Horror films became one of the most in-demand genres for Russian viewers in 2026, according to a top 15 list of the year's scariest movies compiled by Lenta.ru. The publication noted that the psychological film Obsession and the A24 release Backrooms were among the year's most popular titles, leading a selection that ranges from independent cinema to large-scale sequels and the return of cult franchises.
Franchise revivals and video game adaptations
The standalone story Insidious: Out of the Further (USA) deepens the familiar universe's mythology while retaining franchise staples like The Further, the Red Door, and medium Elise Rainier, played by Lin Shaye. Directed by Jacob Chase, the one-hour-46-minute film stars Amelia Eve as Gemma, who returns to her childhood home to raise her daughter Maya (Ireland Austin). She discovers a gift to travel to the evil spirit populated Further, which also allows its entities into reality. The film holds a 6.2 rating on both Kinopoisk and IMDb, and also stars Sam Spruell.
Christophe Gans directs Return to Silent Hill (UK, Germany, Serbia, USA, France, Japan), a one-hour-46-minute adaptation of the Silent Hill 2 video game. Jeremy Irvine stars as artist James Sunderland, who receives a letter from his wife Mary (Hannah Emily Anderson), who has been dead for three years. She asks him to visit the resort town where they met, which he finds covered in fog, inhabited by monsters, and capable of driving him mad. The film, which also stars Evie Templeton and Pearse Egan, holds a 5.2 Kinopoisk rating and 4.0 on IMDb.
Body horror and liminal spaces
The Australian and Finnish co-production Saccharine, directed by Natalie Erika James, is a one-hour-53-minute uncomfortable body horror exploring eating disorders and body dysmorphia. Midori Francis stars as medical student Hana, who stress-eats and relies on homemade pills containing human ashes after exhausting diets fail. A creepy insatiable spirit enters her life alongside her new figure. Danielle Macdonald, Madeleine Madden, and Robert Taylor round out the cast of the film, which has a 5.6 Kinopoisk rating and 5.9 on IMDb.
The A24 box office hit Backrooms (USA, Canada) was directed by 20-year-old YouTuber Kane Parsons, who based the visual maze of yellow corridors on internet liminal space creepypasta. Chiwetel Ejiofor plays Clark, a lonely furniture store owner going through a divorce, who finds a portal in his shop to a dimension with its own space and time laws. The one-hour-50-minute film, rated 6.5 on Kinopoisk and 6.8 on IMDb, features Renate Reinsve, Mark Duplass, and Finn Bennett.
Meredith Alloway's one-hour-44-minute Forbidden Fruits (USA) is a horror comedy about strong independent witches, starring Lili Reinhart, who played Betty Cooper in Riverdale, as Apple, the strict head of a stylish coven. Victoria Pedretti plays naive Cherry and Alexandra Shipp is friendly goth Fig, who work together in a trendy boutique and hold sabbaths in a mall basement. Lola Tung joins as new girl Pumpkin, uncovering their secrets. The film holds a 5.2 Kinopoisk rating and 5.4 on IMDb.
Slashers and hermetic zombies
Released exactly 30 years after the original, Scream 7 (USA, Canada) continues the hit slasher series about the Ghostface killer. Neve Campbell returns as Sidney Prescott, who lives in a quiet town with her husband and three daughters. Ghostface threatens her eldest, high schooler Tatum, played by Isabel May. Kevin Williamson directs the one-hour-49-minute film, which also stars Courteney Cox and Jasmin Savoy Brown, holding a 5.8 rating on both Kinopoisk and IMDb.
Yeon Sang-ho directs Gunche (South Korea), a two-hour-two-minute hermetic zombie action movie where an outbreak occurs inside an isolated skyscraper. Guests at an international science conference become rapidly evolving, hive mind monsters, prompting authorities to cordon off the building while survivors fight the horde. Starring Jun Ji-hyun, Koo Kyo-hwan, Ji Chang-wook, and Kim Shin-rok, the film has a 6.6 Kinopoisk rating and 6.5 on IMDb.
Chamber horrors and dark comedies
The Australian indie horror Leviticus, directed by Adrian Chiarella, runs one hour and 28 minutes and explores first love and conservative prejudice. Joe Bird and Stacy Clausen play teens Naim and Ryan, who undergo a spiritual ritual and are stalked by a shapeshifting entity that creates evil doppelgangers to threaten their lives. Mia Wasikowska and Jeremy Blewitt also star in the film, which holds a 6.3 Kinopoisk rating and 6.7 on IMDb.
Sam Raimi, the author of the Evil Dead trilogy, directs Send Help (USA), a one-hour-53-minute black horror comedy. Rachel McAdams stars as diligent employee Linda Liddle, who wants a promotion from her arrogant boss Bradley Preston (Dylan O'Brien), but he favors a slacker friend. After their plane crashes on a desert island, Linda uses her survival reality show fandom to save him. Dennis Haysbert and Xavier Samuel also star in the film, rated 6.4 on Kinopoisk and 7.0 on IMDb.
Psychological obsession and meta cinema
The highly discussed Obsession (USA), a one-hour-49-minute psychological horror on codependent love, was directed by 26-year-old YouTube creator Curry Barker. Michael Johnston plays Bear, who uses an esoteric shop's magic wand to make his friend Nikki (Indie Navarrette) love him, sparking a manic obsession. Cooper Tomlinson and Megan Lawless also star in the film, which holds a 7.0 Kinopoisk rating and 8.1 on IMDb.
Jane Schoenbrun's Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma (UK, Canada, USA) is an ironic slasher about the film industry running one hour and 52 minutes. Hannah Einbinder plays indie director Chris, who agrees to reboot the franchise and seeks original star Billie (Gillian Anderson), a recluse living at the original abandoned set. Jack Haven and Arthur Conti co-star in the film, rated 6.3 on Kinopoisk and 7.2 on IMDb.
International features and absurdity
The Indonesian and South Korean co-production Hantu Dalam Sel (Kinopoisk 5.8, IMDb 7.0) is a one-hour-46-minute mix of bloody action, political satire, drama, and dancing. Joko Anwar directs Endy Arfian as Dimas, a journalist jailed for his boss's murder, who teams up with loser inmates to investigate supernatural evils in the prison. Abimana Aryasatya, Almanzo Konoralma, and Amin Sugandhi also star.
Casper Kelly's one-hour-35-minute Buddy (USA) is an absurd black comedy set in 1999. Delaney Quinn, Caleb Williams, Bennie Taylor, and Eric Bauza star as kids on the television show It's Buddy!, hosted by a humanoid unicorn. Isolated from the outside world, the surviving children plot an escape after their naughty castmates vanish. The film holds a 6.5 Kinopoisk rating and 7.2 on IMDb.
Irish isolation and lethal sequels
Hokum (Ireland, UAE) is an old-fashioned horror directed by Damian Mc Carthy, running one hour and 47 minutes with a 6.3 Kinopoisk and 6.8 IMDb rating. Adam Scott, known for playing Mark S. in Severance, features as pessimistic American writer Om Bowman, who visits an isolated Irish hotel where his parents honeymooned. The suite is locked, rumored to hold a real witch. Peter Coonan, Michael Patrick, and David Wilmot round out the cast.
The one-hour-48-minute Ready or Not 2: Here I Come (USA, Canada), directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, is a direct sequel to the 2019 film. Samara Weaving returns as Grace, who defeated the Le Domas family but now faces four powerful clans hunting her and her sister Faith (Kathryn Newton). A victory will secure Grace the High Seat of the Council. Elijah Wood and Sarah Michelle Gellar also star in the film, which has a 6.5 Kinopoisk rating and 6.9 on IMDb.
