always there to give him confidence and advice when he falters, but her unrelenting drive means she's also willing to step over him if it's necessary.

McDonnell is an Oscar- and Emmy-nominated actress who is best known for playing President Laura Roslin on Battlestar Galactica, and Sharon Rayder on the TNT shows The Closer and Major Crimes. She has also starred in acclaimed films including Independence Day, 12 Angry Men, Donnie Darko, Margin Call, and Scream 4.

Henry Thomas as Frederick Usher

Previous Flanaverse Shows: The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, Midnight Mass, and The Midnight Club

Instagram: @hjthomasjr

Frederick Usher, Roderick's eldest son, is the natural heir to his father and the least equipped to lead a major corporation, which Thomas described as "a composite of Donald Trump Jr., Hunter Biden, and Fabio." Over the course of the show, his fierce jealousy and building insecurity force him down a dark path.

Thomas—one of the only actors who has appeared in all five of Flanagan's Netflix shows—started acting as a child, getting his first big role as Elliot in E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial. Over his prolific career, he has appeared in shows and films including Gangs of New York, Dear John, To All the Boys: Always and Forever, Better Things, and Stargirl. In addition to his Flanaverse appearances, he also worked with the director on the 2016 film Ouija: Board of Evil, Gerald's Game, and Doctor Sleep.

Samantha Sloyan as Tamerlane Usher

Previous Flanaverse Shows: The Haunting of Hill House, Midnight Mass, The Midnight Club

Instagram: N/A

The second-eldest Usher sibling Tamerlane knows she'll never be the Fortunato heir (even though she's much more competent than her brother), so she has found a new career path in the health and wellness world. She has the "perfect" marriage with her fitness influencer husband Bill T, but their polished life (and her constantly anxious mind) is beginning to crumble.

Sloyan is best know for her collaborations with Flanagan (which also include the 2016 film Hush) and fellow Netflix mega-producer Shonda Rhimes, as she previously played Jeanine Locke on the early seasons of Scandal and Dr. Penelope Blake on Season 12 of Grey's Anatomy. The California native has also appeared in films and shows including In the Key of Eli, Parks and Recreation, SEAL Team, Truth Be Told, Minx, and The Morning Show.

T'Nia Miller as Victorine Lafourcade

Previous Flanaverse Shows: The Haunting of Bly Manor

Instagram: @tniamiller

Though Victorine, the eldest of the Usher "bastards," has made helping people her life’s work, her true driving force is her need for Roderick's approval and affection. Her revolutionary new heart technology is still in its testing phase, but with Roderick showing interest, Victorine bends the rules of clinical trials to start testing on human subjects.

Miller is a British actress who, in addition to Bly Manor, has appeared in hit Netflix series including The Diplomat and Sex Education. Other credits include the Apple TV+ series Foundation and the BBC miniseries Years and Years, as well as the British shows Witless, Doctors, Doctor Who, and Marcella.

Rahul Kohli as Napoleon "Leo" Usher

Previous Flanaverse Shows: The Haunting of Bly Manor, Midnight Mass, The Midnight Club

Instagram: @rahulkohli13

Napoleon "Leo" Usher is the socialite among the Usher siblings, though he also helps finance video games. The playboy employs his vices to help numb the pain of his reality, but his drug use troubles his live-in boyfriend, Julius.

Kohli is a British actor who started out in stage plays and went on to appear on British shows including Holby City and Eastenders. In addition to his Flanaverse work, he's best known for playing Ravi Chakrabarti on the CW series iZombie. He has also contributed voice acting to several video games, including Fortnite: Chapter 3 and Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun.

Kate Siegel as Camille L'Espanaye

Previous Flanaverse Shows: The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, Midnight Mass

Instagram: @katesiegelofficial

Cunning PR maven Camille has is in charge of the family's PR, and fills her days with her work spinning bad behavior into good press. She has also learned every single one of her family's dirty secrets, whether they know it or not.

Siegel frequently collaborates with her husband Flanagan, and has starred in most of the Flanaverse shows as well as his horror films Oculus, Ouija: Origin of Evil, Gerald's Game, and Hush (which she also co-wrote). She has also recently appeared in the reboots of The Time Traveler's Wife and Hawaii Five-O, as well as the films Hypnotic, and The Wrath of Becky.

Sauriyan Sapkota as Prospero "Perry" Usher

Previous Flanaverse Shows: The Midnight Club

Instagram: @sauriyann

Prospero, the youngest Usher "bastard," only recently learned of his parentage and joined the world of the ultra-rich and powerful. He hopes to use his (father's) newfound wealth to live his entire life as one long party.

Sapkota made his television debut last year, while playing Amesh in Flanagan's teen horror drama The Midnight Club. TFHU is now his second acting role. Fun fact: Last year he told Buzzfeed that it was a dream to work with Kohli, who he'd been a fan of since iZombie.

The Spouses and Grandchildren

Ruth Codd as Juno Usher

Previous Flanaverse Shows: The Midnight Club

Instagram: @ruthcodd

Roderick’s second wife, Juno, is a former junkie who has struggled to gain the Usher family's respect following her recent marriage to the patriarch. She's played by Codd, who made her acting debut last year as Anya in The Midnight Club. Prior to that, she gained a fanbase of 672,000 followers on TikTok, where she shared funny stories about her life growing up in Ireland and spoke candidly about her disability. (She's since deleted her account.) Per Teen Vogue, she has previously worked as a barber, a makeup artist, a hairstylist, and in prosthetics.

Kyliegh Curran as Lenore Usher

Previous Flanaverse Shows: N/A

Instagram: @kyleighcurran

Lenore, Frederick and wife Morella's daughter, is the "best" of the Ushers, per Roderick. The granddaughter is a kind, smart, and empathic teen who makes choices based on her morals, rather than what's best for the family.

Curran is a 17-year-old actress whose first major role was playing Young Nala in the Broadway musical The Lion King (at just 10 years old). She went on to work with Flanagan for her first major film role, playing Abra in Doctor Sleep. In addition to TFHU, she also stars in the Disney+ time-travel series Secrets of Sulphur Springs.

Paola Nuñez as Dr. Alessandra Ruiz

Previous Flanaverse Shows: N/A

Instagram: @paolanunez

Though she's not an official Usher spouse, surgeon Alessandra is integral to Victorine's work. She has no idea that her girlfriend is under pressure to make sure the medical device goes to market as soon as possible.

Nuñez is a Mexican actress who has been appearing in telenovela, theater, and film roles since she was 19. She rose to fame while starring on the international hit novella Amor en Costodia, and she went on to star in the shows Pasión Morena, Destino, Reina del Corazones, and La Reina Del Sur, as well as films including Mexican Gangster, Los Inadaptados, and Dariela los Martes. She crossed over to U.S. productions with the AMC series The Son, and she's since appeared in Bad Boys for Life and the TV adaptations of The Purge and Resident Evil.

Everyone Else

Carla Gugino as Verna

Previous Flanaverse Shows: The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, and Midnight Mass

Instagram: @carlagugino

Verna is a shape-shifter who is connected to one of Poe's most famous characters. Roderick and Madeline met this mysterious woman on a fateful night in their past, and the mysterious woman eventually returns to wreak havoc in the present day.

Gugino is one of the most familiar faces among Flanagan's projects on Netflix, as she's starred in most of the filmmaker's shows as well as the 2017 horror flick Gerald's Game. The prolific actress has also appeared in films including the first three Spy Kids movies, American Gangster, Sin City, Night at the Museum, Watchmen, and Sucker Punch, as well as the shows Chicago Hope, Entourage, New Girl, and Wayward Pines.

Mark Hamill as Arthur Pym

Previous Flanaverse Shows: N/A

Instagram: @markhamill

Pym is the intimidating lawyer and enforcer for the Usher family. The unfailingly loyal employee will do whatever is required, no questions asked, but he's a mystery to even those closest to him.

Hamill is best known for his legendary, decades-long role playing Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars franchise. He's also a prolific voice actor who has recently appeared in shows including Avatar: The Last Airbender, Regular Show, Robot Chicken, Masters of the Universe: Revelation, and Futurama. He also voiced Merv Pumpkinhead in season 1 of the Netflix fantasy series The Sandman.

Carl Lumbly as Auguste Dupin

Previous Flanaverse Shows: N/A

Instagram: @carllumbly

Dupin is a police investigator who first meets Roderick over 30 years ago, starting off a decades-long rivalry. The kind-hearted lawman is Dupin is determined to do what is right and bring "The Usher Crime Family" to justice for their role in the opioid epidemic.

