Anytime a horror movie is well-received, there’s usually a chorus of “Horror is back” in online spaces. But that’s not really technically true, because horror has never gone away. In fact, in an ever-changing cinematic landscape where even superhero movies aren’t guaranteed successes, horror has consistently been there to pick up the slack. 

Obviously, not every horror film is a winner, but without fail, every year at least has a smattering of great movies that wow critics and get diehard horror fans excited about what the future may hold for certain filmmakers. Horror is adaptable: These movies often cost substantially less than more action-packed films because it doesn’t require a ton of money to induce dread in audiences. With perfect timing and a flair for gory visuals, people will flock to something great in theaters, ensuring that horror stays alive and continues to attract some of our most exciting directors.

2025 has been an excellent year for the genre. There have been a ton of great original horror flicks as well as entries in long-running franchises that were surprisingly spectacular. Body horror, vampires, AI, and killer sharks: It’s all here. In case you missed any of these, here’s what Looper considers the best horror movies of 2025. 

“Good Boy” sounds like a pure gimmick. It’s a horror film told from the perspective of a dog that notices strange entities affecting his human. But the thing is, that gimmick works better than it has any right to. It helps that Indy the dog is legitimately a fantastic lead, and the film really commits to the bit. You feel like you’re experiencing incomprehensible occurrences through the perspective of a dog, but some of the more emotional beats don’t even come from the fear of ghosts. Watching Indy stare out a window, waiting for Todd (Shane Jensen) to return, can make anyone’s heart ache. 

Looper’s “Good Boy” review noted how a lot of horror movies feature the idea of pets noticing evil spirits well before any humans do. “Good Boy” takes that idea and plays with it to deliver a compelling message about how much our pets truly love us and will go to great lengths to help us. Prior to “Good Boy” coming out, everyone was worried about whether the dog would die. This isn’t the place for spoilers because we want you to check out 2025’s best horror movies for yourself. But suffice it to say, you’ll probably walk away from “Good Boy” very glad you experienced it. 

Cast: Indy, Shane Jensen, Arielle Friedman 

Director: Ben Leonberg

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 73 minutes

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 90%

The “Final Destination” franchise has a tried-and-true formula. Open with a big, disastrous set piece that a character prevents from happening, and then come up with a bunch of fun, Rube Goldberg-esque machinations to kill off all of the survivors one by one. 14 years after the previous entry, “Final Destination: Bloodlines” proves the formula still works by becoming the best film in the whole franchise.

“Bloodlines” adds a fascinating wrinkle in the series’ mythology by having a young Iris (Brec Bassinger) prevent a disaster in the 1960s that saves hundreds of lives. In the present day, Death is still trying to kill everyone, including those in the survivors’ bloodlines that should have never existed in the first place. And the film doesn’t miss a step when it comes to creative kills, from a backyard barbecue where several different dangers are lurking all at once to an MRI machine going overboard. “Bloodlines” understands this franchise should be sheer fun, and it excels at that while also offering a touching tribute to Tony Todd, longtime regular in the franchise, who passed away before the film came out. Watching characters die in horrifically hilarious ways is one thing, but taking the time to reflect on the importance of a life well-lived offers some surprising profundity to a series most people likely cast aside a long time ago.

Cast: Kaitlyn Santa Juana, Tony Todd, Richard Harmon

Director: Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein

Rating: R

Runtime: 110 minutes

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 92%

Live-action Disney remakes are old hat, especially since they merely take the original movie, maybe add an extra song or two, and repackage it for the masses to consume — there’s hardly even an attempt to try to make them something different than what already worked before. So it’s thrilling to see someone offer such a unique take on a classic fairy tale with “The Ugly Stepsister.” It presents the story of “Cinderella” but from the point of view of one of her stepsisters, Elvira (Lea Myren). Her mother, Rebekka (Ane Dahl Torp), subjects her to horrific medical procedures to get her attractive enough to marry the prince and raise all of their social statuses.

The primitive cosmetic surgeries are enough to make anyone, no matter how many horror films they’ve seen, get squeamish. These are visceral, drawn-out moments, depicting the lengths Elvira’s willing to go to in order to improve her lot in life. “The Ugly Stepsister,” especially coming out in the aftermath of “The Substance,” feels like the latest in a wave of body horror films centered around women hating how they look. And it’s all the more tragic because, knowing the fairy tale, viewers understand how this story plays out and that Elvira’s efforts are all for naught. 

