Horror Industry News — Monday, August 31, 2026

$5,363,827 opening on 1,258 screens makes Buddy Roadside Attractions’ biggest post-pandemic opener and Saban Films’ biggest in company history; exit data skewed 83% under 35 and 37% Hispanic, sharpening the case for original horror-comedy in theaters.

Freestyle Digital Media has taken North American digital, DVD, cable, and satellite rights to psychological horror feature Influence for Sept. 4; the deal was struck directly with Ryan Moore, Ben Whalen, and KT Kent.

Jessica Chastain’s paranormal horror from James Wan and Rob Savage lands in theaters Oct. 6, then follows Universal’s Peacock-Netflix window with Peacock by early February 2027 and Netflix by early June 2027. The release plan confirms a theatrical-first rollout before the title cycles through streaming exclusivity windows.

Finnish Film Affair lands a new Nordic Genre Lab partnership and lines up eight genre projects in development for its Sept. 23-25 Helsinki market; opener "Nightborn" and pitches like "Alma," "Whistler" and "Linden Lane 6" put horror and thriller packaging front and center. The market also signs a fresh Marché du Film collaboration and leans harder into European copro and financing conversations.

$40M-$46.5M opening forecasts put Warner Bros.' Practical Magic 2 on track for a major launch; Sandra Bullock, Nicole Kidman and Susanne Bier reunite as late-'90s/early-'00s nostalgia keeps sequel presales hot.

Freestyle Digital Media has locked North American VOD/DVD/cable/satellite rights to sci-fi survival thriller After Impact for Sept. 15; Michiel Rensen wrote, directed, and produced the feature with Zac Reeder and Lucky 27 Media in the deal.

Severin’s restoration pipeline now spans Los Angeles, Arizona and Canada; David Gregory says the label’s D’Amato slate may soon overtake Jess Franco as its busiest catalog lane, with 4K scans and element hunts still dictating turnaround time.

Showbox launches Showbite, a microdrama label that will roll out original short-form titles in September, including the horror thriller "Lucky Horror Live Show" and supernatural-tinged slates aimed at global buyers. The banner is taking the package to Broadcast Worldwide and the Busan International Film Festival’s Asian Contents & Film Market as it builds an export network.

Hulu has already ordered season 2 of Emmy Rossum’s breakout crime thriller Furious, landing the pickup days before the season-one finale. The early renewal tracks with strong momentum: episode seven’s one-day views were up 40% versus the premiere.

Netflix keeps raiding indie comics for its genre pipeline, optioning Geiger, Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees, The Night Eaters, and Radio Spaceman for film and TV adaptation. The package spans post-apocalyptic sci-fi, body-horror supernatural material, and adult-animation-friendly serial killer IP.

Hulu renewed Emmy Rossum’s crime-thriller series Furious for season 2 ahead of the season-one finale, a notably early pickup for the streamer. Hulu says episode seven’s one-day views ran 40% above the premiere, signaling strong retention for the breakout title.

Chris Schwab writes, produces and directs this lean, revisionist Dracula adaptation, relocating Bram Stoker’s story to modern-day Los Angeles. Eric Toms stars as state-hospital doctor John Seward, opposite Spencer Weitzel’s Renfield and Marlene Mc’Cohen’s Mina.

Vietnam opens next month, with a North American rollout following on the 9th and a five-city U.S. promo run for Na Hong-jin, Hwang Jeong-min, Cho In-sung and Jongho Yeon. The sci-fi title is stacking Cannes, TIFF, Busan, San Sebastián and Fantasy Filmfest stops, signaling a festival-to-theatrical push.

Christopher Smith’s Spider Island premiered at FrightFest 2026, following influencers invited to launch a Mauritius resort on protected land before venomous spiders overrun the island; Clara, an investigative journalist, probes the resort’s illegal practices.

Hollywood Records will release Ariel Marx’s 12-track score album for Hulu’s Furious digitally August 31, led by “Catherine”; the Elizabeth Meriwether crime thriller’s season finale arrives the same day, with Season 2 already ordered.

Ryan Coogler’s Sinners takes Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form over Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein and Netflix’s Frankenstein; the Hugos also crowned Amal El-Mohtar, T. Kingfisher, Fred Fordham and Alix E. Harrow.

Phil Tippett’s Berkeley studio has shut down after bankruptcy and liquidation, while the Toronto unit stays active on a large feature in production. The closure ends a four-decade practical-effects footprint even as Tippett Studio keeps working across film and TV, including recent genre work with Shudder’s Mad God and The Mandalorian and Grogu.

Netflix's The Whisper Man is turning Summit into a production backdrop as the Robert De Niro-led horror title moves through local filming. The shoot gives the town a genre spotlight while keeping the project in the production phase.

Jenna Ortega stars as solar-powered Artificial Friend Klara in Taika Waititi’s film adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s Klara and the Sun, also featuring Amy Adams and Mia Tharia; it opens in cinemas October 23.

Scream Factory and Shout Factory’s November slate includes a six-film, 4K/Blu-ray Chow Yun-Fat Collection Volume One, plus The Family Man (2000), Women in Prison Collection (1971–85), and The Transformers: The Movie (1986).

HorrorFest International Film Festival has locked a 2026 lineup for Sept. 16-19 in St. George, Utah, with six features and 52 shorts on deck. Goody Goody opens; Magnolia Pictures' Never After Dark closes after its SXSW Midnighter Audience Award win.

Costa Rican dystopian thriller "Love Is the Monster" world-premieres in TIFF Centerpiece with Bendita Film Sales handling world sales; the film is being positioned as a fear-and-class survival play with trailer and poster now rolling out. Neto Villalobos Brenes returns to Toronto as the title lines up for festival launch and international buyer attention.

TrustNordisk locks fresh territory sales on May el-Toukhy’s postwar psychological drama Woman Unknown ahead of its Venice competition premiere; Italy is already set via Lucky Red, with Benelux, Latin America, Greece and the Baltics now on board and more deals pending.

Oct. 30 debut set for Netflix’s 4-part Swedish psychological thriller A Couple of Lies; Emma Appleton, Fares Fares, Frida Gustavsson and Jakob Oftebro star, with Kasper Barfoed directing for Asp Varhos. The series adapts Stefan Ahnhem’s novel and extends Netflix’s Nordic thriller lane.