The Top 12 Horror Movies Releasing In 2022

Hopefully, 2022 will be better than 2021, and we can all go back to the theater again, although Omicron seems to be trying to thwart that endeavor. In any case, whether it is in theaters or streaming, 2022 looks to be an excellent year for horror fans. There are some entirely fresh high concept horror pieces, smaller-scale thrillers, blasts from the past, and even a Marvel comic character to get excited about. Here are the Top 10 Horror Movies to get excited for in 2022.

Scream 2022-January 14th, 2022

Twenty-five years after the original series of murders in Woodsboro, a new killer emerges, and Sidney Prescott must return to uncover the truth.

I’m not convinced the world needs yet another Scream, but the franchise has proven to be almost as hard to kill as Sidney Prescott. Courtney Cox and David Arquette are back with Neve Prescott. The original one was groundbreaking, and the rest were just fun. I’m assuming this one will be more fun than fresh, but that’s okay. It should still be worth a few hours of silly scares.

Mobius-January 28th, 2022

Biochemist Michael Morbius tries to cure himself of a rare blood disease, but he inadvertently infects himself with a form of vampirism instead.

This could be a train wreck or the best thing we see all year. It really could go either way. Of course, everyone’s favorite vampire after Angel and Spike is one of the least known of the Marvel characters to get their own movie. Equally gifted and messy, Jared Leto will play the tortured anti-hero, and the stellar cast reads like a who’s who of incredible talent. Michael Keaton, The Terror’s Jared Harris, and The Crown’s Matt Smith are only a handful of the talented names. It will be released in theaters on January 28th and streaming VOD probably in mid to late March everywhere.

Orphan: First Kill- January 28th, 2022

Leena, a murderous sociopath who looks like a child due to a medical condition, escapes from an Estonian psychiatric facility. Leena impersonates the missing daughter of a wealthy family but becomes pitted against a determined mother.

Orphan is a guilty pleasure that has been unfairly maligned. We all knew we were getting a Bad Seed sort of story, but no one saw Esther turning into a grown-ass adult. Isabelle Fuhrman was incredible playing both the sneaky little kid and an over-the-top evil adult. She is the reason that film is so good, and she will be the reason this prequel will be a campy good time. Paramount is the studio, so it may go directly to its streamer Paramount + like Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin did.

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Hatching-February 4th, 2022

A young gymnast who tries desperately to please her demanding mother discovers a strange egg. She hides it and keeps it warm, but when it hatches, what emerges shocks them all.

This Finnish body horror film is going to shock a lot of people. The special effects were designed by Gustav Hoegen and Conor O’Sullivan, who are behind Star Wars, Prometheus, and Game of Thrones, to name just a few. The horrorific coming-of-age story will be terrifying and very visceral. IFC Midnight will give it a limited release, and then it should beg available VOD this Spring.

Texas Chainsaw Massacre- February 18th, 2022

After nearly 50 years of hiding, Leatherface returns to terrorize a group of idealistic young friends who accidentally disrupt his carefully shielded world in a remote Texas town.

Netflix has brought Leatherface back from the dead for another round of cannibalistic mayhem. I guess technically; he was just hibernating for 50 years. Still, the now geriatric people eater has come out of retirement to terrorize some more pretty, young morons who stumble into his peaceful existence. It will be bloody, gory, and early looks appear much better than you would expect. Writing team Fede Alvarez and Rodo Sayaguez, who did the 2013 Evil Dead reboot, proved they could make a quality remake. Netflix could have the best of the retooled horror franchises by the time the year is over. It will stream exclusively on Netflix.

Unwelcome-March 17th, 2022

Londoners Maya and Jamie who escape their urban nightmare to the tranquility of rural Ireland only to discover malevolent, murderous goblins lurking in the gnarled, ancient wood at the foot of their new garden.

The Feast brought Welsh folklore to the masses, and Unwelcome looks to do the same with Irish folklore creature film. The creature team behind many huge films like Age of Ultron and the Harry Potter films is designing the creatures so prepare for something truly unique. Hannah John-Kamen of Syfy’s Killjoys stars alongside Colm Meaney and Douglas Booth. It will get a limited theatric release on March 17th, 2022, before it gets the Shudder treatment on the horror streamer.