Lumbly is a prolific actor who has over 150 credits across film, television, theater, and voice roles for both animated shows and video games. He's best known for his lead roles in long-running shows like Cagney and Lacey and Alias. Though TFHU is his first Netflix collaboration with Flanagan, he previously appeared in the director's 2019 film Doctor Sleep as Dick Halloran. Most recently, he appeared in several series including S.W.A.T., Altered Carbon, This Is Us, The Chi, and the Marvel Disney+ show The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

The Past

Zach Gilford as Young Roderick Usher

Previous Flanaverse Shows: Midnight Mass, The Midnight Club

Instagram: @zachgilford7

In addition to the main storyline of the unfortunate events that befall the Usher family, TFHU also follows a younger Roderick as he ascends the ranks of Fortunato Pharmaceuticals, from the mail room to the top of the pyramid. At the time, he lives with his first wife Annabel Lee and their two children.

Gilford is a veteran TV actor who rose to fame with his role of QB Matt Saracen on the football drama Friday Night Lights. He's previously starred in shows including Off the Map, L.A.'s Finest, Good Girls, and Criminal Minds, as well as the films Dare, Post Grad, and The Purge: Anarchy. TFHU is his third time starring in a Flanaverse show.

Willa Fitzgerald as Young Madeline Usher

Previous Flanaverse Shows: N/A

Instagram: @willafitz

Playing the younger version of Madeline is Fitzgerald, a Nashville-born stage and screen actress who's an alum of Yale's drama school. She previously played Coach Colette French in the cheerleading drama Dare Me, as well as officer Roscoe Conklin in the Prime Video series Reacher. Other credits include the series Scream: The TV Series, Alpha House, Royal Pains, Younger, House of Cards, and Little Women, as well as the films The Goldfinch and Wildcat.

Katie Parker as Annabel Lee

Previous Flanaverse Shows: The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, The Midnight Club

Instagram: @katieparkerpics

Roderick's beloved first wife Annabel Lee is the mother of Frederick and Tamerlane and his only real love. The warm and trusting woman always saw the best in Roderick, but her optimism also blinded her to the shadier parts of her husband's business affairs.

Parker is a regular on Mike Flanagan's shows and movies, having recently appeared in three of his Netflix offerings as well as his films Doctor Sleep, Oculus, and Absentia. She recently starred alongside Kohli in the indie film Next Exit. Other credits include Masters of Sex, Halt and Catch Fire, Rizzoli and Isles, Alt, and The Resident.

By now, most film buffs are familiar with the acclaimed, wide-ranging world of Korean cinema and television, whether they've been wowed by Academy Award-winner Parasite or checked out a must-watch K-drama on Netflix. However, before either of these pop culture phenomenons took over the world, Korean thrillers and horror films were the movies that brought the country's entertainment industry to the global stage. Many of the country's most celebrated filmmakers have put their spin on classic horror tropes, elevating the genre through great characterization and themes reflecting on societal issues, from classism to child abuse to social discrimination against marginalized groups.

Below, check out some of the best Korean horror films of all time and where to stream them.

'#Alive' (2020)

At the start of this zombie thriller, live-streamer Joon-woo (Yoo Ah-in) watches from his apartment window as an outbreak overtakes his neighborhood, with infected humans turning into flesh-eating monsters in the blink of an eye. As he barricades himself in his apartment, while his family is stuck outside, Joon-woo slowly loses hope until he discovers another survivor (played by Park Shin-hye) in a neighboring building.

Watch on Netflix

'A Tale of Two Sisters' (2003)

This psychological horror based on a Joseon-era folktale is one of the first Korean horror films to break through in America. (It also received a U.S. remake, 2009’s The Uninvited.) Su-mi (Im Soo-jung), who’s just been released from a mental institution, returns home to the secluded country estate where she lives with her little sister, father, and cruel stepmother (SKY Castle's Yum Jung-ah). As strange events occur, the sisters realize that the house may be haunted by restless spirits connected to the family’s dark secrets.

Watch on AMC+ via Shudder

'Bedevilled' (2010)

Warning: The first half of this societal horror spends a lot of time depicting the physical, emotional, and sexual abuse that one woman, named Bok-nam (Seo Young-hee), endures. Bok-nam lives on a remote island where her husband and the townspeople treat her like an indentured servant. However, Bok-nam sees a chance at a better life for herself and her daughter Yeon-hee when Hae-won (Ji Sung-won), a Seoul businesswoman and childhood friend, visits the island.

Watch on Amazon Prime

'The Call' (2020)

This psychological horror-thriller puts a time-travel twist on the serial killer movie. Kim Seo-yeon (Park Shin-hye) returns to her childhood home to care for her ailing mother. There, she answers a call on a landline and finds herself unexpectedly connected to Oh Young-Sook (Burning's Jeon Jong-seo), who lives in 1999 and is being abused by her stepmother. Using the mysterious cordless phone, the women form a bond across time and try to change their fates, with dangerous consequences.

Watch on Netflix

'The Closet' (2020)

Is it just me, or are horror movies with kids instantly a notch more terrifying? After losing his wife, Sang-won (Ha Jung-woo) moves into a new house with his young daughter, Ina (Her-yool). When Ina vanishes, the devastated man is approached by an exorcist (Kim Nam-gil), who tells him that she’s just the latest in a series of children who have gone missing. Can the pair save Ina from whatever malevolent force has taken her?

Watch on Prime Video

'Exhuma' (2024)

This movie by Jang Jae-hyun is a supernatural thrill ride based on folklore and the practices of Korean shamanism. When the newborn child of a wealthy family contracts a mysterious illness, they hire a renowned shaman (Kim Go-eun) and her loyal assistant (Lee Do-hyun), who traces the source to a generational curse stemming from an ancestor's long-hidden grave. She brings on a geomancer (Oldboy's Choi Min-sik) and a mortician (Yoo Hae-jin) to exhume and relocate the remains, not knowing that the grave holds a centuries-old evil.

Watch on Prime Video

'Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum' (2018)

This claustrophobic “found footage” movie is based on one of Korea’s most haunted sites, the abandoned Gonjiam Psychiatric Hospital in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province. When the crew behind a horror web series travels there for a livestream, they quickly realize that they’re surrounded by something truly terrifying. In between all the scares, this film has been lauded for its likable characters, letting viewers form connections to the streamers before they meet their gruesome fates.

Watch on Prime Video

'The Host' (2006)

Parasite director Bong Joon-ho helms this 2006 monster thriller that's based on a based on a real-life act of pollution by U.S. officials in Korea. Years after a U.S. military official intentionally dumps formaldehyde into Seoul's Han River, a giant and bizarre sea monster emerges. The monster sweeps up a little girl named Hyun-seo, who lives with her poor, dysfunctional family helmed by her bumbling father Park Gang-du (played by Parasite's Song Kang-ho). With the military offering no help, Hyun-seo's family band together to save the girl.

Watch on Hulu

'The Housemaid' (1960)

This domestic horror-melodrama by director Kim Ki-young is one of the most influential films in Korean cinema, filled with the class commentary that has helped put South Korean films on the map. The young Kim family, consisting of piano teacher Dong-sik, his wife, and their two children, decides to hire a maid to help with housework during Mrs. Kim's pregnancy. The young woman they hire, Myung-sook, eventually destroys the family from the inside out. (The Housemaid also has a 2010 remake, starring Jeon Do-yeon, Lee Jung-jae, and Youn Yuh-jung.)

Watch on Prime Video

'I Saw the Devil' (2010)

Warning: This horror-thriller by A Tale of Two Sisters director Kim Ji-woon is so unbelievably brutal that it may be too much unless you’re an ardent fan of gore. Kyung-chul (Oldboy’s Choi Min-sik) is a serial murderer who kills for pleasure. When he murders the pregnant fiancée of intelligence agent Kim Soo-hyun (KPop Demon Hunters' Lee Byung-hun), Soo-hyun becomes obsessed with revenge and decides to punish the killer, even if he becomes a monster himself. The two men fall into a torturous game as the concept of revenge is pushed to its absolute limits.

Watch on Prime Video

'The Medium' (2021)

This joint Korean-Thai production takes inspiration from supernatural, found-footage films like The Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity. A documentary team goes to Thailand's northern Isan region to interview Nim (Sawanee Utoomma), a medium and shaman who says she is possessed by the soul of a local goddess called Ba Yan. Her niece Mink is set to become Ba Yan's next host, but when Mink starts behaving strangely, it becomes clear whether the goddess is a blessing to the family or a curse.

