Welcome to the very first edition of our monthly horror movie roundup!
Every month we'll be watching the newest horror releases. Whether they're hitting theaters, streaming services, or those hidden gems that somehow slipped under everyone's radar, we're giving you our completely spoiler-free thoughts. No scene-by-scene breakdowns, no ruining the best moments, just honest reviews, ratings, recommendations, and a little sarcasm along the way.
Horror has been absolutely thriving lately, and if the rest of 2026 keeps this momentum going, we're in for one hell of a year. This month we checked out five recent releases that range from blood-soaked horror comedies to psychological horror and supernatural nightmares. Some completely exceeded expectations, some were pleasant surprises, and one... well... let's just say I wanted a little more from it. So, let's get into it.
Ready or Not 2
Our Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (9.5/10)
Rotten Tomatoes: 75%
IMDb: 6.5/10
Runtime: 1h 48m
Where to Watch
- Amazon Prime Video ($19.99)
- Apple TV ($19.99)
- Fandango at Home ($19.99)
Spoiler-Free Review
Coming off the events of the first film, Grace quickly discovers her nightmare is far from over. This time, she's joined by her estranged sister Faith as they're thrown into another deadly game where surviving isn't enough. To make it out alive, Grace must keep Faith alive, claim the High Seat, and battle four other powerful families all fighting for control.
Now...I absolutely love horror comedies when they're done right.
The original Ready or Not is one of my all-time favorites, so when I heard a sequel was coming, I was... skeptical.
I mean... how exactly do you continue a story where nearly everyone literally explodes at the end?
Turns out...Apparently you can. And somehow, they absolutely nailed it.
I'll admit, I may be slightly biased because I'd probably watch Samara Weaving read the back of a cereal box and be entertained. The same goes for Shawn Hatosy...I've yet to watch him in something I didn't enjoy. But even putting my bias aside, this sequel absolutely delivers. It keeps everything that made the original so much fun: ridiculous action, over-the-top violence, dark humor, and just enough insanity that you're constantly wondering what could possibly happen next.
My only real complaint was Faith. Kathryn Newton isn't a bad actress by any means, but something about the performance just didn't quite click for me. There were moments where I found myself wondering what someone like Emmy Rossum or Jenna Ortega could've done with the role instead.
Then again... I suppose I can want in one hand and... well... you know the rest. Thankfully, that's a pretty minor complaint in an otherwise fantastic movie. The pacing is excellent, never dragging or overstaying its welcome. At just under two hours, it tells exactly the story it needs to tell without padding things out. Every action sequence feels earned, the humor lands far more often than it misses, and the entire production just feels polished from beginning to end.
If you're someone who enjoys horror movies that don't take themselves too seriously while still delivering plenty of tension, action, and gore, this is an easy recommendation.
For me, Ready or Not 2 is another massive win for the franchise.
Final Rating: 9.5/10
Lee Cronin's The Mummy
Our Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐☆☆ (8/10)
Rotten Tomatoes: 46%
IMDb: 6.2/10
Runtime: 1h 56m
Where to Watch
- Max
- Amazon Prime Video ($6.99 Rental)
- Apple TV ($6.99 Rental)
- Fandango at Home ($6.99 Rental)
Spoiler-Free Review
A journalist stationed in Cairo watches his entire world collapse after his young daughter Katie disappears during a violent desert storm. Months later, she's found alive, and what should've been a miracle reunion quickly transforms into an unimaginable nightmare as Katie returns... different.
I'll be honest. I fully expected to dislike this movie. When I first heard Hollywood was remaking The Mummy, my immediate reaction was, "No one is topping Brendan Fraser. Why are we even trying?" Then I remembered who was directing it. Lee Cronin. The same Lee Cronin who gave us Evil Dead Rise. Suddenly... I was interested.
And wow... this movie surprised me.
Rather than trying to recreate the adventure-style Mummy films people grew up with, Cronin completely flips the formula on its head. Instead, he leans heavily into supernatural horror, possession, disturbing imagery, and some genuinely uncomfortable body horror. And trust me...
There are scenes in this movie that will live rent-free in my brain for years. The bathroom scene. The toenails. If you've seen it...You already know. I genuinely thought I was going to throw up...not because it relied on cheap gore, but because the visuals and sound design were so unbelievably effective.
Outside of the body horror, I really appreciated how emotional the opening act was. You genuinely feel for this family before everything spirals into absolute chaos, which makes everything that follows hit even harder.
Katie's transformation is unsettling, creepy, and occasionally hilarious in the darkest possible way. The movie sprinkles in just enough dark humor to keep things from becoming relentlessly bleak without ever ruining the tension.
