Best Horror of June 2026: ‘Scary Movie’ Returns, Spielberg Revisits Aliens, Javier Bardem Tackles Another Villain Role and More

Welcome to Horror Explorer, a curated column showcasing the month’s best movies, series, books and everything else spooky worth checking out. I’m William Earl, the executive digital director of Variety and the publication’s resident horror enthusiast. Please drop me a line at wearl@variety.com if there’s something I should check out for next month’s missive. 

• Marquee Madness

  Scary Movie (In theaters now via Paramount Pictures) — The Wayans brothers take back control of their spoof franchise, with a return of original leads Anna Faris and Regina Hall and scenes satirizing horror hits like “Sinners,” “Weapons” “The Substance” and many more. Even if every joke doesn’t land, the team’s love of goofy comedy is good-natured enough to please genre fans.

  Disclosure Day (In theaters June 12 via Universal Pictures) — Steven Spielberg’s latest alien epic looks to be a spiritual sequel to “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.” While the trailers have been a bit lackluster, only fools would count out the legendary director, especially given that his hit-to-miss ratio is still exceedingly strong.

• Off the Beaten Path

  Hungry (In theaters now via Signature Entertainment) — In a brilliant move, James Nunn made a horror movie about hungry, hungry hippos (really!) that attack a group of tourists on a bayou boat tour. The trailer looks like campy fun and the creature feature relies on practical effects, so it could be a sugary summer treat.

  Hacked: A Double Entendre of Rage Fueled Karma (Now available on VOD via Scatena & Rosner Films) — After husband and wife filmmakers Shane Brady and Emily Zercher were scammed out of money, they decided to work out their feelings with a fantastical tale about the bloody revenge they’d like to take out on the thieves. Absurd, funny and satisfying, “Hacked” is an indie fueled by righteous fury.

  Find Your Friends (In theaters June 12 via Shudder) — Izabel Pakzad’s blazing revenge feature is carried by a strong group of actors (Helena Howard, Bella Thorne, Zión Moreno, Chloe Cherry and Sophia Ali) who build a believable desert party vibe before shit goes down and they have to handle the locals. It’s a poisonous ode to friendship worth seeking out.

  Rose of Nevada (In theaters June 19 via 1-2 Special) — George MacKay and Callum Turner star as two men who are whisked away after taking a job on a time-travelling boat in Mark Jenkin’s surreal follow-up to “Enys Men.” A genre mash-up for adventurous audiences, Jenkins’ ideas reward the patient and curious.

  Leviticus (In theaters June 19 via Neon) — The buzzy festival favorite is an excellent queer love story between two boys (Joe Bird and Stacy Clausen) who are soon haunted by monsters who look like each other. A great tone and scares tie together this small-scale surprise from writer-director Adrian Chiarella, who delivers another gem during an exceptionally strong year in horror filmmaking.

  Camp (In theaters June 26 via Dark Sky Films) — This dark, dreamy witchcraft feature from writer-director Avalon Fast takes place at a camp for young women dealing with grief. With lush cinematography and a fresh cast led by Zola Grimmer, it’s an engaging breakout that deserves an audience beyond its warm festival reception.

  Strung (Debuting on Peacock on June 26) — Malcolm D. Lee directs his first horror movie with “Strung,” which stars Chloe Bailey as a violinist who must face dark secrets from her past. Tyler Perry and Jason Blum are producers on the project, which also stars Lynn Whitfield, Lucien Laviscount, Anna Diop and Coco Jones.

• Killer Series

  Cape Fear (Debuted June 5 on Apple TV) — Javier Bardem gets evil once again in the series reimagining of John D. MacDonald’s novel “The Executioners.” The story is familiar to modern audiences mostly via the 1991 Martin Scorsese film, and stars Bardem as a sprung ex-con who hopes to get revenge on the married couple (Amy Adams and Patrick Wilson) who represented him in court. With great talent in front of and behind the camera, and producers including Scorsese, Steven Spielberg and creator and horror series extraordinaire Nick Antosca, the show is a great summertime thriller.
  
  “Anne Rice’s The Vampire Lestat” (Debuts June 7 on AMC) — The third season of AMC’s popular Anne Rice’s “The Vampire Chronicles” adaptation series shifts gears and tackles the second book, which focuses on Lestat de Lioncourt (Sam Reid) and his pursuit of rock stardom. Hedonistic pleasures follow.

• Bloodcurdling Books

  Marion by Leah Rowan (Now available via St. Martin’s Press) — This modern-day reimagining of Hitchcock’s “Psycho” has the titular shower scene victim fighting back against Norman Bates and leaving a trail of destruction in her wake as she tries to save her sister. “Marion” is a wonderfully taut story that is more than just its revisionist premise.

  Dead But Dreaming of Electric Sheep by Paul Tremblay (Available June 30 via HarperCollins) — “A Head Full of Ghosts” and “The Cabin at the End of the World” author Tremblay returns with a sci-fi story about a young womvan transporting a man across the country. The trick is that his brain is stuck in an AI nightmare that he’s trying to gain control of. Tremblay expertly delivers twists and turns in a world that seems all too timely.