The year 2020 was set to become one of the greatest years for horror movie releases with reboots, sequels, and unique stories from some of the genre's most iconic creators. Once filming restrictions were made and movie theaters closed, the COVID-19 pandemic postponed some of the most long-awaited flicks by months and even years. As horror's biggest season is well underway, here are all of the horror movies that should have released by now.
Since March of 2020, the film industry has been forced to reconcile with the fact that postponing releases may be the best mode of action in order to have a successful premiere. Universal immediately pulled their summer releases which included a return to The Conjuring universe with a story centered around Candyman directed by Nia DaCosta and written alongside Get Out director Jordan Peele. Major franchises in the genre were expanding or ending while folk horror prepared to continue embracing its new-found popularity with Antlers.
2020 hasn't entirely been a disappointing year for horror with major successes such as Host, the zoom based found footage film, and Relic, an impressive and horrific interpretation of dementia. The genre has grown and adapted under the current circumstances with Shudder's sixty-one days of Halloween. Yet, the fact remains that there are some major horror movies that should have released by now whose postponements have been major disappointments.
Candyman
Nia DaCosta's Candyman was set to release initially on June 12th before eventually moving to October 16th, but the film has now been postponed to 2021. While the new date is still unknown, the anticipation for its premiere remains at an all-time high. With Tony Todd making a comeback and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as the lead character, it is destined to be one of the most horrific as well as socially, culturally, and politically relevant movies that will undoubtedly live up to the standards of its 1992 predecessor. The purpose behind postponing is due to the understandable desire that DaCosta's has to see her film in theaters.
Spiral
The ninth installment in the Saw franchise, Spiral was slated to be released on May 15, 2020 but was swiftly postponed as the pandemic persisted. Starring Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson, the story follows two detectives who uncover a string of murders that resemble Jigsaw's work. When it was initially announced, it was assumed that May 15, 2021 would be the official release date but that has since changed to unknown. There is no new date set in place but it is likely that an announcement will come soon, considering the highly anticipated new take on the Saw story and Chris Rock's first role in a horror movie.
The Forever Purge
This year, The Purge franchise was set to come to a close with The Forever Purge. It is the fifth installment in the movie series that follows the ultraviolence that occurs when the opportunity to do whatever to whoever you want without consequence arises. It was initially set for July 10, 2020, but has since been postponed by Universal with a new release date for July 9, 2021.
Antlers
Directed by Scott Cooper with Guillermo del Toro producing, Antlers follows a small town that's being tormented by a bizarre supernatural creature that resembles the folklore of the wendigo. It was set to release on April 17, 2020, but has since been changed to February 19, 2021. Antlers will premiere sooner rather than later with a horrifying plot that will undoubtedly be worth the wait.
Saint Maud
A24 has quickly become known as a movie company that knows good horror such as Hereditary and Robert Eggers's The Witch. Saint Maud was set to be their next release in the genre with psychologically horrifying elements that includes themes of Catholicism, possession, and obsession. Its release date was set for April 10, 2020, that changed to July 17, 2020, but has now been indefinitely postponed in the United States. However, it will premiere in the United Kingdom on October 23, 2020.
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It will supposedly feature Ed and Lorraine Warren's most horrific story of the supernatural to date. As such, its addition to the highly successful The Conjuring universe will continue to situate the series as one of the greatest in horror history. While it was initially set to premiere on September 11, 2020, it was postponed to June 4, 2021. The date may appear arbitrary but most of the movies in the franchise are set for late spring and early summer releases, it has also proven to be the most successful timeframe for them.
A Quiet Place Part II
A Quiet Place Part II follows the aftermath of the events of the first film when the family discovered the monsters' weakness and lost Lee Abbott (John Krasinski) along the way. The sequel finds the Abbotts outside of the safety of their home and on the road searching for a new means of protection. A Quiet Place Part II was set to release in March 2020 then changed to September 2020 and once more for April 23, 2021. Only time will tell if it will be postponed for the fourth time but hopefully, it will not.
October 2020 Horror Movies That Have Also Been Delayed
The Witches
Nicolas Roeg's 1990 dark fantasy movie The Witches is adapted from Roald Dahl's novel of the same name and was set to be entirely remade for 2020 with a socially relevant storyline. It was set to release on October 9, 2020, and follow the story of a young Black boy (Jahzir Kadeem Bruno) and his grandmother (Octavia Spencer) in 1960s Alabama who encounter the Grand High Witch (Anne Hathaway). While there is no set date for the future, the production company anticipates a 2021 release.
Halloween Kills
One of the most disappointing postponed movies of 2020 is the sequel to 2018's Halloween, Halloween Kills. Its release date was set for October 16, 2020, on the same day as DaCosta's Candyman but has since been changed to October 15, 2021. The definitive release provides comfort where the unknown cannot. In a year, fans will have the opportunity to see Halloween Kills and the return of the scream queen supreme Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode.
There are nine major horror movies in total that either should have released by now or were set for release ahead of Halloween 2020, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they have been forced to postpone their releases for an array of reasons. With every movie already slated for 2021 and the additions of the postponed movies from 2020, obviously 2021 will be filled with an abundance of new releases, provided cinemas are deemed safe. Hopefully, there won't be any more postponement announcements for horror movies for the rest of 2020.