My biggest criticism comes from a couple of performances. Jack Reynor and May Calamawy aren't bad here, but there were moments where their performances felt a little forced, especially during some of the more emotional scenes. It never became distracting enough to hurt the movie overall...I just found myself wishing those moments had a little more weight behind them. Still...
Lee Cronin manages to make The Mummy feel like something entirely new instead of simply recycling a classic.
That's not an easy thing to accomplish. If you're looking for a horror movie that's disturbing, emotionally driven, filled with memorable imagery, and isn't afraid to get a little weird, I highly recommend giving this one a chance.
Just...Maybe don't eat while you're watching it.
Final Rating: 8/10
Hokum
Our Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐☆☆☆☆ (6/10)
Our Verdict: 🍿 Worth Watching (Just Keep Your Expectations in Check)
Rotten Tomatoes: 90%
IMDb: 6.7/10
Runtime: 1h 52m
Where to Watch
- Amazon Prime Video ($19.99)
- Apple TV ($9.99)
- Fandango at Home ($9.99)
Spoiler-Free Review
When novelist Ohm Bauman travels to a remote countryside inn to scatter his parents' ashes, what should've been a quiet trip for closure quickly spirals into a waking nightmare. Strange visions, an unsettling witch tied to the honeymoon suite, and an unexplained disappearance force him to confront both the supernatural and his own troubled past.
I'll be honest...I was so excited for this movie. Between the trailers, the early festival buzz, and seeing Adam Scott step into a full-blown horror role, I was convinced this was going to be one of my favorite horror films of the year. Reviewers were calling it "nightmare fuel," praising its folklore atmosphere, and claiming it was one of the scariest movies they'd seen in years.
Then I watched it. And... I just didn't get it. Now don't get me wrong...I don't think Hokum is a bad movie. It's just not the terrifying experience I was promised. I'm the person yelling profanities at the TV, covering my eyes, and questioning every life decision the characters make. It doesn't take much to get me stressed out during a horror movie. But this one? It never got there.
Visually, it's gorgeous. The cinematography, direction, and folklore-inspired atmosphere are genuinely impressive. It creates an eerie sense of isolation, and you can tell there was a clear artistic vision behind every frame.
My issue wasn't with how the movie looked.
It was with what it chose to do—or rather, what it didn't do. Without getting into spoiler territory, I felt like there were so many incredible ideas that never reached their full potential. The mysterious television character? Nightmare fuel. The witch? Fascinating. Fiona's storyline? So much more could've been explored there.
Instead, the film spends much of its runtime following Ohm as he struggles to understand what's happening around him, and by the time everything comes together, I was left wanting... well... more.
Maybe that was intentional.
Maybe the unanswered questions and lingering mysteries are exactly what the filmmakers were going for. But for me, it felt less mysterious and more underdeveloped. That said, I don't regret watching it.
There are some genuinely memorable moments, the atmosphere is consistently unsettling, and the story takes a few turns I didn't see coming. I just wish the movie had committed a little harder to the ideas it teased throughout.
If you're looking for a slower, folklore-inspired horror film with a unique atmosphere, I still think Hokum is worth checking out.
Just don't go into it expecting the scariest movie ever made because... at least for me... it wasn't even close.
Final Rating: 6/10
They Will Kill You
Our Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (9/10)
Our Verdict: 🩸 Must Watch
Rotten Tomatoes: 65%
IMDb: 6.3/10
Runtime: 1h 44m
Where to Watch
- Max
- Hulu
- Amazon Prime Video (Rent or through Max)
- Apple TV ($6.99)
Spoiler-Free Review
Fresh out of prison, Asia answers what seems like an ordinary housekeeping job inside a luxurious New York City high-rise. It doesn't take long before she realizes the building has a horrifying secret. Residents have been disappearing for decades, the staff are hiding something sinister, and the sister she came to rescue may already be in far deeper than she ever imagined.
Now this...This movie completely blindsided me. Jason actually found this one while we were trying to figure out what to watch one night, and somehow I'd never even heard of it. Which honestly feels criminal because this movie deserves way more attention than it's getting. If you're a fan of movies like Ready or Not, Kill Bill, or John Wick with a healthy dose of satanic cult chaos sprinkled on top, you're probably going to have an absolute blast with this one.
From start to finish, this movie knows exactly what it wants to be. It's violent. It's ridiculous. It's hilarious. And somehow it balances all of those things without completely falling apart. One of my favorite parts of the movie was its sense of humor. The dark comedy lands incredibly well without ever undercutting the action, and when things get bloody... they get bloody. The action sequences are creative, over-the-top, and just plain fun to watch.
Then there's Zazie Beetz. She absolutely steals the show. Asia is one of those protagonists you can't help but root for. She's smart, resourceful, and by the end of the movie she's an absolute badass. Every time you think she's backed into a corner, she finds another way to fight back.
