Horror Industry News — Tuesday, March 31, 2026

Epic Pictures will handle Cannes sales for Telefilm Canada–backed horror The Ballad of Audrey Earnshaw, signaling its intent for international presales and festival placement ahead of market exposure.

Thrash—directed and written by Tommy Wirkola and starring Djimon Hounsou, Phoebe Dynevor and Whitney Peak—will debut exclusively on Netflix April 10, 2026 after Sony halted a planned theatrical release and shifted pay‑1 rights to Netflix; producers include Adam McKay and Kevin Messick.

Banijay Live Studio — in partnership with VR firm Univrse — is launching a location-based “Black Mirror Experience” in Montreal in May that combines physical sets and VR under the Phaethon/LifeAgent narrative, marking Banijay Live Studio’s public debut and an IP-to-experience push for the franchise.

Overlook 2026 lineup update: The Crypt Keeper will lead the Opening Night Second Line Parade (presented by Shudder); Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick’s horror comedy Family Movie and a live Museum of Home Video presentation (including The Dr. Loomis Tapes) were added while Capturing Bigfoot was dropped.

Eli Roth's The Horror Section has formed a strategic partnership with Nas's Mass Appeal; Nas and Mass Appeal CEO Peter Bittenbender join Roth’s upcoming Ice Cream Man as executive producers, signaling a culture-driven production push for the unrated theatrical horror project.

Prime Video reports Fallout Season 2 reached 83 million viewers worldwide in its first 13 weeks and 100 million viewers overall for the series, with an early season three renewal already in place and production scheduled to start in summer; producers include Amazon MGM and Kilter Films with EPs Jonathan Nolan, Lisa Joy and Bethesda’s Todd Howard.

Randy Moore is returning with Return to Tomorrow, a direct sequel to the guerrilla-shot Escape from Tomorrow; the first image has been revealed and the film is set to premiere in April.

Dangerous Animals, an Australian shark-serial-killer hybrid directed by Sean Byrne, surged into Hulu’s US top 10 (No.4) after the platform debut; the film grossed $9.2M worldwide on a $2.7M budget and earned an 87% RT score.

Australian six-episode short-form series Homebodies (SBS Digital Originals) blends supernatural elements with a transmasculinity family drama; produced by Mad Ones with Screen Australia and Screen NSW support, it debuted at Series Mania (Special Mention) and is currently seeking distribution.

UK festival‑launched psychological thriller Past Life (dir. Simeon Halligan) is rolling out to UK cinemas and digital platforms — UK theatrical from March 20, US digital on March 24, and UK digital on April 6 — and will be available on Apple TV, Amazon Prime, Google Play and other TVOD services; cast includes Jeremy Piven, Pixie Lott, Aneurin Barnard and Tim McInnerny.

A making‑of featurette for Scream 7 (now on digital) features Neve Campbell, Isabel May and writer-director Kevin Williamson discussing the Sidney/Tatum dynamic and production moments in the Scar Tissue clip.

Hulu’s Paradise finale reveals that ‘Alex’ is an AI tied to quantum-computing concepts; writers used a quantum physics consultant and the show has been renewed for a third (likely final) season, setting up world-ending stakes around the AI.

SXSW programmer roundup highlights eight indie premieres across genres including comedy and bone-chilling horror — notable title 'Fifteen' (quinceañera-themed comedy-horror) and several world premieres that could seek distribution after festival play.

Netflix's original sci‑fi action War Machine — starring Alan Ritchson and directed by Patrick Hughes — has performed strongly on the service (top-ten streaming) and is being positioned as an 80s-style action franchise with sequel talk from talent.

Paramount's family-oriented Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie and Warner Bros.' original dino sci-fi thriller The End of Oak Street (David Robert Mitchell, Anne Hathaway, Ewan McGregor) are set to clash on August 14, 2026, with past Paw Patrol grosses and comparative budgets suggesting the kid-friendly franchise is the safer commercial bet while Mitchell's original could be a sleeper or a risk.

Scream Factory’s June home-video slate includes a 4K release of Day of the Dead (June 16) plus new editions of Slither, Bubba Ho-Tep (Steelbook 4K UHD), and Them!, with The 'Burbs coming via sister label Shout Select.

ComingSoon interviewed Meredith Alloway about her feature debut Forbidden Fruits — now in theaters — discussing the film’s explicit gore and sexuality, her directorial style, and teasing the possibility of a sequel; the cast includes Lili Reinhart, Lola Tung, Victoria Pedretti and Alexandra Shipp.

SXSW review: Mallory’s Ghost (world premiere) is a psychologically-leaning haunting/drama by Arabella Oz and Nick Canellakis that has inventive ideas and performances but feels overlong and thematically unfocused.

Amazon Prime Video paused production on its Phoebe Waller‑Bridge–created Lara Croft: Tomb Raider series after star Sophie Turner sustained a minor injury; Deadline reports the break may be two weeks and crew are being paid.