Watch on AMC+ via Shudder

'Midnight' (2021)

Jin Ki-joo and Squid Game’s Wi Ha-joon star in this propulsive cat-and-mouse game between a deaf family and a serial killer. Kyeong-mi (Jin) is a young sign language counselor who lives with her mother (Gil Hae-yeon). One night, she crosses paths with a mysterious man named Do-sik (Wi) as he’s in the middle of attacking another young woman. Kyeong-mi becomes Do-sik’s latest target, in an edge-of-your-seat chase heightened by the sound design, which simulates how the world sounds to the women.

Watch on Prime Video

'The Mimic' (2017)

This horror-fantasy is based on the urban legend of the Jang-san beom, a white tiger-like monster that lives on the Jang-san mountain in Busan. It's known for luring children out of the woods to eat them, and it can also mimic the voices of loved ones for this purpose. Soon after moving to the region around Mt. Jang, a grieving family, still reeling from the disappearance of their toddler son, takes in a mysterious child who sounds just like their living daughter, Jun-hee (Bang Yoo-seul). Soon, the mother Hee-Yeon (Yum Jung-ah) begins to wonder whether the girl is human.

Watch on Prime Video

'The Quiet Family' (1998)

This black comedy sits on the edge of horror (and touts a high body count). It centers on the Kangs, an incompetent Seoul family—played by superstars including Choi Min-sik and Song Kang-ho—who convert a mountain building into a hunting lodge. Once it's open, all their guests start mysteriously dying one by one, causing the bumbling family to unravel.

Watch on Prime Video

'Save the Green Planet!' (2003)

This acclaimed movie is more of a sci-fi comedy with disturbing themes than a straight-up horror, but it's so dark that we're including it. (Plus Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone's remake comes out in October!) A childlike couple named Byeong-gu (Shin Ha-kyun) and Su-ni (Hwang Jeon-min) kidnap a powerful pharmaceutical executive who Byeong-gu believes is a top-ranking member of an alien race preparing to attack Earth.

Watch on Kanopy

'Sleep' (2023)

The debut film from writer/director Jason Yu—a protégé of Bong Joon-ho—is a somnambulist psychological thriller following married couple Soo-jin (Train to Busan's Jung Yu-mi) and Hyun-su (Parasite's Lee Sun-kyun, in one of his final roles before his death). In the days before the birth of their first child, Hyun-su starts sleepwalking and exhibiting behaviors that go from disturbing to terrifying. As Soo-jin begins to lose sleep herself, she fears that her unborn child may be in danger.

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'Thirst' (2009)

Park Chan-wook’s sexy and gory 2019 take on the vampire thriller centers on a man of faith tempted by his new bloodthirsty urges. When Sang-hyun (Song Kang-ho), a Catholic priest, volunteers for an experimental medical treatment, he awakens as a lustful vampire. He tries to retain his morality, living on blood bags that he steals from the hospital, but he soon enters an intense affair with his friend’s wife, Tae-ju (Kim Ok-bin).

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'Train to Busan' (2016)

If you’ve somehow missed this global phenomenon that brought Korean cinema to international attention, now’s the perfect time to watch one of the best zombie movies of all time. Businessman Seok-woo (Gong Yoo) and his young daughter Su-an (Kim Su-an) board the bullet train from Seoul to Busan as strange violent incidences break out across South Korea. An infected woman is the last to board, and all hell breaks loose as the train’s passengers fight for survival as society crumbles outside. (If you've already seen Train to Busan, its animated prequel Seoul Station is just as thrilling.)

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'Unlocked' (2023)

While Korean horror flicks often utilize aspects of modern society to terrifying effects, this film goes the extra mile to make viewers want to chuck their smartphones into the sea. After a night out, Na-mi (The 8 Show's Chun Woo-hee) loses her smartphone. It's returned by Jun-yeong (Squid Game's Yim Si-wan)… after he installs spyware. The stranger begins tracking her everyday life and eventually approaches her while concealing his identity. Around the same time, Na-mi's ordinary life spins out of control, Jun-yeong's father, police detective Ji-man (Kim Hee-won), finds traces of his estranged son at a crime scene.

Watch on Netflix

'The Wailing' (2016)

This acclaimed film by Na Hong-jin takes place in a remote village plagued by a mysterious, murderous illness. The townspeople believe the sickness has something to do with a mysterious Japanese man who just arrived. When the daughter of police officer Jong-goo (Kwak Do-won) begins showing the symptoms of the disease, his attempts to quickly solve the mystery and save her become more and more desperate.

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Buzz buzz: We can't get enough of Yellowjackets and couldn't be more eager to return to the hive. It has been over a year and a half since the second season of Yellowjackets came to a tragic, brutal conclusion. The season 2 finale aired over Memorial Day Weekend 2023, marking an end to a season that saw the team embrace their dark, primal instincts. Though several lingering questions for season 1 were answered as the fate of Javi, Jackie's body, and Shauna's baby were revealed, fans ended the season with a new set of clues to prompt fan discussion and theories over the hiatus. Many months later, news of season 3 is emerging, welcoming fans back into the wilderness.

For everyone who needs a reminder of where the must-watch TV series left off, here's what we know about the forthcoming Yellowjackets season 3.

Has 'Yellowjackets' season 3 been renewed?

Showtime renewed the hit series for a third season before season 2 arrived. The network announced the big news back in December 2022, three months before the season 2 premiere.

"With Yellowjackets’ runaway success in Season 1 and the pent-up anticipation for Season 2, we wanted to maximize the momentum by fast tracking Season 3 now," Chris McCarthy, president and CEO of Showtime and Paramount Media Networks, said at the time. "The show’s ambition is only exceeded by its execution, and I thank the incredible creative team behind it, including Ashley [Lyle], Bart [Nickerson], Jonathan [Lisco], eOne and the Showtime team, for turning this into such a success."

When will 'Yellowjackets' season 3 be released?

Get ready for a bloody valentine: Yellowjackets season 3 will officially premiere on February 14, 2025 with a two-episode release. Showtime announced that the show was coming back in mid-November 2024 with the release of a teaser trailer.

The eerie visual plays into the cheeky release date with text saying, "This Valentine's Day, eat your heart out." It also features images flashing of a decaying skull with yellowjackets swarming around it and clips from the season. Though it's hard to tell exactly what the preview shots are of, it looks like the girls will be going more feral than ever as winter approaches, with shots of them screaming into the void and threatening each other with weapons.

Is there a trailer for 'Yellowjackets' season 3?

Yes! Netflix released a full-length trailer for Yellowjackets season 3 in late January. It looks like the wilderness is coming back to haunt the survivors now more than ever, as Shauna suspects "someone wants us dead." With someone supposedly on their tails, it looks like women in the present-day are close to losing any bit of sanity they still have—there's glass shattering, car crashes, lots of shouting, and a dramatic declaration from Shauna that "the only way to truly be safe is to be the only one left."

The trailer shows that the series is also set to continue piecing together the mystery of the past, where the Yellowjackets are looking for their missing coach, wrestling with conceding to the wilderness or staying grounded, and deciding who among them should be leaders. The clip leans into brutality, with nu metal band Drowning Pool's "Bodies" soundtracking and teasing that the team "went completely nuts," so get ready for a season abuzz in thrills.

If you're dying for even more footage of the new season, you're in luck. The first look at Yellowjackets season 3 arrived on December 7, 2024, during the Brazil fan event CCXP 2024, giving us a hint of the new episodes' plot. Based on the clip, we're getting a time jump to warmer weather in the 1996 wilderness storyline, while the present-day cast will be dealing with a new round of anonymous threats. The teaser also includes appearances from both new faces (Hilary Swank's unknown character) and old (Ghost Jackie!) and a new tagline: "The past will come back to hunt you."

Who in the 'Yellowjackets' cast will return for season 3?

The adult and teen core cast will return, including Melanie Lynskey (Shauna), Christina Ricci (Misty), Tawny Cypress (Taissa), Sophie Nélisse (teen Shauna), Sophie Thatcher (teen Natalie), Samantha Hanratty (teen Misty), Jasmin Savoy Brown (teen Taissa), Courtney Eaton (teen Lottie), Liv Hewson (teen Van), and Kevin Alves (Travis). Season 2's new additions Simone Kessel (Lottie) and Lauren Ambrose's (Van) will also be back, and we're expecting them to have tons to do going forward now that their characters have reunited with the rest of their former team members.

One cast member whose return is in question is Juliette Lewis. The season 2 finale ended in tragedy, with Misty accidentally killing Natalie as she jumped in to save cult member Lisa. There's been no word on whether Lewis will continue with the series in some capacity, including possibly appearing in flashback or dream sequences in future episodes.

Other highly-anticipated returning cast members include Steven Krueger (Coach Ben), Warren Kole (Jeff), Sarah Desjardins (Callie), John Reynolds (Detective Saracusa), and Elijah Wood (Walter).

Are there any new cast members in 'Yellowjackets' season 3?