You Won’t Be Alone- April 1st, 2022

In an isolated mountain village in 19th century Macedonia, a young girl is kidnapped and then transformed into a witch by an ancient spirit.

Folk horror is all the rage right now, and this Noomi Rapace(Lamb) vehicle gives her yet another chance to show off her skills. This looks to be cut from the same atmospheric and moody cloth and should more than satisfy your witchy hunger. The film looks like the same kind of dark fairy tale that made Guillermo del Toro a genre god. This film will be a surprise hit.

65-April 29th, 2022

An astronaut crash lands on a mysterious planet only to discover he’s not alone.

I love sci-fi horror. Horror in space is even better. Event Horizon remains to this day one of my favorite horror movies of any sub-genre. The film was initially set to release in May but moved two weeks earlier to stand alone as the only big premiere that week. Adam Driver holds down this film written and directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, the minds behind The Quiet Place. They understand the importance of what to show and when so I expect big things from this thriller.

The Black Phone- June 24th, 2022

After being abducted by a child killer and locked in a soundproof basement, a 13-year-old boy starts receiving calls on a disconnected phone from the killer’s previous victims.

Joe Hill is a chip off of his father’s block, and he knows how to write a good story. He also seems to have his father’s knack for creating stories that play well on the big screen. Scott Derrickson, who directed the original Sinister, brings his singular eye to Hill’s abduction story, and the results should be magic. Hill’s story is amazing, and if even a fraction of the unsettling tension can be captured, this will be the horror movie of the year.

Nope-July 22nd, 2022

Jordan Peele’s latest horror flick Nope, maybe his weirdest yet. Peele’s brand of existential dread seen and felt in Get Out and Us is unique and well defined. You instantly know one of his movies the minute you see it. While there is no information save an eerie movie poster image of a cloud and what appears to be a kite string coming out of it over a lit-up nighttime view of a small town. I will be more than willing to hand over my cash to see anything he pens. Peele reteams with Daniel Kaluuya(Get Out, and adds Keke Palmer(Alice), and Steven Yeun(The Walking Dead) to the intriguing cast. If Peele’s marketing strategy stands, we should begin getting trailers set to retooled R&B classics in March.

Dark Harvest- September 9th, 2022

A legendary monster called October Boy terrorizes residents in a small Midwestern town when he rises from the cornfields every Halloween with his butcher knife and makes his way toward those who are brave enough to confront him.

Norman Partridge’s novel gets a look just in time for crisp Fall days. The Bram Stoker Award winner was also named one of the top 100 horror movies of 2006. It’s weird and slashery in all the best ways and may just be the next great monster franchise. David Slade from television’s American Gods and Hanibal and the great vampire flick 30 Days of Night hold enough promise to make this a must-see. The streaming rights are complicated, with Amazon having recently purchased MGM, the studio behind Dark Harvest. After its theatric release, we may see it on Amazon Prime exclusively, or it could find a home on Paramount +, which has a side deal to stream new releases in the theatric window on the streamer.

Don’t Worry Darling- September 23rd, 2022

A 1950’s housewife living with her husband in a utopian experimental community begins to worry that his glamorous company may be hiding disturbing secrets.

I love a good psycho-sexual thriller, and this one from director Olivia Wilde looks to be a mindbender. The film stars Florence Pugh, fresh off Black Widow and Harry Styles. Darren Aronofsky’s longtime cinematographer Matthew Libatique is on board, so you know it will be stylish and gorgeous. Wilde has gone on record with Indiewire to say female hunger will be on full display. Evidently, there is one specific scene where there might be a whole lot of watermelon sugar imbibed. Yes, please!

Honarable mentions:

I would be remiss not to mention The Foo Fighters Studio 666. This strange supernatural comedy might just be the real deal that no one had on their radar. It will be in theaters on February 25th, 2022. I’m not including Halloween Ends on my top list either because, quite frankly, I don’t want the franchise to end. Michael Myers remains the scariest of the stashers, and his mythos will live on forever. Give it all you got Strode family, but my money will always be on Michael. It is out just in time for Halloween, October 22nd, 2022.