The world of horror started 2022 off right with the latest entry of Scream being the first breakout hit of the year. The fifth Scream film, directed by Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, has garnered a lot of acclaim from critics and fans alike, and earned a lucrative $50 million domestic gross so far. It was filled with wild moments that shocked fans and paid homage to the franchise’s legacy established by the legendary Wes Craven. Horror fans have already been treated with a great return for Ghostface, but he isn’t the only iconic slasher character headed to screens in 2022.

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Horror fans will see the return of more notable franchises and slashers than ever before as Blumhouse and director David Gordon Green cap off their Halloween trilogy with Halloween Ends, and some big streaming services resurrect dormant franchises. Plus, there are plenty of fresh, original films and adaptations slated to create new stories that horror fans can obsess over. Scream was just the start of 2022’s strong horror slate and there are plenty of familiar faces, both in front of and behind the camera, making a grand return.

‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre’

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Image via Netflix

Leatherface is revving up his chainsaw once more and slashing onto a new platform as Netflix’s new Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie, set as a sequel to the original, releases on February 18th.

This new entry is produced by Don’t Breathe creators Fede Alvarez and Rodo Sayagues and sees the return of both Leatherface and Sally Hardesty, now played by Mark Burnham and Olwen Foure, respectively. Leatherface, dubbed Old Man Leatherface here, hasn’t been seen since the heavily maligned 2013 reboot, so fans are expecting some bloody kills and a strong return for one of the horror genre's most notable killers.

‘X’

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Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin aren’t the only V/H/S alums dropping a big horror flick in 2022 as director Ti West teams up with indie powerhouse A24 for his newest film X.

Through its story of an adult film crew finding disturbing secrets about the old couple whose farmhouse their filming in, X already looks like it could be one of the best horror offerings of the year. The film’s Texas Chainsaw Massacre inspirations are clear, and its premise is super original and full of horrifying potential that’ll be unleashed into theaters on March 18th.

‘The Black Phone’

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The duo behind Sinister and Doctor Strange, director Scott Derrickson and writer C. Robert Cargill, reunite with Blumhouse for their adaptation of Joe Hill’s 2004 short story The Black Phone.

The film’s story of a young boy trying to escape a masked killer with the help of his past victims shows a great blend of coming-of-age storytelling and suspenseful horror. It’s visually reminiscent of Sinister’s eerie home video vibes and has already garnered immense praise from its premiere at Fantastic Fest, so it’s set to be a breakout summer horror hit when it hits theaters on June 24th.

‘Nope’

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The next horror film from Jordan Peele, Nope, is set to release on July 22nd and although not much is known about it, there’s a lot to be excited about.

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With Get Out and Us being resounding hits, a new horror film from Peele, regardless of what it is, instantly makes it a major release — especially when the cast has the likes of Keke Palmer, Daniel Kaluuya, and Steven Yeun. A trailer has to be just around the corner, but the cryptic teases have offered enough reasons to be excited about it.

‘Salem’s Lot’

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Image via CBS

After a brief absence, the modern era of Stephen King adaptations returns on September 9th with Annabelle Comes Home director Gary Dauberman’s adaptation of Salem’s Lot.

The film follows a writer returning to his hometown to find that it’s being taken over by vampires and stars Lewis Pullman, Alfre Woodard, Pilou Asbaek, and Bill Camp. A new King adaptation should always be on a horror fan’s watch list and given the talent involved, Salem’s Lot could be a highly talked about adaptation.

‘Dark Harvest’

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Salem’s Lot isn’t the only horror movie currently set to debut in September as Black Mirror: Bandersnatch and 30 Days of Night director David Slade’s new film, an adaptation of Norman Partridge’s 2006 novel Dark Harvest, is slated to release around that time.

Based on the little we know about Dark Harvest; it looks like it could be a grand return to horror for Slade with its small-town mystery centered on a supernatural specter named Sawtooth Jack potentially providing the horror genre with a memorable horror killer.

‘Halloween Ends’

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Image via Universal Pictures

Blumhouse and David Gordon Green’s modern Halloween trilogy ends on October 14th with Halloween Ends possibly being the last bout between Jamie Lee Curtis’ Laurie Strode and Michael Myers.

Halloween Kills left things on a tense and devastatingly bloody note, so the stage is set for a brutal final fight between Laurie and Michael that’s sure to tear through Haddonfield once again. It’s easily the biggest horror release of 2022 and one that horror fans can’t wait to see.

‘Evil Dead Rise’

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The Evil Dead franchise has had one of the best modern resurgences in the horror genre with the success of Ash vs. Evil Dead on the small screen, a new video game release on the horizon, and now, a new film from The Hole in the Ground director Lee Cronin for HBO Max.

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Evil Dead Rise will tell a new story in the Evil Dead universe, and while it was sad that Bruce Campbell confirmed that beloved protagonist Ash won’t be involved with his retirement of the character, Campbell and franchise creator Sam Raimi serving as producers shows the potential for Evil Dead Rise to continue the franchise’s resurgence.

‘Prey’

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Image via 20th Century Studios

Hulu is set to release a new film in the Predator series from 10 Cloverfield Lane director Dan Trachtenberg titled Prey sometime in 2022.

At this point, not much is known about the film since its ties to Predator were originally supposed to be a secret, but it is said to be a prequel to every film in the series capturing a Predator’s first journey to Earth. The cat might be out of the bag on Prey being a Predator movie, but that doesn’t mean it still can’t have some surprises up its sleeve in the form of some R-rated action-horror fun for fans.

‘Hellraiser’

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If you wanted another V/H/S alum to take on another beloved horror franchise in 2022, look no further than David Bruckner’s upcoming reboot of Hellraiser set to release on Hulu this year.

Given his recent work with The Night House, Bruckner could return the franchise to its psychologically haunting atmosphere and make it align more with Clive Barker’s original vision. This entry will also be the first time an actress is portraying the central cenobite, Pinhead, who will be played by Jamie Clayton, so fans should definitely watch out for the return of the cult classic horror franchise.

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