Buzz buzz! Yellowjackets fans can get excited because a few A-listers are joining season 3. On August 27, 2024, the series announced that Community, The Soup, and The Bear alum Joel McHale is joining the show for an undisclosed guest role. Details are still being kept under wraps, but, as one commenter said, "LAST THING WE NEED IS MORE MEN BUT I'LL TAKE IT."

McHale isn't the only new addition to the cast. On September 27, 2024, Deadline reported that Hilary Swank is set to appear in season 3. The Oscar winner will join as a recurring guest star, and according to Deadline, could be upped to a series regular if the show is renewed for a fourth season.

Details about Swank's character have yet to be announced, but the outlet revealed she'll appear in the latter part of the season. As season 2 indicated, we haven't met all of the surviving Yellowjackets in the present day, so it's possible she could be taking on one of them, or a new character entirely.

Another guest star was revealed just weeks before the season 3 premiere date. As reported by Variety, Ashley Sutton will also guest star. Like previously announced castings, no insights into her character have been announced. She last appeared in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.

What is the 'Yellowjackets' season 3 plot?

The season 2 finale sets up several big questions for where the series can continue. In the final incendiary scene, the characters in the '90s timeline are still stranded in the woods. While they're no longer starving (having made a meal out of Javi's corpse earlier in the episode), they're left without shelter when the log cabin is set on fire from the outside. It appears that Coach Ben set the cabin ablaze, after learning of Javi's fate and seeing Natalie, the last remaining skeptic of the group, get crowned as the new leader. (After Javi died in the hunt and Natalie was spared, Lottie declared Natalie leader, arguing the wilderness chose her.) Whether or not Ben was the one who tried to kill the team, they'll likely believe he betrayed them, and go after him as the next hunting target.

Meanwhile, in the present, Natalie's death will have a huge effect on the group (especially Misty, who has now killed two of her "best friends" throughout her life). After the hunt, Lottie is taken to a psychiatric hospital, but before she leaves she tells Tai and Van that the wilderness is now pleased with them. There's a big chance that the adult Yellowjackets will begin seeing positive things happen in their lives (Van's cancer goes into remission? Tai somehow keeps her state senate seat?), and start re-considering the role the "wilderness" still plays in their lives.

As for the show's crime elements, Shauna's family is free and clear after Walter framed Detective Kevyn (R.I.P.) for Adam Martin and Jessica Roberts's deaths out of love for Misty. Even though the Sadeckis are no longer in danger of arrest, young Callie knows her mother's troubled secrets. After that scene where Lottie is so fascinated by Shauna's daughter, there's a big chance that Callie will end up falling to her darker urges, either cause the "wilderness" wants her or cause she's grappling with being the daughter of a murderer.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, director and executive producer Karyn Kusama discussed the fallout of the present-day storyline, and how the adult characters will likely have tons to face in the aftermath of the first two seasons.

She said, "Certainly loss is going to be an initial kind of emotional glue, and the fallout from that. But I also suspect there’s a lot to explore about the real-world ramifications of the past two seasons. I think that’s going to get further addressed and further looked at. I think it’s going to be a question about how to bring everyone back together when it’s the right thing to do or makes sense narratively."

What has the 'Yellowjackets' cast said about season 3?

In a Hollywood Reporter interview, Sophie Thatcher opened up about learning that teen Natalie would become the Antler Queen in the finale, saying that the new dynamic is "ultimately exciting."

"It was really exciting to see," she told the outlet. "This is probably why she is the [adult] Natalie we see. She’s gone through so much and now she’s taking on more guilt. She’s going to be carrying more guilt [as the group’s leader] and she’s going to continue this journey of self-destruction. But, I was happy to see such a shift. I think this is more juicy and more fun to play around with as an actor for future episodes."

She continued that Natalie likely won't have an easy transition to leadership, adding "I think it will mess up the group dynamic no matter what."

"I think the group is going to react terribly," she said. "I think there’s going to be tension between her and Shauna, because Shauna obviously has endured so much and felt like she was the natural one to fall into that role. I think it’s just going to start more conflict. Not that things were going well, but they had a leader that people agreed on and now everything is thrown out of sorts. People don’t even like Natalie that much. They trust her, but she’s not giving them what Lottie was giving them."

Travis actor Kevin Alves also spoke to THR, sharing his thoughts on the finale and whether Coach Ben was the one who set the cabin on fire.

"Well, he has the stuff. So, we’ll see," Alves told the outlet. "I don’t know if he has the stuff to mess with us, but he was there. We see him outside and then the cabin is on fire. As a viewer, that was my assumption. But they might have some tricks up their sleeves that I don’t know about."

What is the future of 'Yellowjackets' beyond season 3?

As for how long the Yellowjackets mystery will continue, Lyle previously told Entertainment Weekly that the show was originally planned to last five seasons, adding that the creative team feels they're "still on track for that." Though she admitted that "there's always room for things," the co-creator clarified that Yellowjackets isn't the type of show that can stretch indefinitely.

"We don't really see this as being more than a five-season show," she told the outlet. "I think that there are shows that can go forever, but I think that when you're telling such a deeply serialized story and it's about these characters' lives, you want to reach a satisfying conclusion and not just drag things out forever. This isn't really one of those setup shows where it can go anywhere. So far, we've been really on track. Season 2 is largely what we always planned, but you do make a lot of discoveries along the way and so it's always a little bit surprising."

Horror movies are not for the faint of heart, which is why we love them here at MC. There's nothing like two hours' worth of jump scares, blood-curdling screams, and ultra-creepy characters to get the heart racing. As with the best horror movies of 2022, this year's slate of scary films included highly-anticipated sequels in classic horror franchises like Scream IV and Evil Dead Rises. But 2023 has also brought a ton of new fears to the big screen—as well as some of the year's biggest twists (see M. Night Shyamalan's Knock at the Cabin). Thrill-seekers, prepare for your watchlist to get much longer with this year's must-watch horror films.  

'M3GAN'

Premieres: January 6, 2023

The robotic doll instantly became a meme on social media thanks to her uber-creepy mannerisms and dancing. An AI-enhanced doll created to befriend a little girl was definitely not a good idea. After killing it at the box office, M3GAN is set to return to the big screen in 2025.  

'Skinamarink'

Premieres: January 13, 2023

This creepy, low-budget thriller grew a passionate cult following thanks to its experimental style and escalating tension that had viewers squirming in their seats. The story follows two children trapped alone in a house with a mysterious entity, but behind that simple premise is a truly chilling tale.

'Sick'

Premieres: January 18, 2023

A horror flick set during the height of COVID lockdowns could be a tough sell, but this slasher from the creator of the Scream franchise delivers an intense experience full of twists and turns. Parker (Gideon Adlon) and her best friend Miri (Beth Woodlow) decide to quarantine together at a secluded lake house when they get an unexpected (sinister) visitor.

'Infinity Pool' 

Premieres: January 27, 2023 

This horror flick sees a wealthy couple enjoying their lavish island vacation until a fatal accident causes things to get weird. Like clones and creepy animal masks weird. Alexander Skarsgård Big Little Lies fame stars alongside Mia Goth who is shaping up to be quite the scream queen after 2022's X and Pearl. 

'Knock at the Cabin'

Premieres: February 3, 2023

A knock at your isolated cabin's door might seem innocent enough, that is until four strangers take you and your family hostage and claim the apocalypse is coming. Hence is the premise of M. Night Shyamalan's latest horror film. Knowing the iconic director, expect a huge third-act twist. 

'The Outwaters'

Premieres: February 9, 2023

This relentless found-footage flick is for the horror fans with iron stomachs, as it's filled to the brim with visceral scenes (and sound effects) of blood and gore. The premise: a group of four friends head into the desert to shoot a music video and find something horrifying along the way.

'Huesera: The Bone Woman'

Premieres: February 10, 2023

In this chilling Mexican folk-horror film, an expectant mother (Natalia Solián) who is initially overjoyed by the pregnancy becomes plagued by a demonic spirit that threatens her physical and mental well-being. (For the curious, "Huesero" is Spanish for "bonesetter," a type of folk healer who specializes in mending and setting broken bones) 

'Scream VI'

Premieres: March 10, 2023

In the latest installment of the Scream franchise, sisters Sam and Tara escape to New York City in the hopes of starting a new chapter. But, of course, the Ghostface killer follows. This masked murderer is unlike previous versions you've seen and seems to be even more ruthless in tracking down his victims. 

'Clock'

Premieres: March 31, 2023

This sci-fi horror follows Ella (Dianna Agron), a successful interior designer who doesn't want kids, but feels pressured to keep up with societal norms once all her friends start becoming parents. The only problem is that Ella doesn’t want to be a mother. Eventually, she signs up to participate in an experimental therapy in hopes it'll change her mind about motherhood.