Cast: Lea Myren, Ane Dahl Torp, Thea Sofie Loch Næss

Director: Emilie Blichfeldt

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 109 minutes

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 96%

The marketing didn’t do many favors for “Companion,” one of the more underrated horror flicks in recent memory. The trailers gave away the reveal that Iris (Sophie Thatcher) is an android who’s initially unaware of her programming, believing she’s just a gal in love with her boyfriend, Josh (Jack Quaid), who’s only interested in having a woman he can always control. But Iris becomes self-aware and tries to break free from her perceived limitations.

Still, knowing the twists doesn’t hamper one’s enjoyment. AI is the tech buzzword of the moment, but the horrors presented in “Companion” aren’t about AI wanting to destroy all of humanity. Instead, it shows what happens when human beings decide to opt out of regular interactions, as messy as they might be. The idea of an “AI girlfriend” is horrifically coming to fruition, so “Companion” may only become more relevant as the years continue. Thatcher continues her streak as a scream queen to watch, as she moves back and forth between doting partner and robot out for revenge. “Companion” has a lot on its mind, from abusive relationships to ethical utilizations of AI, but it still manages to be a lot of fun, balancing dark comedy with its horror elements. 

Cast: Sophie Thatcher, Jack Quaid, Lukas Gage

Director: Drew Hancock

Rating: R

Runtime: 97 minutes

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 93%

“28 Days Later” is often seen as a highlight of the zombie subgenre. No doubt expectations were high going into “28 Years Later,” but with director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland back behind the scenes, it seemed like greatness could be unlocked once more. The result is something in spectacular defiance of modern legacy sequels. It’s not concerned with giving fans recognizable faces from the franchise or rehashing what worked well before. Instead, viewers are treated to a haunting coming-of-age story about a boy raised in a toxic environment who braves the infected to try to get his ailing mother some medical care from a doctor hidden away amongst hordes of monsters.

But … are they really monsters? “28 Years Later” provides a fascinating exploration into whether there’s any humanity left within the infected. Humanity may be willing to write them off, but there could be hope yet. It’s understandable that the ending of “28 Years Later,” with a fairly massive tonal shift, may have rubbed people the wrong way. It introduces characters who seemingly come out of left field and reference a real-life monster. But “28 Years Later” is supposed to kick off a brand new trilogy continuing with 2026’s “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple.” The quarantine may be limited to the British Isles, but thanks to the latest film, the franchise somehow feels bigger than it ever has. 

Cast: Alfie Williams, Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson

Director: Danny Boyle

Rating: R

Runtime: 115 minutes

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 88%

Horror films run the gamut of being silly, bloody fun and fundamentally destroying your psyche. “Bring Her Back” falls into the latter category, as two step-siblings wind up with a new foster mother, Laura (Sally Hawkins), and right from the start, you know she has dark plans in place for the children. Hawkins has always been an incredible performer, but there’s something so surreally dark with what she does in “Bring Her Back.” Even underneath her smiles and laughter, you can always tell there’s something broken beneath the surface, and once her plan comes to light, you realize just how damaged she is. 

The directors, Michael and Danny Philippou, made their mark on Hollywood previously with “Talk to Me,” another incredibly unsettling horror film. One thing the Philippous seem fantastic at is crafting dark imagery that stays with you, whether it’s the first possession scene in “Talk to Me” or that scene with the knife in “Bring Her Back.” A lot of modern horror films concern themselves with ideas of grief — it’s practically a meme at this point that every A24 horror film is one big metaphor for grief. “Bring Her Back” is about that, too, but it handles it more effectively than most because you see how the worst circumstances can warp an individual into something sinister.

Cast: Sally Hawkins, Billy Barratt, Sora Wong

Director: Michael and Danny Philippou

Rating: R

Runtime: 104 minutes

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 89%

When it comes to the best shark movies of all time, one name stands head, shoulders, and fins above everything else. Let’s face it, there’s no touching “Jaws,” but “Dangerous Animals” manages to find a unique way of bringing sharks into a horror film that’s still incredibly effectively. Tucker (Jai Courtney, who’s having an absolute blast in the role) is a serial killer who lures (or abducts) unsuspecting victims onto his boat where he subsequently tosses them aside for sharks to have a feeding frenzy, allowing there to be zero evidence left behind of his murders. 

