8 must-see horror movies releasing this spring

Forbidden Fruits- Courtesy of IFC

Horror fans have much to look forward to this spring. Several months before the Halloween season kicks into high gear, many genre films are releasing in theaters or on streaming. These include some intriguing indie darlings, as well as brand new features from some of the genre's most exciting directors.

Here are eight movies we can't wait to watch this season.

Forbidden Fruits - Releases in theaters on March 27

Forbidden Fruits just premiered at the South by Southwest Film Festival (check out our review). It's a horror comedy starring Lili Reinhart, Lola Tung, Victoria Pedretti, Alexandra Shipp, Emma Chamberlain, and Gabrielle Union. The movie was directed by Meredith Alloway, who co-wrote the script with Lily Houghton. In it, Free Eden employee Apple (Reinhart) runs a witchy cult in the basement of the mall after hours. She's joined by her fellow "fruits," Cherry (Pedretti) and Fig (Shipp), but a new employee, Pumpkin (Tung), suddenly challenges their status and what she views as performative sisterhood. The movie certainly looks like a witchy good time.

They Will Kill You - Releases in theaters on March 27

Judging purely from the trailers, They Will Kill You looks like it has dashes of Kill Bill mixed with Ready or Not. Directed by Kirill Soklov, from a script by Alex Litvak, the movie stars Zazie Beetz, Heather Graham, Patricia Arquette, and Tom Felton. The plot follows an ex-convict named Asia Reaves (Beetz) who answers an ad to be a housekeeper at a mysterious NYC high-rise. She's unaware she's about to enter a community that's seen several disappearances over the years.

Faces of Death - Releases in theaters April 10

Faces of Death is a remake of one of the most notorious horror anthologies of all time, which actually used some footage of deaths and pushed the "Is it real or not?" conceit to its limits. It's unlikely this remake will ignite as much controversy as the original, but it'll be interesting to see what they keep and also how they veer away from the initial anthology. This version follows a woman who's a content moderator for a video platform. Suddenly, she discovers murder re-enactments. She's then left to determine if it's all fiction or real-life violence.

Exit 8- Releases in theaters on April 10

Liminal horror is having a moment right now, especially with A24's Backrooms slated to release in May. Prior to that, however, NEON will unleash Exit 8 in theaters this April. It's based on a video game created by Kotake Create, and the movie follows a man trapped in a subway as he searches for Exit 8. His quest involves a simple premise and rules: don't overlook anything out of the ordinary, but if you discover an anomaly, immediately turn back. If not, simply carry on. A single slip-up sends the man back to the beginning.

Lee Cronin's The Mummy - Releases in theaters on April 17

Lee Cronin's The Mummy is not to be confused with the franchise starring Brendan Fraser or the classic Universal Monster movies. In this latest mummy tale, a journalist's daughter disappears into the desert. Nearly a decade later, the family is stunned and shocked when she returns, but as we horror fans know, her return is more of a nightmare than a happy reunion. The movie stars Jack Reynor, Laia Costa, Maya Calamawy, Natalie Grace, and Veronica Falcon.

Hokum - Releases in theaters on May 1

Irish writer/director Damien Mc Carthy's previous movies, Caveat and Oddity, were a masterclass in establishing dread and a foreboding atmosphere. Mc Carthy's third feature stars Adam Scott, of Severance fame, as Ohm Bauman. He's a cynical author who travels to a remote Irish village to scatter his parents' ashes. Once there, he's haunted by tales of a witch in the hotel's honeymoon suite. As a result, he's forced to confront personal trauma.

Obsession - Releases in theaters on May 15

Few horror movies releasing this year have as much buzz as writer/director Curry Barker's Obsession. Barker made a name for himself after some of his YouTube horror shorts and feature-length movie Milk and Serial went viral. Obsession already earned positive reviews when it premiered at South by Southwest, including by our very own Jacob Harper, who described the movie as a twisted take on the "Monkey's Paw" narrative. In this version of the familiar tale, Bear (Michael Johnston) utilizes a supernatural trinket to make his crush and childhood friend, Nikki (Inde Navarrette), fall in love with him. Of course, this all goes horribly wrong.

Backrooms - Releases in theaters on May 29

As already stated, Backrooms is another eagerly anticipated liminal space horror movie. Directed by Kane Parsons and written by Will Soodik, the A24 feature is based upon Parsons' web series, which was inspired by the "Backrooms" creepypasta. The film stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve, Mark Duplass, Finn Bennett, Lukita Maxwell, and Avan Jogia.

For more horror news, commentary, and reviews, be sure to follow The Horror Lounge on Facebook, Twitter/X (@TheHorrorLounge), and Bluesky (@TheHorrorLounge).