'The Pope's Exorcist' 

Premieres: April 7, 2023

There's something about demonic exorcisms that's especially unsettling, so a film following the cases of a real-life exorcist sounds blood-chilling. This film follows the life of Father Gabriele Amorth, played by Russell Crowe, the chief exorcist of the Vatican and who performed more than 100,000 exorcisms in his lifetime. 

'Evil Dead Rise' 

Premieres: April 21, 2023

For horror fans who especially love blood and gore, check out the newest installment of the classic horror franchise, Evil Dead Rise. This one sees the rise of flesh-eating demons and a family forced to fight against their infected mother. 

'Beau Is Afraid'

Premieres: April 21, 2023

Hereditary and Midsommar director Ari Aster's latest film continues the director's trend for unsettling psychological horror centered on human relationships. The horror-comedy follows a paranoid man (played by Joaquin Phoenix) through a phantasmagoric odyssey as he travels to visit his overbearing mother (Patti Lupone).

'The Boogeyman'

Premieres: June 2, 2023

The titular monster of this Stephen King adaptation comes straight from your childhood fears. Two siblings who are still reeling from the death of their mother have to face a supernatural entity that preys on families and feeds on the suffering of its victims. 

'The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster'

Premieres: June 8, 2023

In this reimagining of the classic horror tale, Dr. Frankenstein is Vicaria (Laya DeLeon Hayes), a teenage girl who sets out to cure death by resurrecting her brother after his gang-related murder. Once she creates her monster, the young girl has to reckon with the effects of her actions on her mourning community.

'The Blackening'

Premieres: June 16, 2023

This self-aware comedy horror is perfect for fans who end up shouting warnings through the screen. ("I told you not to go in there!") A group Black friends who reunite for Juneteenth weekend getaway find themselves trapped in a remote cabin with a twisted killer.

'Insidious: The Red Door'

Premieres: July 7, 2023

Insidious 5, set 10 years after the last installment, sees the youngest Lambert kid off to college and is Patrick Wilson's directorial debut. If it's anything like the other four films in the series, this one is sure to be scary as hell. 

'Talk To Me'

Premieres: July 28, 2023

The gruesome possession movie that shocked audiences at Sundance found a cult following online, following a group of teens who use an embalmed hand that lets them connect with spirits of the dead. The ritual and party trick becomes a viral sensation...until one of the spirits stays a bit too long.

'The Last Voyage of the Demeter'

Premieres: August 11, 2023

This standalone horror flick adapts a famous passage of Bram Stoker's Dracula, expanding the doomed sea voyage of the Demeter into a feature-length film. While sailing from Transylvania to London, the ship's small crew faces several strange and bloody incidents as they're stalked each night by a mysterious, merciless presence.

'Birth/Rebirth'

Premieres: August 18, 2023

Following the tragic death of maternity nurse Celie's (Judy Reyes) daughter Lila, morgue attendant Rose (Marin Ireland) sees an opportunity for the ultimate experiment. Celie immediately suspects Rose of stealing the body, and after she confronts her, any assumed conventions of the story go out the window as the two women become dedicated to reanimating Lila in this gruesome, subversive thriller.

'The Nun 2'

Premieres: September 8, 2023

Four years after The Nun made its terrifying debut, Sister Irene (Taissa Farmiga) the demonic Valak faced off again in this latest release from the Conjuring franchise.

'No One Will Save You'

Premieres: September 19, 2023

This terrifying Hulu flick about an alien home invasion counts Stephen King and Guillermo del Toro among its fans. Come for the hype, stay for the truly mind-blowing ending.

'Saw X'

Premieres: September 29, 2023

The Saw franchise continued on this year with a "midquel," set between the stories happening in the OG Saw and Saw II, with original actors Tobin Bell (Jigsaw himself) and Shawnee Smith (Amanda Young) reprising their roles.

'Deliver Us'

Premieres: September 29, 2023

After a nun in a remote convent claims immaculate conception, a team of priests sent by the Vatican fear that she her twins will fulfill an ancient prophecy: one will the Messiah, the other the Anti-Christ.

'Totally Killer'

Premieres: October 6, 2023

Small-town teenager Jamie (Kieran Shipka) has grown up in the shadow of the Sweet Sixteen Killings, when three girls were slaughtered on Halloween night 35 years prior. When she accidentally time travels back to the '80s, days before the murders, Jamie decides to stop the tragedy and right history in this gory horror-comedy.

'When Evil Lurks' 

Premieres: October 6, 2023

In a remote village, brothers Pedro (Ezequiel Rodriguez) and Jimmy (Demián Salomón) stumble upon a demon that's on the verge of being physically born. In their desperation to protect the town, they fail to perform a proper exorcism, and bring doom and bloodshed upon their loved ones in this visceral possession thriller.

'Five Nights at Freddy's'

Premieres: October 27, 2023

Based on the popular video game series, this creepy flick follows a security guard who gets a job working the night shift at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza (think Chuck E. Cheese). While working, the guard realizes the establishment's four animatronic mascots turn homicidal after midnight.

'Thanksgiving'

Premieres: November 17, 2023

Sixteen years after the fan-favorite trailer in Grindhouse, Eil Roth has finally made Thanksgiving into a full feature. One year after a Black Friday riot that ended in multiple tragic deaths, an axe-wielding maniac begins picking off residents of Plymouth, Mass. one by one, in this campy, brutal thriller.

Since the Netflix hit Wednesday opened the doors of Nevermore Academy, fans of the macabre comedy have been waiting with anticipation for another semester in Jericho. Executive-produced by Tim Burton and inspired by the Addams Family, the must-watch series follows 15-year-old Wednesday Addams (played by Jenna Ortega) as she investigates a complex mystery at her school—involving a mysterious serial-killing monster and a centuries-long history of animosity between the outcasts and the normies.

The eight-episode season broke numerous records upon its debut and has become Netflix's most-watched show ever, so it's no surprise that the Addams family and the rest of the cast will be back for another installment. The show's creative team has already teased some of their plans, including answers for several cliffhangers at the end of season 1. Read on for everything we know about season 2 of Wednesday.

Has 'Wednesday' been renewed for Season 2?

Yes! Several months after Wednesday premiered in November 2022, Netflix announced that it was set to return on January 6, 2023.

At the time, co-showrunners Miles Millar and Alfred Gough shared a statement with Tudum. "It’s been incredible to create a show that has connected with people across the world. Thrilled to continue Wednesday’s tortuous journey into season two," the duo said. "We can’t wait to dive head first into another season and explore the kooky spooky world of Nevermore. Just need to make sure Wednesday hasn’t emptied the pool first."

The show also released a clip where Wednesday herself acknowledged the viral buzz, thanking viewers for the "pure torture" of being "mimicked millions of times across the internet." The video then shows crowds cheering on the series as the famous TikTok sound of Lady Gaga's "Bloody Mary" plays. "Honestly I wish I cared a little more," Wednesday adds.

When will 'Wednesday' season 2 be released?

In April 2025, Netflix confirmed that season 2 will be released in two parts. Part 1 will hit streaming on Wednesday, August 6 (appropriately), and part 2 will follow nearly one month later on Wednesday, September 3. The season will feature eight episodes total.

The streamer's two-part release strategy has become common with its big, tentpole releases, like past seasons of Stranger Things, Cobra Kai, and Outer Banks, among other shows.

Season 2 comes nearly three full years after the release of the debut installment. The show was in production for quite some time (likely due to Ortega's busy schedule). According to Tudum, the show entered production in May 2024, moving its filming from Romania, where season 1 was filmed, to Ireland. In September 2024, Netflix shared another update by sharing a teaser—and a fun Reel featuring stars Ortega and Emma Myers in costume—revealing that the shoot is still ongoing. It eventually wrapped in early December 2024. To celebrate, Netflix shared the official first-look photo of Ortega in Wednesday's signature uniform and hair in braids. In the image, the Addams daughter stands in the woods, looking perfectly angsty with her arms crossed.

We can't wait to finally spend summer brooding and glum with our No. 1 goth girl!

Is there a trailer for 'Wednesday' season 2?

Cue The Addams Family theme and do the Monster Mash because Netflix has officially dropped the full-length Wednesday season 2 trailer. The streamer shared the video in early July, revealing how the titular moody teen will be learning more about her family history to uncover mysteries in the present—including a vision she sees of Enid's death.

In the clip, upon returning to school, she has her own fan club and is hailed as "the Savior of Nevermore," much to her disgust. It's ultimately the last of her worries, though, as darkness still looms and she's starting to bleed from her eyes while experiencing psychic episodes. "Secrets are the bedrock of the Addams family," she says. "The sooner I get answers, the sooner I can save Enid. Or die trying."

