Horror Movie Sequels We're Dying To See
Sequels get a bad rap, but in the horror genre, they're a place where creativity can flourish. Sure, some of them are terrible, especially when franchises run on for decades. But even the bad ones are fun to talk about, and for every lackluster horror sequel, there's another that's transgressive, unique, cinematic, and — perhaps most importantly — scary as hell.
They say that Hollywood has no original ideas anymore, but what if they did have some original ideas that weren't explored enough? Movie history is filled with awesome standalone films, but some of them build their worlds with so much intrigue that it's hard to say goodbye. Those are the movies that deserve sequels. Here are five horror films that created strange and spooky worlds that would be well worth revisiting.
Tragedy Girls
A meta-horror for a new generation, "Tragedy Girls" follows two true-crime obsessed teens who try to increase their follower count by upping the violent crime rate in their small Midwestern town. Clever high school seniors McKayla (Alexandra Shipp) and Sadie (Brianna Hildebrand) are the rare horror leads, serving as both the main characters of "Tragedy Girls" and the unapologetic killers slashing their way through the halls of their high school. The movie isn't so much about whether or not they will kill their classmates — they definitely do — as it is about how their enthusiastic new hobby impacts their follower count.
Gruesome and funny, "Tragedy Girls" is a deliciously dark movie in the vein of "Heathers." It's also extremely sequel-friendly, with an ending that leaves room for more murderous adventures. What would the Tragedy Girls look like in college? Are they on TikTok now? Just as the "Scream" franchise is able to keep reinventing itself to match a new generations' ever-evolving engagement with violence, a Gen Z-led "Tragedy Girls" could reinvent itself again and again.
As Above, So Below
One of the most underrated horror movies of the past decade, "As Above, So Below" is found-footage horror mixed with Indiana Jones-like escapades. What more can you want? The film stars Perdita Weeks as a scholar named Scarlett who's on the search for the legendary philosopher's stone. She recruits her ex, George ("Superstore" star Ben Feldman), a cameraman, and a tour guide for an ill-advised exploration of Paris' catacombs. There, the team encounters a series of strange and increasingly hellish phenomena as they head further and further into the depths.
"As Above, So Below" requires some suspension of disbelief, but it's a scrappy, scary, wildly entertaining movie that has gained a cult following after being initially panned by critics in 2014. As with the rest of the films on this list, its ending leaves the door open for further adventures. With an eye for freaky visual scares, a charismatic and chemistry-laden cast, and a downright awesome premise, it's surprising that the movie hasn't inspired more heart-pounding archaeology-horror mash-ups.
Malignant
Between "Saw," "The Conjuring," and "Insidious," finding a James Wan movie that didn't kick off a full-blown franchise is a feat in itself. Yet the horror maestro may have made one last year with "Malignant," a truly unhinged thriller that likely didn't make enough money to warrant a sequel. Still, the world presented by "Malignant" is weird and wacky enough to deserve a second go-round.
The movie follows a pregnant woman named Madison (Annabelle Wallis) who starts dreaming of a murderous figure after surviving an encounter with her abusive husband. The figure seems to be connected to Gabriel, a psychiatric patient who unleashes carnage in the opening scene of the film, but it's not until the film's bonkers third act that all the puzzle pieces come together. Without giving away too much, "Malignant" turns out to be a surprisingly hardcore, darkly funny movie with awesome practical effects and an epic soundtrack.
Noroi: The Curse
Most found footage horror films and J-horror hits garner a seemingly endless stream of sequels, so it's surprising that the best of both worlds, "Noroi: The Curse," is still a standalone. The 2005 film is a faux documentary that pulls together fake archival footage as well as the work of a fictional paranormal researcher named Masafumi (Jin Muraki). The movie starts by cloaking the audience in a shroud of suspense as a narrator explains that the documentarian disappeared after a house fire that killed his wife, leaving only the footage behind.
"Noroi: The Curse" unfolds with eerie detail and all the realism its format allows, exploring the legend of a demon called Kagutaba who seems to be infiltrating Japanese locals. As Masfumi gets further into the hunt for the demon, the movie invokes all manner of creepiness, from a monkey-eating medium to a shrine of fetuses. The movie certainly isn't for the faint of heart. While "Noroi: The Curse" is an excellent standalone, it would also be exciting to see horror director Kōji Shiraishi return to the deeply unnerving world he created with the film.
Oculus
Before writer-director Mike Flanagan reimagined Shirley Jackson for a new generation with "The Haunting of Hill House" and put his signature style on a Stephen King adaptation with "Doctor Sleep," the filmmaker made a wonderfully spooky film called "Oculus." The 2013 movie follows two siblings, Kaylie (Karen Gillan) and Tim (Brenton Thwaites), as they face down the horror that they believe is responsible for all their family's misfortunes: a cursed mirror called the Lasser glass.
While Tim has spent a decade in a mental hospital convincing himself the Lasser glass curse isn't real, Kaylie has been prepping to take it down once and for all, proving its powers in the process. Needless to say, the sinister mirror has other plans.
"Oculus" is razor-sharp horror, with smart, prepared protagonists and a logical center that makes each of its well-earned supernatural moments feel even scarier. "Oculus" is an excellent, character-driven story all on its own, but it would also be thrilling to see what it would look like for Flanagan revisit the enduring power of the Lasser glass again, with a decade of creative experience under his belt since the first installment.