Here’s every horror movie still to come in 2021, as the latter half of the year has quite a few exciting titles set for release. 2020 was an uneven year for major studio horror movies, and theatrical releases as a whole, owing to the uncertainty of the pandemic which essentially altered the way in which audiences consume cinema. However, 2021 saw a bunch of promising horror releases that aimed to elevate the stakes and transform the genre beyond its clichéd tropes.
While indie and low commercial releases such as The Boy Behind The Door and George A. Romero’s The Amusement Park adorned the first half of the year, it was only in May that horror blockbusters hit streaming services, as well as theatres. Notable examples include Netflix’s Army of the Dead and A Quiet Place Part II, two movies with radically different genre offerings that seemed to work well within their respective ambits. Moving onward, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It helped maintain the pace for successful horror offerings, complemented by films such as Spiral: From the Book of Saw, The Forever Purge, and the exciting Fear Street Trilogy.
For the rest of 2021, the horror genre will have a sizeable number of offerings, each of which paints a different vignette of terror. Foremost among them is Nia DaCosta’s Candyman, a blend of sharp social commentary and horror, which released on August 27 in US theatres. Also, highly anticipated entries include Halloween Kills, the twelfth installment in the Halloween franchise. Apart from this, Edgar Wright’s surreal psychological thriller, Last Night in Soho is expected to shatter genre expectations, while Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City is expected to venture into the survival horror route.
Candyman - August 27, 2021 - Released
A direct sequel to the eponymous 1992 film based on Clive Barker’s The Forbidden, Candyman stars Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as a struggling artist who develops an obsession with the legend of the Candyman, a trickster spirit who kills those who utter his name five times into a mirror. Part satire and full-blown horror, Candyman delves into the lives of the residents of Chicago’s Cabrini Green neighborhood, a place terrorized by the shadow of a supernatural killer who can be summoned with much ease. Anthony’s (Abdul-Mateen II) thirst for tapping into unknown realms leads him to open a portal like no other, in turn, unleashing a wave of violence he has no control over. Early critic reviews of Candyman dub it as “unnerving” and a standout from the original, with special emphasis being laid on its visually thrilling approach.
We Need To Do Something - September 3, 2021
Directed by Sean King O'Grady and starring Sierra McCormick, Vinessa Shaw, and Pat Healy, We Need To Do Something is a slow-burn psychological horror, similar to the likes of Ari Aster’s Hereditary. Based on the eponymous novella by Max Booth III, We Need to Do Something is a tale about a family who gets stuck in a bathroom together during a devastating tornado, giving way to hidden fears of a macabre and unknown origin. While single-room horrors are often tricky to execute, as the rigidity of location might potentially give way to narrative and thematic staleness, it will be interesting to see how We Need to Do Something handles that premise and manages to inject terror into the minds of the audience. The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in June 2021 and garnered mixed to positive reviews from early audiences.
Malignant - September 10, 2021
James Wan’s Malignant had been announced in 2019, although the bare outline of the film’s premise was not revealed until July 2021. Based on an original story by Wan, Malignant follows Annabelle Wallis’ Madison, who is plagued with gruesome visions of death and murder, only to realize that these dreams are, in fact, reality. While the exact details of the plot are absent, Malignant seems to be venturing into the classic tussle between dreams and reality, and how these two planes often interconnect and merge, giving birth to horrors that are difficult to articulate. Malignant also stars Maddie Hasson, George Young, Michole Briana White, Ingrid Bisu, and McKenna Grace, and will be available for streaming on HBO Max on September 10.
Lamb - October 8, 2021
A24 has belted out standout entries in horror over the years, including The Lighthouse, Saint Maud, and The Blackcoat’s Daughter. Valdimar Jóhannsson’s Lamb might just be A24’s boldest horror offering, as it follows the tale of a childless couple in rural Iceland, who discovers a strange and unnatural newborn in their sheep bard. Lamb seems to carry folk horror elements similar to Midsommar, with a possible inclusion of body horror, the terrors of motherhood, and the unknowable. While the couple intends to raise the hybrid-lamb as their own, sinister forces are hell-bent on returning her to the deep wilderness, her apparent birthplace. Lamb stars Noomi Rapace, Hilmir Snaer Gudnason, Björn Hlynur Haraldsson, and Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson.