To get those answers, it seems she'll connect with her mother and grandmother, and they'll teach her a thing or two about her powers (as well as crossbows and shooting a gun).

If you're eager for even more, know that the trailer isn't the only advanced footage available. When Netflix announced the premiere dates for parts 1 and 2 of season 2, it also shared the first teaser. In the clip, Wednesday struggles to make it through TSA, pulling out weapon after weapon from her bag and person in a violent Mary Poppins-like move. Ultimately, Thing's sunscreen causes the agent's ire. But they make it through, and it's back to Nevermore they go.

The teaser also reveals what madness Wednesday will encounter back at school (creepy dolls! monsters! graveyards! eerie pink smoke!). "Wherever there’s murder or mayhem, there’s always an Addams," her voiceover says at one point, followed by her mother, Morticia, who says, "Every family has dark secrets, Wednesday, and secrets can have deadly consequences." Prepare to be spooked!

During Netflix's Tudum event in June 2025, the streamer also shared the first six minutes of season 2. The season starts with Wednesday reflecting on her very dark summer vacation, which she spent tracking down the Kansas City Scalper, a serial killer she's been obsessed with since childhood. The clip begins with her in his disturbing basement filled with dolls ("I'm tied up in a serial killer’s basement. Who said nightmares don’t come true? He’s under the delusion I’m his next victim. I'll let him cherish that notion while I share my predicament.") before explaining how she got there. The moody teen spent weeks exploring her psychic abilities and then traveled cross-country to catch him (showing the full scene of her going through the airport, as previously seen in the first teaser). Upon showing up at his house, the killer (played by guest star Haley Joel Osment) kidnaps Wednesday and locks her in his basement...before she has Thing attack him. We can't wait to watch more!

If you're eager for even more footage, Netflix also dropped a behind-the-scenes dispatch in September 2024, previewing what's to come. "This season is going to be bigger and more twisted than you could ever imagine," Zeta-Jones says, which seems about right since the video features footage of what looks like supernatural rituals, fires, and Wednesday asking to "play dolls" with a knife.

"If we showed you anymore, your eyes would bleed and I'm not that generous," Ortega says in her classic deadpan before the clip cuts to a close.

Who in the 'Wednesday' cast will return for season 2?

Wednesday has a huge cast full of characters we already love. (Raise your hand if you would fight for Enid!) Netflix has confirmed that several fan favorites will return for season 2, including Jenna Ortega (Wednesday), Emma Myers (Enid Sinclair), Joy Sunday (Bianca Barclay), Victor Dorobantu (Thing), Moosa Mostafa (Eugene Ottinger), and Georgie Farmer (Ajax Petropolus). As for Wednesday's family, all of the Addams—Catherine Zeta-Jones (Morticia Addams), Luis Guzmán (Gomez Addams), and Isaac Ordonez (Pugsley Addams)—have been upgraded to series regulars, with Fred Armisen (Uncle Fester) returning as a guest star.

The streaming giant has also confirmed that Percy Hynes White, who played Xavier Thorpe in season 1, will not return for season 2. Fans had been questioning whether he would make an appearance in the next installment since he was accused of sexual assault and subsequently denied the allegations in January 2023.

As for the two big bad characters of the season, season 1 ended with the chance that Tyler Galpin (Hunter Doohan) or Marilyn Thornhill (Christina Ricci), or both, could return, since they were captured rather than killed in the season finale. Ricci has not been confirmed to appear in season 2 (though we're still hoping for a cameo), but Tyler will officially be back, as Hunter Doohan appeared on the season 2 cast list that Netflix shared in early May 2024.

There's also the question of Principal Weems' fate, as fans have been shocked that Gwendoline Christie's character didn't make it out of the season finale alive. Unfortunately, it seems that the glamorous educator really is dead, with co-showrunner Miles Millar telling Variety that Weems' death was an impactful way to end the first season.

"I think for us, it really had landed with Wednesday, the emotional impact of that death, he told the outlet. "We wanted this world where people you care about die, so that there is a cost and a sacrifice that this story takes on her. She was incredible."

Though the showrunners are pretty solid on Weems being dead, there is a chance that the show could find a way to bring her back (after all, the finale did include a resurrection). We'd certainly be okay with suspending disbelief if it meant another season with Christie.

Plus, even Ortega has said she can't believe the actor's gone forever. "Girl, I don't even believe that one," Ortega told TV Guide in an interview. "I can't. I love Gwendoline Christie too much. I refuse to accept that as the truth."

Christie also gave her thoughts on her character's fate, telling TV Guide, "I feel like Larissa Weems would never be dominated by something as commonplace as death."

"I was really devastated when I read that," she continued. "However, I was energized when I knew that a lifelong desire of Christina Ricci stabbing me in the neck would be realized."

Which new cast members are joining 'Wednesday' season 2?

Wednesday was always an ensemble show, but season 2 takes this to the next level with over a dozen(!) new faces joining the cast. Netflix revealed the updated cast in a new teaser clip posted in May 2024, where Thing delivers scripts for season 2's first episode to several doors labeled with cast names, before completing his journey at Jenna Ortega's room.

While some doors belong to returning cast members, four reveal new very exciting cast members: Joanna Lumley as Grandmama Addams, Steve Buscemi as Barry Dort, Billie Piper as Capri, and Thandiwe Newton as Dr. Fairburn.

The clip also teases the title of the season 2 premiere: "Here We Woe Again." (Perfect, no notes.)

There will be even more new faces roaming the Nevermore halls, too. Evie Templeton (Pinocchio) and Owen Painter (Tiny Beautiful Things) are joining two new teen roles, while Noah Taylor (Preacher) will also join as a series regular.

There's also a long list of guest stars, including Lumley and Newton, Frances O’Connor (The Missing), Haley Joel Osment (The Sixth Sense), Heather Matarazzo (The Princess Diaries), and Joonas Suotamo (Star Wars: Episodes VII-IX). The series will also follow its tradition of casting stars from former Addams Family projects: Christopher Lloyd, who played Uncle Fester in the 1991 Addams Family film, is also set to appear.

Perhaps the most exciting new casting was announced in November 2024. Deadline confirmed that a pop superstar will officially be headed to Nevermore, as Lady Gaga has been announced as a new addition. However, it's unclear how big her role will be or what it is.

Gaga's casting is all too perfect, considering her track"Bloody Mary" from 2011's Born This Way went viral after Wednesday danced to it in season 1. Fingers crossed, the Grammy winner and Ortega will don their goth apparel and perform choreography together in season 2.

When you thought the cast couldn't get any more stacked, it turns out Netflix has been staying hush-hush on some of the new additions. In late April 2025, nearly a year after most of the new cast members were announced, Variety reported that another '80s and '90s icon is joining an undisclosed role. Anthony Michael Hall, the former teen star known for his roles in John Hughes movies and a Saturday Night Live alum, will also appear. That means he'll be re-teaming with Tim Burton, whom he worked with on the beloved '90s movie Edward Scissorhands.

We can't wait to see this creepy, kooky, mysterious, spooky, and all together ooky ensemble on screen soon!

What will 'Wednesday' season 2 be about?

The first eight episodes of Wednesday wrapped up the season's mystery, as our heroine discovered that Marilyn Thornhill (a.k.a. Laurel Gates) and Tyler (who was secretly a Hyde) were behind the deaths plaguing Jericho, as well as a sinister plot to reanimate the town's anti-outcast founder Joseph Crackstone. Both were defeated and Crackstone was sent back to Hades, though Principal Weems died before Wednesday and the Nevermore students saved the academy. The season ends with two loose threads: Tyler's still out there, with a hint that he'll soon escape from captivity; and a stalker is still tracking Wednesday.

Gough and Millar already have big plans for the series, with Millar telling Variety that they planned the series with three or four seasons in mind. "For us, it’s always looking at the future, and when we sit down to create a show, it’s looking at multiple seasons, ideally," he told the outlet. "That’s never expected, but that’s the anticipation that hopefully the show is successful. So you always lay out at least three or four seasons’ worth of potential storylines for the characters."

He added that their plans aren't set in stone, hinting that viewer's opinions on characters could influence their plotting. "It can evolve and change. Often, you want to see which characters or cast pop and who you like to write for. So you want to keep it open and organic enough to change it and evolve, but we certainly have a pretty clear runway of what we want to do in future seasons," he said.

Gough and Millar teased a bit about Wednesday's possible adventures to TVLine, explaining that season 2 could push Wednesday out of her comfort zone.

