2020 has been an absolutely crazy year in just about every respect, and movies have been no exception. The vast majority of major releases got pushed back to 2021, including several horror films that had the potential to be big hits. Thankfully, 2020 is almost over, and it looks like there might finally be a light at the end of this pandemic tunnel. That's great for a lot of reasons, but for the purposes of this blog, it means that we might actually get all the movies we're looking forward to next year. It feels like the last time that happened was a lifetime ago, and it's great to have some realistic hope that it just might happen again. To celebrate the end of this dreadful year and the hope of a better 2021, here are my ten most anticipated horror films of the coming new year.
Morbius
Morbius isn't what most people normally think of when they think about horror, but I'm putting it on this list anyway. It's based on a Marvel Comics anti-hero named Michael Morbius, a scientist who unintentionally turns himself into a kind of living vampire, and it hits theaters on March 19. Horror is my favorite genre, but I'm also a huge fan of comic book movies, so if you make a comic book movie about a horror character, I'm totally in. What's more, while the movie is part of Sony's new Spider-Man universe (which started with 2018's Venom), the trailer seems to imply that it's also connected to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, so I'm just chomping at the bit to see what treats this film has in store for us.
A Quiet Place Part II
Next, we have a movie that needs no introduction. A Quiet Place is one of the most popular horror films of the past few years, so obviously the sequel is going to land a spot on this list. It comes out on April 23, and it follows the Abbot family (the people from the first one) as they venture out into unexplored territory. The early reactions (it was originally supposed to come out this year) say it's another winner, so I can't wait to see what new silent horrors John Krasinski has in store for us this time.
Last Night in Soho
Last Night in Soho is probably my least anticipated movie on this list, but I'm still looking forward to it. It's a psychological thriller with some sort of time travel element, and it comes out on April 23, just like A Quiet Place Part II. We don't know much about this film, but it's going to be directed by Edgar Wright, the guy behind the zombie classic Shaun of the Dead. That's enough to get me intrigued, so while I'm admittedly not going crazy with excitement for this movie, I'm definitely interested to see what Edgar Wright does with his next foray into horror.
Godzilla vs. Kong
Going from my least anticipated movie on the list to my most anticipated movie in any genre, Godzilla vs. Kong is exactly what it sounds like. It's Godzilla fighting King Kong, and it hits theaters on May 21. I'm a huge kaiju fan, and in my opinion, Legendary Pictures has been doing an amazing job with these two monsters in the past few years, so I absolutely cannot wait to see them pit these two giants of cinema against each other for the first time in almost sixty years.
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It
I think The Conjuring is the best horror movie of this millennium, and I think The Conjuring 2 is one of the best horror sequels of all time, so of course I'm excited for the third entry in the series. However, I have to admit that my excitement for this one is a bit tempered. James Wan (in my opinion the best horror director working today) is stepping down from the franchise to work on other projects, and I'm not convinced that the new director will be able to continue the magic of the series. But I'm willing to give it a shot, so I'm still going to be first in line to see The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It when it comes out on June 4.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife
Sure, sequels made multiple decades after the originals are notoriously hit or miss, but that doesn't mean I can't be optimistic about a new entry in the original Ghostbusters series. Afterlife is a new sequel to Ghostbusters 2, and it comes out on June 11. I'm a big fan of both of the original movies, so I'm crossing my fingers and praying really hard that this new one honors their legacy and shows a whole new generation "who you gonna call."
Candyman
I'm not a huge fan of slashers, but one of the few slashers I really like is the original Candyman. It's about way more than just a guy going around killing people, so it gives us some real narrative substance, something this subgenre often lacks. I don't know if this new reboot/sequel is even going to come close to the original, but since it's produced by Jordan Peele (who wrote and directed Get Out and Us), I'm willing to give it a shot. It comes out on August 27, and hopefully it can capture at least some of the same magic that makes the original so much better than your typical by-the-numbers slasher.
Halloween Kills
Another slasher that I really like is the original Halloween, and while I'm not a big fan of the rest of the franchise, I think the 2018 sequel is fantastic. Sure, it has some stupid teen slasher tropes, but it also tells a really compelling story about Laurie Strode's lifelong struggle with trauma after her encounter with Michael Myers. I have no idea what they're going to do in this new one to make it stand out from the slasher pack, but I trust that the guys who made the only good Halloween sequel can do it again. Halloween Kills comes out on October 15, just in time for your, well, Halloween viewing pleasure.
Nightmare Alley
Nightmare Alley is a new Guillermo del Toro movie that's supposed to come out some time in December of 2021. It's a psychological thriller about a carnival worker who gets by on deception and manipulation, but one day he meets a woman who's even more dangerous than he is. Other than that basic plot synopsis, I don't know too much about this film (it's based on a book, but I've never read it), but the fact that it's directed by Guillermo del Toro is enough to pique my interest. I don't like every movie he's ever made, but I do like most of them, so I'll always be excited whenever he comes out with a mysterious new project.
Malignant
The last movie on this list doesn't have a release date, but it is supposed to come out at some point during 2021. We don't know much of anything about Malignant except that it's directed by James Wan and that it's supposedly a giallo film (a precursor to slashers, this style was popular among Italian filmmakers in the 60s and 70s). I'm not much of a giallo fan (I like them even less than slashers), but I'll watch any horror movie James Wan directs. Like I said before, I think he's the best horror director working today, so even if he's dabbling in a subgenre I don't generally like, I'll still be there whenever this movie finally hits theaters.
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