And of course, Patricia Arquette does what Patricia Arquette always does...delivers another fantastic performance.
I've seen a few people compare this movie to Ready or Not, and while I understand why, I honestly think that's selling it a little short. Yes, they share some similar DNA. They're both violent horror comedies. They're both packed with dark humor. And they both feature ordinary people thrown into unbelievably messed-up situations.
But the stories themselves are completely different, and They Will Kill You absolutely stands on its own.
More than anything, this movie is just incredibly fun. It never pretends to be something it's not, it doesn't overcomplicate the story, and it keeps the pacing moving from beginning to end.
If you're someone who enjoys action-heavy horror with gallons of blood, plenty of laughs, and just enough satanic cult weirdness to keep things interesting, I can't recommend this one enough.
This was easily one of the biggest surprises of the month.
Final Rating: 9/10
Obsession
Our Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (9.5/10)
Our Verdict: 🩸 Must Watch
Rotten Tomatoes: 94%
IMDb: 8.0/10
Runtime: 1h 42m
Where to Watch
- Amazon Prime Video ($19.99)
- Apple TV ($19.99)
- Fandango at Home ($19.99)
Spoiler-Free Review
Few horror movies generated as much buzz this year as Obsession. Everywhere I looked, people were calling it one of the best horror films of 2026, and honestly... I was worried. There's always that one movie that gets hyped into oblivion, and by the time you finally sit down to watch it, your expectations are so high that disappointment feels almost inevitable.
Thankfully... That wasn't the case here. Made on a reported budget of just $750,000, Obsession follows Bear, a hopeless romantic who's spent years longing for the woman of his dreams. When he stumbles across a mysterious "One Wish Willow," he writes it off as nothing more than a gimmick. Turns out...Some wishes are better left unmade.
I'll leave it there because this review is spoiler-free, and trust me...you'll want to experience the rest for yourself.
The biggest standout in this movie is, without question, Inde Navarrette. She absolutely demolishes this role.
Watching her transform from a seemingly sweet, ordinary twenty-something into... well... let's just say someone who's a little emotionally attached... was incredible to watch. The shift feels natural, unsettling, hilarious, and terrifying all at the same time.
There's one particular bedroom scene involving Bear trying to get out of bed that had me laughing so hard I turned to Jason and told him that if he ever gets up for work before me again, I'm recreating it. He wasn't nearly as amused by that idea as I was.
Obsession manages to walk a really interesting line between psychological horror, dark comedy, and relationship satire. Underneath all the chaos is a surprisingly relatable idea about obsession, insecurity, and the things we convince ourselves love should look like... it just happens to crank those ideas up to an absolutely insane level.
Is this movie going to be for everyone? Probably not.
Some people have called it overrated or questioned the performances, but I honestly couldn't disagree more. I thought the acting worked incredibly well, the pacing stayed consistently engaging, and for a low-budget production, the quality was genuinely impressive.
This is one of those movies that proves you don't need a massive Hollywood budget to tell a memorable horror story. If you've been hesitant because of some of the mixed audience reviews, I'd encourage you to give it a chance anyway. It surprised me.
I have a feeling it might surprise you too.
Final Rating: 9.5/10
Final Thoughts
If this first monthly roundup proved anything, it's that 2026 is shaping up to be an incredible year for horror.
This month alone gave us everything from laugh-out-loud horror comedies and blood-soaked action to psychological horror, supernatural terror, and a few movies that genuinely caught me completely off guard.
If I had to rank this month's watches, it'd probably look something like this:
🥇 Obsession — 9.5/10
🥇 Ready or Not 2 — 9.5/10
🥈 They Will Kill You — 9/10
🥉 Lee Cronin's The Mummy — 8/10
🎬 Hokum — 6/10
Looking ahead, I'm ridiculously excited for what's coming next.
On my radar over the next couple of months are:
- Evil Dead Burn (July 10)
- Resident Evil (August 18)
- Insidious: Out of the Further (August 21)
- She Saw Us (September 4)
And knowing me... I'll probably stumble across a handful of weird little indie horror movies on Shudder that no one's talking about, so don't be surprised if those sneak into next month's roundup too.
What Did You Think?
Have you watched any of these movies yet? Did you agree with my ratings... or am I completely off my rocker? I'd love to hear what you thought in the comments!
What's been your favorite horror movie of 2026 so far? Are you more into psychological horror, paranormal hauntings, slashers, creature features, or horror comedies?
Let's talk horror. See you next month!
Ratings & Streaming Information
- Ratings referenced from Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb.
- Streaming availability was accurate at the time of publication and may vary by region or change over time as licensing agreements are updated.