"The series is really about a girl who sees the world in black and white, and learning there are shades of gray," Millar told the outlet. "I think like any relationship or any friendship, it can get complicated by other factors. It’s never going to be smooth sailing. And it’s really her learning to navigate the ups and downs of friendship."

There's also the huge question of the stalker who followed Wednesday throughout season 1, before finally revealing themselves in the finale's last scene.

"We know who it is, we can't tease who it is," Millar told TV Guide. "We never take for granted that we're going to get a second season but we certainly have big plans and lots more stories to tell in terms of Wednesday and her friends."

What have the cast and crew said about season 2?

Gough and Miller have also shared some of their ideas for the show's supporting characters. Miller told TVLine that he's interested in bringing back the rest of the Addams family and further exploring Wednesday and Morticia's relationship.

"We felt like we just touched the surface with those characters and the actors are so amazing in those roles," he said. "Catherine is, I think, an iconic Morticia. The relationship between Wednesday and Morticia is also essential to the show, and the idea that Wednesday is trying to forge her own path outside the family is so important."

Ortega has also shared her thoughts about an upcoming season, including her theories for who could be the stalker. "I would love for it to be someone completely random," she told TV Guide. "There's this really interesting character who's in the background of some of the shots at the exterior of Nevermore. He's like the janitor [who's] raking leaves. I would love for it to be him just because he was such a cool guy, and I wanna talk to him."

The actress also told Entertainment Tonight that she hopes the show takes Wednesday to darker places.

"I kind of want her to be darker," she shared. "I want her to get more in the nitty-gritty of things and not play things so safe, because there are a lot of lines about her saving the school and doing whatever, but for me, her main drive with the monster is of a competitiveness. Kind of, 'Man, how's this guy doing this?' I think I want it to continue down an antihero stream rather than a typical hero."

That seems possible, considering another recent tease from Ortega. While doing press for the new horror movie Death of a Unicorn, she told Collider that much of season 2 is inspired by classic scary movies. The star said, "I just feel like there are a lot of scenes and frames, and there’s a whole episode based off of slashers, and we make a lot of horror references. So, everything about it, I feel like we kind of had a little bit more trust, and therefore, we felt like we could do bigger, more elaborate sequences, which is nice.”

"Visually, I can say we have some of the most fun we’ve ever had," she added. "It’s crazy to talk about one frame like this, but there is a frame of Pugsley rolling his eyes back with this contraption around his head—that’s all I can say—and it reminds me so much of Full Metal Jacket...It’s insane. So bizarre."

As for other cast members, Sunday, who plays Bianca, has opened up about her character's cliffhanger with the siren's spiritual leader mother, who wants to take her out of Nevermore because her power is fading. When asked by Deadline whether Bianca could be absent for much of the upcoming season, Sunday said she was confident the siren has a strong presence on the show.

"That has never crossed my mind. Bianca doesn’t seem like someone who stands in the background at all. I think even if she was forced to leave Nevermore, I don’t think she would really leave. I think she has a lot more strength and fortitude in her," she said.

Will season 2 be the last season of 'Wednesday?'

Did you think Netflix wouldn't renew its most popular English-language original of all time? Of course, Wednesday is coming back for season 3! The streaming service announced the news, as confirmed by Variety, a few weeks before the season 2 premiere date.

Showrunners Alfred Gough and Miles Millar shared a statement about the renewal news: "It’s been a dark delight to watch Wednesday cast her spell over audiences across the globe—one deadpan quip at a time...We’re beyond thrilled she’ll be returning to stalk the halls of Nevermore in season 3. This time, she’ll unearth more of the school’s sinister secrets—and descend even deeper into the Addams family crypt. Or, as Wednesday would say: 'Nothing brings a family together like a good exhumation.'"

We'll (obviously) have to wait and see where season 2 goes to predict where the show might go with its third installment, but at least it's on the way!

Will there be any 'Wednesday' spinoffs?

Netflix is seemingly eager (or a bit desperate) to turn their most popular series into multi-show franchises (with shows like Dead Boy Detectives and Squid Game: The Challenge, for example). The network is also eyeing Wednesday's future well beyond seasons 2 and 3.

In December 2023, Variety reported that Netflix and Wednesday producer MGM Television are in talks to create a spinoff based on Uncle Fester, played by Saturday Night Live and Portlandia alum Fred Armisen. The new show is still in early development, so time will tell whether this will set off the streaming giant's inevitable Addams Family Universe.

Netflix's new YA horror series The Midnight Club balances heartfelt stories and heart-racing thrills, but its final scene of season 1 is an epic, head-spinning cliffhanger. Created by Midnight Mass director Mike Flanagan and based on Christopher Pike's novels, the show depicts the mysteries of Brightcliffe, a hospice where kids with terminal diseases spend their final days. While the show's overall themes including reckoning with the inevitability of death and the importance of storytelling, there's also a classic horror plot involving a cult (which, like the show's setting, is very '90s).

The show's many reveals and lore-building details all come together in a brief final scene, that sets up several unanswered questions and a possible season 2. While we wait for Netflix to give more episodes the green light, here's our recap of the finale and all those theories about the supernatural side of Brightcliffe.

Julia Jayne went to Regina Ballard to revive the Paragon cult.

The episode begins with a flashback that explains where Julia Jayne was when she went missing from Brightcliffe, and hints at how she eventually became Shasta, the naturopathic healer who befriended and betrayed Ilonka. In episode 5, we learned that the Brightcliffe house was originally home to Regina Ballard, a woman who started a cult named Paragon in the 1930s. She started off studying natural healing, but Regina became obsessed with Greek mythology's five goddesses or sisters of healing. Regina assumed the name Aceso (the goddess of the healing process), and the cult assumed the hourglass as a symbol of immortality or unending time, as long as you keep turning it over

Eventually, Regina led a ritual in the basement of the house, sacrificing four women to prolong her life, turning over her own hourglass. Regina's daughter, who took the name Athena, escaped and alerted the police, who discovered the ritual. Regina claimed it was an accident and left the house abandoned until Stanton founded Brightcliffe in the '60s.

At the start of episode 10, we learn that Julia didn't perform the ritual in the woods during that week she went missing from Brightcliffe in the '60s. Instead, she tracked down Regina after finding the Paragon diary, which was Athena's journal, and learning about the cult. Regina agrees to teach her the ritual and helps her come up with the story about her time in the woods. The cult leader also talks about her daughter Athena, telling her that she hoped Athena would carry on Paragon, but that Julia can instead, calling her "bright girl." Hence, Julia Jayne becomes Shasta, moving near Brightcliffe and slowly manipulating Ilonka until she can get back into the house and perform the five-sister sacrifice.

Shasta, a.k.a. Julia Jayne, escapes from the failed ritual.

Back in the present-day timeline, Dr. Stanton has Shasta incapacitated and Ilonka hasn't drunk the poison, effectively stopping the ritual. Instead of staying on Shasta and giving the cult leader to the cops, Stanton lets her escape via the elevator so she and Ilonka can save the other women's lives. Everyone leaves the basement and makes it up to emergency services, thanks to a secret staircase that Stanton used. 

The next day, Stanton chastises Ilonka and finally explains what she knows of the mysterious woman formerly known as Julia Jayne, saying that she had a similar fate as Sandra: she was misdiagnosed along the way and healed naturally, not because of some blood sacrifice. Shasta has also tried to break into Brightcliffe multiple times over the years, and she never wanted to heal Ilonka; she's become sick again herself, and wants to recreate whatever Paragon cure she thought she received in 1968.

The doctor also explains that she denied knowing about Paragon because the ideas of magical cures can be insidious, and can drive desperate people to either brutal acts or putting themselves in danger. Her story tracks with her ethos throughout the series, as she's wanted to protect the kids with medical knowledge and wisdom. It's only later that her motives come into question (more on that later).

Ilonka decides not to leave Brightcliffe.

In the immediate aftermath of the sacrifice, Ilonka tells Stanton that she plans to leave Brightcliffe with her foster father Tim, who's coming for family day. She appears to be juggling a lot of emotions: embarrassment about her actions putting everyone at the hospice in danger (if not from Shasta then from attempting Paragon rituals), lingering jealousy about Sandra's new diagnosis (though she pulls it together enough to give a genuine heartfelt goodbye), and frustration that she came to the hospice in the first place over nothing more than a pipe dream.

As Ilonka's packing her room, Anya's old friend Rhett comes by to get her things. They have a sweet and emotional conversation, which ends with her giving him Anya's old things, including her old ballerina statue. In a flashback, we say Anya throw the statue during a fight with Rhett, and the leg broke off (the same leg she would later lose to cancer). However, when Rhett takes the statue out of the box, the leg is mysteriously repaired, as it if was never broken. The repaired statue has a profound effect on Ilonka, who seems to see it as a sign that Anya has moved forward and is finally at peace with herself in death.

