Buckle up, buttercup. 2027 just got a whole lot spookier – but lucky for you, it's confined to the cinema screen.
While I haven’t exactly taken it up with the stars to find out what 2027 is going to look like astrologically, I have taken it up with Hollywood, and they’ve informed me that horror is the genre of the year. This year alone, we’ve been graced with some of the best horror and thriller films to hit our screens in a very long time – films like Backrooms, Obsession and Leviticus.
But we’re looking ahead now. Hollywood seems to have sensed that we want things bloodier, scarier and, ultimately, storylines that live life on the edge. And truthfully, it’s a genre that reflects the darker times our world finds itself in – so why not let art imitate life and raise our heart rates even more than they already are? Alongside returning franchises like The Conjuring and Paranormal Activity, there are also plenty of new original films to sink our teeth into on the horizon.
Below, find every horror film coming to a cinema near you in 2027.
Pendulum
Release date: 5 March 2027
Cast: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Phoebe Dynevor, Jacki Weaver
Created by Black Swan co-writer Mark Heyman, this film is a sinister take on wellness retreats. After a traumatic event, married couple Patrick and Abigail travel to New Mexico in search of healing, only for Patrick to grow suspicious of the retreat's leader and her increasingly unsettling practices. Darren Aronofsky is among the producers, so we're anticipating wellness culture with a decidedly nightmarish edge.
The Exorcist: Martyrs
Release date: 12 March 2027
Cast: Scarlett Johansson, Hamish Linklater, Carla Gugino, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Diane Lane, Laurence Fishburne
Mike Flanagan – the filmmaker behind The Haunting of Hill House and Doctor Sleep – is taking on the classic horror, The Exorcist. Rather than continuing the storyline of 2023's The Exorcist: Believer, the film is being positioned as an entirely new story within the Exorcist universe.
Wolf Creek: Legacy
Release date: 18 March 2027
Cast: John Jarratt, Laura Gordon, Ditch Davey, Stacy Clausen, Charli Penton, Maria Thattil
An Australian horror. The third Wolf Creek feature follows an American family whose holiday takes a predictably horrific turn after they cross paths with a serial killer. John Jarratt reprises his infamous role, while Sean Lahiff takes over directing from franchise creator Greg McLean, who remains on board as a producer.
Paranormal Activity 8
Release date: 21 May 2027
Cast: Maya da Costa, Sonia Mena, Chase Yi
The eighth Paranormal Activity film is being written and directed by Ian Tuason, with franchise creator Oren Peli producing alongside Jason Blum and James Wan. Plot details are currently being kept under wraps, so exactly how this one connects to the previous hauntings remains unknown.
Posession
Release date: 11 June 2027 (US)
Cast: Margaret Qualley, Callum Turner, Paul Dano, Madeline Brewer, Nicholas Alexander Chavez, Diego Calva
Andrzej Żuławski's unhinged 1981 cult horror Possession is getting a new interpretation from Smile director Parker Finn. Margaret Qualley and Callum Turner lead the cast, with Paul Dano and Monsters breakout Nicholas Alexander Chavez also on board. Robert Pattinson is among the producers.
A Quiet Place Part III
Release date: 30 July 2027
Cast: Emily Blunt, Cillian Murphy, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe, Jack O'Connell, Katy O'Brian, Jason Clarke
John Krasinski returns to write and direct the third instalment in the main A Quiet Place storyline. Emily Blunt, Cillian Murphy, Millicent Simmonds and Noah Jupe are all returning, while Jack O'Connell, Katy O'Brian and Jason Clarke join the cast. Plot details are still unknown.
The Conjuring: First Communion
Release date: 10 September 2027
Cast: Garrett Wareing, Amanda Fix, Matthias Schweighöfer, Marta Kessler
The Conjuring universe isn't finished with Ed and Lorraine Warren just yet. First Communion introduces younger incarnations of the paranormal investigators, played by Garrett Wareing and Amanda Fix. Further story details remain unknown.
They Follow
Release date: TBC
Cast: Maika Monroe, Naomi Ackie, Justine Lupe, Jackie Earle Haley, Michael Gandolfini, Keir Gilchrist
More than a decade after It Follows, the entity is coming back. David Robert Mitchell returns to write and direct, with Maika Monroe reprising her role as Jay Height alongside a new ensemble cast. The sequel is understood to take place around 10 years after the events of the original, though further story details remain unknown.
Blair Witch
Release date: 24 September 2027
Cast: TBC
More than 25 years after The Blair Witch Project changed horror and movie marketing forever, Lionsgate and Blumhouse-Atomic Monster are heading back into the woods. YouTube horror filmmaker Dylan Clark will direct the new film, described as a new chapter intended to introduce the mythology to another generation. Original creators Eduardo Sánchez and Daniel Myrick are executive producing, while Jason Blum and James Wan are among the producers.