Shudder’s April programming is led by Deathstalker with Dolly also highlighted, indicating curated acquisitions/streaming premieres shaping the streamer’s monthly horror slate.

Netflix’s survival thriller Apex, directed by Baltasar Kormákur and starring Charlize Theron and Taron Egerton, leans on The Most Dangerous Game template and hits the streamer April 24 with R-rated violence — new images emphasize its man‑hunt premise.

Deskpop Entertainment will release Soul Chapel — a Southern Gothic thriller produced by MTS Pictures, directed by Jake C. Young and written by David Daring — on VOD for purchase/rental across major digital platforms on April 7, 2026.

Nia DaCosta directed a nearly five-minute horror-tinged branded short for Verizon starring Connor Storrie called “Look Behind You,” billed as Storrie’s first brand film and DaCosta’s first commercial; Verizon marketing execs framed it as a storytelling play that leans into genre tropes to sell network quality.

JoBlo's Arrow in the Head unit reviewed the screenlife thriller Serena, which stars Andi Matichak (playing a sinister AI chatbot) alongside Steven Strait, assessing its effectiveness in the AI-thriller subgenre.

New Line is developing a Lights Out sequel with original creators David F. Sandberg and Eric Heisserer attached as producers alongside Atomic Monster and James Wan; Connor Osborn McIntyre is writing while Sandberg appears unlikely to direct.

Lionsgate set The Housemaid’s Secret — the sequel to last year’s hit The Housemaid — for Dec. 17, 2027 release; Sydney Sweeney and Michele Morrone return, Kirsten Dunst joins, Paul Feig directs and production begins later this year with Lionsgate positioning it as a holiday counter-programmer.

Twisted Pictures (the Saw franchise banner) and RKO are assembling a slate of remakes — the piece frames both companies preparing IP‑driven remakes, marking a studio push to monetize legacy titles under genre labels.

Canneseries 2026 will premiere prestige TV including AMC+/Shudder’s supernatural horror entry The Terror: The Devil In Silver (Ridley Scott EP), plus Apple TV’s Star City and Richard Gadd’s Half Man; the fest also highlights Disney, BBC/HBO windowing and industry panels on vertical drama and AI.

Something Very Bad Is Going To Happen, an eight-episode horror-leaning psychological thriller created by Haley Z. Boston with Matt and Ross Duffer as executive producers and starring Camila Morrone, premiered on Netflix and quickly hit the #1 spot on the streamer and international charts.

Netflix launched Radioactive Emergency, a five-part dramatization of the 1987 Goiânia radiological disaster that frames the crisis through a nuclear physicist and medical teams, and may be considered for a follow-up season exploring longer-term aftermath.

BOOM! Studios will publish Hellraiser Omnibus Volume 1 on November 24, 2026 — a deluxe edition timed to the 40th anniversary of Clive Barker’s The Hellbound Heart and the franchise it launched.

UK-based Allegro Finance secured a £2m ($2.6m) working capital facility from Beechbrook Capital (via funds managed by the British Business Bank) to scale its non-bank film & TV production debt platform; this follows a separate $500m credit facility tied to a 2024 JV with Elliott Advisors and positions Allegro to deploy senior secured financing against receivables and tax incentives.

A24’s feature Backrooms — directed by internet creator Kane Parsons from a Will Soodik script and produced by James Wan and Osgood Perkins — stars Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve and is slated to open in Australian theaters May 28, 2026, positioning a creepypasta IP as a major studio-backed genre release.

Apple TV+ will premiere the 10-episode psychological thriller limited series Cape Fear on June 5 (first two episodes), adapted by Nick Antosca from The Executioners; Amy Adams, Patrick Wilson and Javier Bardem star, with executive producers Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese attached and Morten Tyldum directing the pilot.

Exclusive trailer debut for 300 Feet Tall — a genre-bending musical pilot that warps into dark fantasy and psychological horror starring Sonja O’Hara, Mark St. Cyr, Drew Moerlein and Colette Goodman.

Studio Ellipsis released a gameplay overview trailer for co-op horror game Nightholme highlighting dual stealth-and-action mechanics and narration by veteran dev Alex Amancio ahead of release.

Apple TV+ sets horror-comedy series Widow’s Bay to debut Apr 29, 2026 (first three episodes) with weekly episodes through Jun 17; a new teaser contains a hidden creepy detail fans are parsing ahead of launch.

Tubi released the trailer for The Caretaker, a Tubi Original psychological thriller from Brandon Villano about a sinister live‑in caregiver, starring Don Snipes and arriving on the free streaming service in April.

Invader Studios (creators of Daymare) announced Panic Delivery, a chaotic 4-player multiplayer horror-comedy launching on Steam Early Access in Q2 2026 where players act as disposable couriers in a monster-ruled dystopia.

Frictional Games’ survival-horror title Amnesia: Rebirth is being ported to the Nintendo Switch 2 by Abylight Studios, arriving April 30 — a platform expansion of the 2020 game following prior console releases.