After the conversation with Rhett, Ilonka finds Tim in the dining room. Instead of telling him she wants to leave Brightcliffe, she brings out the preneed that she never filled out, saying that it's time for them to plan her funeral. She even shows him a poem that she wants him to read when the time comes ("Epitath," from My Song for Him Who Never Sang to Me by Merrit Malloy. 

As Ilonka's packing her room, Anya's old friend Rhett comes by to get her things. They have a sweet and emotional conversation, which ends with her giving him Anya's old things, including her old ballerina statue. In a flashback, we say Anya throw the statue during a fight with Rhett, and the leg broke off (the same leg she would later lose to cancer). However, when Rhett takes the statue out of the box, the leg is mysteriously repaired, as it if was never broken. The repaired statue has a profound effect on Ilonka, who sees it as a sign that Anya has moved forward and is finally at peace with herself in death.

Dr. Stanton is hiding a Paragon cult tattoo.

While the heartfelt endings to Ilonka and the club's season 1 storylines take up the bulk of the finale, the final cliffhanger scene sets up some huge questions for the show going forward. The scene shows Dr. Stanton locking up the Brightcliffe house at the end of the night, before she heads to her own room. As she walks through her suite, the camera zooms in on a framed 1898 newspaper story about industrialist Stanley Oscar Freelan and his wife Vera Freelan, the original owners of the house. It includes a picture, and the original owners look a lot like the ghosts that have been haunting Ilonka, and later Kevin, throughout the season.

We then see Stanton sit down at a vanity and take off her wig, revealing that she is bald and covers it, like some of her cancer patients. The wig also sides something else, as the camera pans to the back of her neck and shows... a hourglass tattoo, similar to Regina Ballard's. The only other person we've seen with that tattoo on the back of their neck, rather than on their wrists like Shasta and the other Paragon members, is Ballard's daughter, Athena.

Though the finale only hints at Athena being Dr. Stanton's true identity, the theory has some strong arguments. We saw in episode 5's flashback scene that Athena was bald and wore a wig, and Stanton was the only person who knows that the hospice's basement has its own secret staircase. Also, when she's reprimanding Ilonka, Stanton says "Julia and other people I've known throughout the years." In the moment it sounds like she was mentioning other patients, but it could also mean other cult members. Finally, there was a significant musical Easter Egg in the scene where Stanton burns Athena's diary. The song, Terry Jack’s "Seasons in the Sun," includes the lyric heard in the scene, "Goodbye to you my trusted friend, we've known each other since we were nine to 10."

The question here is how Stanton being Athena would work out age-wise. She seems too young in the show's '90s setting to be the woman who was alive in the '30s, so she could possibly be Athena's daughter, who's continuing her mother's legacy of going against Paragon. It seems like a stretch that Athena would give her daughter the tattoo of a cult she didn't believe in, unless it would serve as a reminder of their goal to trust in medicine over a mystic faith. Of course, this is all assuming that Stanton's has purely selfless motives.

How do the ghosts factor in to the Paragon reveals?

The reveal of the ghosts' identity a significant part of Season 1's final cliffhanger, so fans (myself included) are already theorizing how they factor in to the Paragon cult and the theory that Stanton is Athena. The Freelans could have just been trapped in their home for a century due to unknown circumstances, and Ilonka has the ability to see them (and later Kevin gets the same ability...somehow). It seems more like the ghosts have chosen her for something: through out the season, she initially says that her medicine is making her see stuff, but she later tells Kevin, "Those whispering voices [are] practically screaming at me."

There's also Natsuki's theorizing that Stanton has some nefarious purpose for Brightcliffe. In episode 5, during Amesh's party, she speculates that Stanton started the hospice to siphon off the patients' life force into other vessels. Spence even points out that the group doesn't know where the bodies of ex-Brightcliffe patients go. Then, in episode 9, Ilonka told the kids that the female ghost (credited as Cataract Woman) keeps mentioning how she's hungry. Natsuki responded with a story she heard from her mother, about a monster who looked like an old woman and would live in places where people were going to die, eating the years they would have lived. She even says of Brightcliffe, "This place would be a feast."

So, we can theorize that Cataract Woman and the male ghost (credited as The Mirror Man) are eating the years of the Brightcliffe kids. When thinking about a connection to Stanton (since their reveals are in the same scene), the doctor could be aware that the ghosts are haunting the patients. She could even have a deal with the ghosts, letting them feed off the kids in exchange for something she wants. This could either be a longer life for her, if she is Athena, or something to do with her son who she says passed away from cancer.

Basically, there are tons of directions the story could go, whether Stanton's motives are pure or evil, and whether Shasta will return for more Paragon ritual shenanigans. Only time will tell whether we'll get to see where the story goes in ten more episodes, but either way, creator Mike Flanagan wants to continue telling this story.

There are more answers coming in Season 2 (or on Twitter).

Though the show has yet to be renewed by Netflix, Flanagan did address his own plans for The Midnight Club's future. Per Variety, during a Q&A attended by reporters, the creator said that there's plenty of source material to pull from in author Christopher Pike's novels, and that the series is "designed to be ongoing."

"We’ll see how it goes and we probably won’t know for another month or so what Netflix wants to do," he said. "But it was very much designed to continue. Pike has 80 books, so we have a lot of unused material to pull from… We also didn’t answer some of the bigger questions of the season. Those answers exist, but were meant to be for the next season."

The director also promised not to leave fans hanging if the show doesn't get a Season 2. "If there isn’t one, I’ll put them up on Twitter. Then we’ll at least all be able to talk about it."

Netflix's latest hit series is a YA horror show from one of the streamer's favorite collaborators. Created by The Haunting of Hill House director Mike Flanagan and based on the Christopher Pike novel of the same name, The Midnight Club follows a group of  terminally ill youth living in hospice, who meet every night and swap scary stories. Beyond the club's stacked cast of newcomers and rising stars, the series also depicts each of the young patients' creepy tales, meaning there's plenty of room for Flanagan's favorite actors to make appearances. Read on to meet the actors and characters.

The Club

Iman Benson as Ilonka

Ilonka's world is rocked when she's diagnosed with thyroid cancer, which disrupts her senior year and her plans to attend Stanford. She discovers Brightcliffe while researching cures and treatments, and enters the program to investigate an mysterious past case where a resident walked out with a clean bill of health.

Atlanta native Benson started out as a child actress, making her television debut alongside Nia Long and Mike Epps in the 2016 sitcom Uncle Buck. She also starred in Kenya Barris' Netflix comedy #BlackAF, and the streamer's teen sitcom Alexa & Katie. Her next project is a new film adaptation of War of the Worlds, where she'll star alongside Ice Cube and Eva Longoria.

Ruth Codd as Anya

Anya, Ilonka's new roommate at Brightcliffe, was born in Ireland and is a lower-leg amputee. She's nihilistic and holds everyone at a distance, but she cares more than she lets on.

Codd is best known for Tik Tok, where she had 672,000 followers, shared funny stories about her life growing up in Ireland, and spoke candidly about her disability. She worked as a barber and make-up artist before she joined the cast of The Midnight Club with no prior acting experience (she's since deleted her Tik Tok). After her stunning performance as Anya, the newcomer will appear in Flanagan's next show, The Fall of the House of Usher.

Igby Rigney as Kevin

Kevin is the first kid Ilonka meets at Brightcliffe, who's been there for four months and was diagnosed with Leukemia. He's charming and loves music, and the duo become fast friends.

Rigney made his Flanagan-verse debut in Midnight Mass, where he played teenage altar boy Warren Flynn. He previously attended Pace University in New York, where he studied film history and psychology while also acting in films including 2020's Joe Bell and 2021's F9: The Fast Saga. He'll next join Codd in The Fall of the House of Usher.

Annarah Cymone as Sandra

Cymone plays Sandra, a Midnight Club member who is soft-spoken and anxious, but will stand up for her religious beliefs. The Statesville, North Carolina, native previously starred in Midnight Mass as Leeza, the devout teen who received one of the show's first miracles. She also previously acted in the 2021 film Caged.

William Chris Sumpter as Spencer

Sumpter plays Spencer, a gay man who has HIV and faces daily stigma because of public perception about the disease in the '90s. Spence is the warm life of the party, who sees the Midnight Club as his found family. 

The 20-year-old actor got his start in musical theater, joining the Broadway production of Matilda at age 11. He's also starred in the dance film NYC Dreams, and appeared in the STARZ hit Power as Young James "Ghost" St. Patrick.

Adia as Cheri