‘IT’ Star’s New Horror Movie Is Critics’ Worst Nightmare

Of all the great horror movies released so far this year — from underappreciated masterpieces like 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple to viral sensations like Backrooms — none have proven more successful both critically and commercially than Obsession. Curry Barker's breakout into the Hollywood mainstream has been called by many the best feature debut of 2026, as he becomes the latest to make the transition from YouTuber to respected filmmaker.

Becoming the highest-grossing original horror movie of this century and the fifth highest-grossing horror film of all time during an extended theatrical run, Obsession's success has been well documented, and looks set to stretch until the 99th Academy Awards next year, where it will be hopeful of following in the recent footsteps of The Substance and Weapons by defying expectations and taking home a Golden Statue as a horror movie. Perhaps the film's best chance goes to Inde Navarrette, whose star-making turn as Nikki Freeman was called "one of the year's best" performances in Hannah Hunt's review for Collider.

So, we know what the highest-rated horror movie of the year is, and now it seems we've found the lowest-rated horror movie of the year. Ahead of the film's release this weekend, the embargo has been lifted on reviews of Host director Rob Savage's Other Mommy, a brand-new horror starring Academy Award winner Jessica Chastain. Based on the 2024 novel Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman, the film is hoping to become the latest financial horror smash of the year. However, early reviews won't do the film any favors. At the time of writing, Other Mommy has an average score of just 17% on the review site Rotten Tomatoes.

What Have Critics Said About 'Other Mommy'?

With one of the lowest scores of any theatrical release in 2026, you won't be surprised to learn that the reviews for Other Mommy are pretty scathing. ScreenRant's Josh Bate awarded just 4/10 in his review, calling the film "misguided" and admitting that the "horror elements fall completely flat." Other reviews criticize the film for failing "to generate scares," complaining that it "feels stretched and distorted" and is an "uninspired, dumb and choppily edited horror thriller."