Halloween Kills - October 15, 2021
Directed by David Gordon Green, Halloween Kills will see Jamie Lee Curtis and Nick Castle reprise their respective roles of Laurie Strode and Michael Myers. The film is said to take off right after the events of 2018’s Halloween, which saw Strode and her family continuing to fend off the murderous Myers, with the aid of the Haddonfield community. Halloween Kills follows, as formulaic of every film in the franchise, Michael resuming his ritual bloodbath, going specifically after the Strode women, who in turn, orchestrate a vigilante mob who vows to take him down for good. Halloween Kills is set to premiere at the 78th Venice International Film Festival on September 8, before it hits theatres on October 15.
Antlers - October 29, 2021
While Antlers was initially scheduled for Spring 2020, the supernatural horror got significantly pushed back due to the pandemic. Based on the short story The Quiet Boy, Antlers zeroes in on an unnerving scenario that unfolds in a small Oregon town. Scott Cooper’s Antlers follows Keri Russell as a teacher living in Oregon, who, along with her cop brother (Jesse Plemons) gets entangled in a situation involving a strange creature. The film also stars Jeremy T. Thomas, Graham Greene, Scott Haze, Rory Cochrane, and Amy Madigan, and is set to release on October 29 in U.S. theatres.
Last Night In Soho - October 29, 2021
Edgar Wright’s upcoming British psychological horror, Last Night in Soho, is probably the year’s most anticipated horror entry. Instead of diving right back into the action genre as he did with Baby Driver, Wright delves into horror with a deeply surreal tone. The film follows Eloise (Thomasin McKenzie), an aspiring fashion designer who is somehow transported to 1966 London, within the body of Sandy (Anya Taylor-Joy), who happens to be Eloise’s idol. However, the realm of dreams, reality, and the very fabric of time begins to fall apart and crack, bringing about repercussions that are deemed beyond terrifying. Last Night in Soho was originally scheduled to release in the fall of 2020 but has been pushed back a year.
Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City - November 24, 2021
Johannes Roberts’ reboot of the Resident Evil film series, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City is based on the first two video game titles by Capcom from the ‘90s. Starring Kaya Scodelario, Robbie Amell, Hannah John-Kamen, Avan Jogia, Tom Hopper, Lily Gao, Neal McDonough, and Donal Logue, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City follows the downfall of pharmaceutical giant Umbrella Corporation. Now a dying Midwestern town, Raccoon City is a wasteland beneath which a great evil lurks. Once this power is unleashed, it wreaks havoc on the lives of the townspeople, among who, a handful of survivors attempt to make it through to the end.
There’s Someone Inside Your House - TBA, 2021
There’s Someone Inside Your House is an upcoming slasher horror, with no set 2021 release date. Based on Stephanie Perkins' 2017 novel of the same name, There’s Someone Inside Your House stars Sydney Park and Theodore Pellerin. There's Someone Inside Your House follows Makani Young (Park), who has recently moved from Hawaii to a quiet Nebraska town to finish high school whilst living with her grandmother. However, Makani soon finds herself in the nexus of a gruesome murder case, after her classmates are stalked by a killer intent on exposing their darkest secrets to the town as a whole. Battling with her own inner demons, Makani must unravel the killer’s identity before it is too late. The film will be available for streaming on Netflix.
Texas Chainsaw Massacre - TBA, 2021
Directed by David Blue Garcia, Texas Chainsaw Massacre is intended to be a direct sequel of 1974’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, even though it is supposed to be the franchise’s ninth installment. Starring Nell Hudson, Elsie Fisher, Jacob Latimore, and Moe Dunford, Texas Chainsaw Massacre has not revealed any integral plot details yet, but has been filmed and rated R as of yet. Texas Chainsaw Massacre has no official release date.
Jeepers Creepers: Reborn - TBA, 2021
The fourth installment in the Jeepers Creepers film series, Jeepers Creepers: Reborn is a wholly separate horror entry from the original trilogy written and directed by Victor Salva. While the film is currently in the post-production stage, it follows a woman named Laine, and her boyfriend Chase, who attend the Horror Hound festival’s first-ever event in Louisiana. However, things go awry when Laine begins to experience unexplained premonitory visions associated with the town’s past and The Creeper monster. Jeepers Creepers: Reborn is also set to release in late 2021.
