It’s been a scary-good year for theatrical horror, including some of the biggest hits of 2025. Sinners, Final Destination: Bloodlines, Weapons, and 28 Years Later are just a few of the films that have frightened moviegoers. And yet, despite the tear the genre has been on, and despite its now being spooky season, there aren’t as many high-profile horror titles as as you might expect there to be this October. Horror, as one of the few (mostly) reliable box-office bets, has taken over the rest of the calendar, leaving the lead-up to Halloween feeling a little bit lacking on the big screen.
But just because there isn’t a Sinners or Weapons out ahead of All Hallows’ Eve doesn’t mean that there isn’t something waiting to scare you at the theater. There are plenty of smaller flicks, a couple of rereleases, and one studio sequel playing on big screens. Browse our full guide below, because horror always hits harder when you’re seeing it with an audience. (And don’t worry — we’ve got a guide to all the horror you can stream this month too.)
Bone Lake (October 3)
Sage and Diego have rented a fancy house at the secluded and ominously named Bone Lake for what they hope will be a romantic getaway. However, another couple, Cin and Will, show up claiming that they booked the house too. They decide the place is big enough for all of them, but the double date soon turns into a psychological nightmare full of secrets, seduction, and twisty, pulpy, thrilling violence.
Coyotes (October 3)
Justin Long, who recently killed it in the 2022 horror movie Barbarian, plays a man living in the Hollywood Hills with his wife (Kate Bosworth) and daughter when a pack of extra-violent coyotes attack. “Killer animal attack” is a tried-and-true horror subgenre, and even the bad ones tend to be enjoyable in their own way, though the fact that the titular canids in this movie sure look AI-generated is a bummer.
Good Boy (October 3)
You can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but you can make a new sort of horror movie starring a dog. Indy, a very expressive Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, is a loyal dog whose owner’s house is haunted, and Good Boy follows the pooch from his perspective as he encounters the various supernatural scares lurking in the night. (A cat would simply say, “That’s none of my business.”) Good Boy premiered at South by Southwest to good reviews.
Shell (October 3)
Elisabeth Moss plays an aging actress who tries to revitalize her fading career by changing up her look with the help of a wellness mogul (Kate Hudson). However, something sinister is going on, and there’s a monstrous secret behind the makeover. If that sounds a little familiar, consider that Shell had the misfortune of premiering at film festivals the same year as The Substance, which covers similar ground. Most reviews from the time say that the film has its own merits, however, with strong performances and a killer ending.
Trick ‘r Treat rerelease (October 14 and 16)
Trick ‘r Treat was unceremoniously dumped straight to DVD in 2009, but the film — an anthology set on Halloween night that tells interlocking spooky tales starring Dylan Baker, Anna Paquin, and Brian Cox — managed to become a cult classic regardless. It’s finally getting a theatrical release courtesy of Fathom Entertainment. Just make sure you follow the rules of Halloween. Otherwise, Sam, the creepy trick-or-treater with a bag for a mask and a sharp lollipop, will get you.
Black Phone 2 (October 17)
Scott Derrickson’s 2021 movie, The Black Phone, was a surprise box-office success, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that it’s calling back. Black Phone 2 once again stars Mason Thames as Finney. Although he became the first person to escape the child serial killer known as the Grabber (Ethan Hawke), thanks in part to the titular phone that let him speak to the murderer’s previous victims, it seems the Grabber’s not done with him yet. That’s extra scary considering the Grabber died at the end of the last movie.
Frankenstein (October 17)
Guillermo del Toro’s take on Frankenstein will hit Netflix on November 7, but it’s alllllliiivvveeeeeee in select theaters in October. Doesn’t GDT’s production design deserve to be seen on the big screen? Oscar Isaac plays the titular doctor, Jacob Elordi plays his creation, and Mia Goth, Felix Kammerer, Charles Dance, and Christoph Waltz co-star.
Queens of the Dead (October 24)
George A. Romero unleashed zombies all night, dawn, and day, but now his daughter, director Tina Romero, has found a new frontier for the living dead: a queer club. Queens of the Dead, which stars Katy O’Brian, Jaquel Spivey, Riki Lindhome, and Jack Haven, has a group of drag queens and club kids coming together to slay while they’re slaying the undead when a zombie outbreak strikes Manhattan. It’s campy, as you’d hope, but like her dad, Romero knows how to make sure her zombie movie has teeth, too.
Shelby Oaks (October 24)
From Neon, Shelby Oaks follows a woman, Mia (Camille Sullivan), who is attempting to find out what happened to her sister (Sarah Durn), who went missing 12 years earlier while she was doing some paranormal investigating of an abandoned town. When Mia heads to Shelby Oaks, she encounters new horrors and uncovers demonic memories from her childhood. The movie is a finale of sorts to a YouTube Channel called Paranormal Paranoids, which also starred Durn, though one doesn’t need to have watched the four-year-old video series before seeing Shelby Oaks.
Dracula (October 29)
There have been a lot of Dracula movies, most of which more or less follow the same basic beats. Romanian director Radu Jude’s Dracula is not one of those “normal” Draculas. It’s a proudly gonzo comedy horror — brilliantly vulgar, silly, and singular moviemaking.
Twilight re-release (October 29–November 2)
Is Twilight a horror movie? Or is it just scary that it’s been 20 years since the first Twilight book came out? Edward Cullen doesn’t age, but you’re getting older. Something to think about. All four movies, Twilight, Eclipse, and both parts of Breaking Dawn, will be in theaters, one night only for each, starting October 29.