2025's Killer Clown Horror Hit Returns From the Dead on Streaming

In 2026, the crème de la crème of the horror genre has risen to the top of the streaming charts and box office. YouTuber-turned-feature-film director Kane Parsons helped turn a viral horror story into a blockbuster success with A24's Backrooms; 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple may have missed the mark financially but earned widespread critical approval, and more. But no horror has quite stolen the spotlight like Curry Barker's excellent debut, Obsession, which has not only turned a sub-$1 million budget into over half a billion but has also earned plenty of Oscars buzz.

2026's success follows on from the popularity of horror in 2025, which saw two of the genre break into the Academy Awards and leave with trophies. But among last year's great crop of chilling fright-fests, one went too far under the radar. The film in question is Clown in a Cornfield, a slasher based on Adam Cesare's 2020 novel of the same name. Directed by Eli Craig from a script by Craig and Carter Blanchard, Clown in a Cornfield tells the story of new arrivals to a forgotten Midwestern town that is quietly becoming the playground for the horrors of Frendo the clown.

Starring the likes of Katie Douglas, Aaron Abrams, Carson MacCormac, Kevin Durand, and Will Sasso, this low-budget production proved a small success at the box office, making just shy of $14 million worldwide from a reported $1 million budget. The film earned "certified fresh" status on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, with critics praising its subversion of genre expectations. Thankfully, a year later, the film is becoming more popular, with Clown in a Cornfield currently one of the ten most-watched movies on HBO Max in the world.

A New Horror Arrival Is Stealing Headlines

Another of last year's best horror films was Zach Cregger's Weapons, which even won Amy Madigan the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. This weekend, Cregger has premiered his follow-up to Weapons in the form of Resident Evil, an adaptation of one of the biggest horror video game franchises. Already, the film has scored an impressive 96% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and is likely to top the box office charts upon debut.