“Jaws” made a shark the bad guy, which had real-world consequences of altering the public’s perception of the animals. In “Dangerous Animals,” the sharks aren’t inherently bad; they just have what they perceive as food thrown at them. One of the movie’s most impactful moments sees a shark swim idly by a potential meal. Sharks aren’t the “dangerous animals” alluded to by the title. That would be Tucker, whose schemes get upended by Zephyr (Hassie Harrison). She turns the whole affair into “You’re Next” in the ocean, and you just wait to see which one of her traps can finally get the better of her captor. “Dangerous Animals” is a welcome addition to the shark movie subgenre for offering a fun, bloody outing that finally gives sharks their due. 

Cast: Jai Courtney, Hassie Harrison, Josh Heuston

Director: Sean Byrne

Rating: R

Runtime: 98 minutes

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 87%

Real-life couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie playing a couple in the horror movie “Together” could’ve been seen as a bit of stunt casting. In actuality, it enhances the story of a couple who’ve been together for so long that they’ve started taking one another for granted, with Tim (Franco), in particular, seemingly pulling away from Millie (Brie), who just wants to love and support him. Despite Tim’s desire for space, the two are inexplicably drawn together physically (their bodies are literally pulled closer as though they were magnets) after drinking some weird cave water. 

The metaphor’s abundantly clear. “Together” is about codependency in romantic relationships, as Tim feels like he’s lost a part of himself in this relationship, and Millie (for the most part) has trouble asserting her own needs for fear of driving Tim even further away. And that’s not even getting into the body horror of it all. Body horror’s having a real moment right now, coming off films like “The Substance” and “Possessor.” The sound design of skin squelching as the couple slowly fuses can make anyone’s stomach churn. But even with all of that in mind, “Together” is surprisingly romantic. The film explores the idea of overcoming the fear of intimacy and learning to love your partner for who they are, leading to one of the most memorable final moments in any 2025 movie.

Cast: Dave Franco, Alison Brie, Damon Herriman

Director: Michael Shanks

Rating: R

Runtime: 102 minutes

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 90%

There’s a sequence in “Weapons” that exemplifies everything great about it. It’s where Justine (Julia Garner) is sleeping inside her car, and a woman awkwardly stumbles toward the vehicle before opening the door with you thinking she’s about to hurt Justine, but in actuality, she just cuts off a strand of her hair. In the span of maybe 30 seconds, you go from scared to laughing to scared to laughing again. It’s a great demonstration of what makes writer and director Zach Cregger, especially with his sketch comedy roots on The Whitest Kids U’ Know, such a great director who understands how to balance tones. 

“Weapons” sees 17 children mysteriously run out of their homes and into the night, with no one able to understand why it happened or where they went. The film is divided into six chapters from a different person’s perspective of what happened and how they respond to such a strange occurrence. “Weapons” may focus on something otherworldly, but it examines the very human realities of confronting grief, whether it’s by using substances or lashing out in anger at completely innocent people. And, of course, “Weapons” introduced the world to Aunt Gladys (Amy Madigan), one of the most iconic horror movie characters in recent memory. 

Cast: Julia Garner, Josh Brolin, Benedict Wong

Director: Zach Cregger

Rating: R

Runtime: 128 minutes

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 93%

After making two solid superhero movies with “Black Panther” and “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” director Ryan Coogler leveraged his social cache to fund an original horror film about twins in the 1930s South who want to celebrate all things Black culture with their own juke joint, only to fall prey to a roving band of vampires. And the cinematic landscape of 2025 is better for it. 

What’s impressive is that “Sinners” isn’t really even a horror movie for the first half. Instead, it uses that time to really take us inside these characters, particularly Smoke (Michael B. Jordan) and Stack (also Jordan). When they finally open their own place, we get one of the best scenes of the year: A one-shot musical montage where the power of the blues opens a transcendental journey through the past, present, and future of Black music. It’s incredible to behold, so much so that the vampires, headed by Remmick (Jack O’Connell), want that power for themselves and are willing to wipe out this community to get it. “Sinners” is ultimately a celebration of cinema as well as music. Both artistic mediums have the power to bring us together, and watching “Sinners” feels like a cultural shift has occurred where the bar has just been raised for every other horror filmmaker out there.

Cast: Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Miles Caton

Director: Ryan Coogler

Rating: R

Runtime: 138 minutes

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 97%