Best Horror of May 2025: ‘Clown in a Cornfield,’ a New ‘Final Destination’ and Stephen …

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 editor of Variety.com and the publication’s resident horror enthusiast. Please drop me a line at [email protected] if there’s something I should check out for next month’s missive.

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Marquee Madness

“Clown in a Cornfield” (Opening in theaters on May 9 from RLJE Films and Shudder) — “Tucker & Dale vs. Evil” director Eli Craig helms this sturdy adaptation of Adam Cesare’s hit YA slasher novel, which balances comedy and horror with a major twist. No spoilers, but fans will love both the tropes and subversions the story plays with. (Click here to read Variety’s review.)

“Hurry Up Tomorrow” (Opening in theaters on May 16 from Lionsgate) — The Weeknd teams up with “It Comes at Night” director Trey Edward Shults for a dark psychological thriller. With a plot that sounds pulled from lyrics of his early, dark mixtapes, the singer stars alongside Jenna Ortega and Barry Keoghan as a superstar who begins to lose his mind.

“Final Destination Bloodlines” (Opening in theaters on May 16 from Warner Bros. Pictures) — The long-awaited revival of one of horror’s wackiest franchises arrives, filled with all of the Rube Goldberg-inspired deaths fans have come to expect. Helmed by “Freaks” duo Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein, fans have responded well to the trailer, which features the late franchise mainstay Tony Todd.

“Fear Street: Prom Queen” (Debuting on Netflix on May 23) — The fourth film in the Netflix franchise focuses on a 1988 dance that turns deadly as competition for the Prom Queen title goes too far. Katherine Waterston and Chris Klein star alongside a chic young cast, including India Fowler, Suzanna Son and Fina Strazza, in the nostalgia-inducing project.

“Bring Her Back” (Opening in theaters on May 30 from A24) — “Talk to Me” masterminds Danny and Michael Philippou return with their second feature, “Bring Her Back.” Sally Hawkins stars in this dark tale, and while details are under wraps, early footage looks as visceral and disturbing as the rawest moments of their previous film.

Off the Beaten Path

“The Surfer” (Now playing in theaters from Roadside Attractions and Lionsgate) — Nicolas Cage finds himself in an increasingly violent feud with Australian beach bums in this sunburned genre flick that debuted at Cannes last year. As Cage begins to lose his sanity, what starts as a straightforward revenge flick turns into a psychedelic meditation on cults and conspiracies unlike anything else in theaters this year. (Click here to read Variety’s review.)

“Rosario” (Now playing in theaters from Mucho Mas Releasing) — Emeraude Toubia plays the unflinching title character in this dark magic tale. When a businesswoman is sent to claim the body of her just-passed grandmother, she finds the apartment filled with witchcraft and demonic forces that want to claim a new victim. Come for the haunted house moments, stay for the clever depictions of the immigrant experience that makes the bumps in the night even scarier.

“A Desert” (Now playing in theaters from Dark Sky Films) — Joshua Erkman’s debut feature is filled with surreal visuals and hazy vibes, as a photographer (Kai Lennox) meets a stranger at a motel (Zachary Ray Sherman) who turns his life upside down. “A Desert” is a confident and strange film that demands discussion. (Click here to read Variety’s review.)

“The Moogai” (Opening in theaters on May 9 from Samuel Goldwyn Films) — Jon Bell’s film is inspired by the real-life horrors Aboriginal Australians once faced, as their children could be kidnapped from hospitals at the hands of colonizing forces. This is represented in the film by a more standard boogeyman haunting a young family, but the distress of the past lingers. (Click here to read Variety’s review.)

“The Surrender” (Debuting May 23 on Shudder) — Julia Max’s disturbing meditation on grief stars Colby Minifie (“The Boys “) and Kate Burton (“Grey’s Anatomy”) as a mother and daughter grieving the slow, painful death of the family patriarch. But when the fraught pair attempt to bring him back from the dead, things get even more dicey in this stylish, haunting first feature.

Bloodcurdling Books

“When the Wolf Comes Home” by Nat Cassidy (now available from Tor Nightfire) — With raves from both Stephen King and his son Joe Hill, Nat Cassidy’s latest work is slim but emotionally rich, following a woman and a young runaway trying to evade the boy’s abusive father. With fresh prose and nonstop movement, it’s hard to put down “When the Wolf Comes Home.”

“Polybius” by Collin Armstrong (now available from Gallery Books) — Brimming with nostalgia for ‘80s babies, “Polybius” is the story of a video game that causes a rage virus to break out in a small town. Taking life from an urban legend about a government-created title, it’s a great beach read for horror fans who are activated by the phrase “deadly video game.”

“The Night Birds” by Christopher Golden (Coming out on May 6 from St. Martin’s Press) — “The Night Birds” has a delightfully bonkers concept: A man living on a half-sunk freighter takes in his ex, a woman and a child who claim they are being pursued by a coven full of witches. Golden’s clean narrative keeps the mystery moving right along, with some compelling twists and turns along the way.

“Going Home in the Dark” by Dean Koontz (Coming out on May 20 from Thomas & Mercer) — The prolific thriller author returns with the story of old friends reuniting in their hometown to battle secret evil forces they long thought dormant. Although the premise recalls “It,” the story goes down different dark pathways, mining plenty of fear alongside compelling explorations of memory and friendship.

“Feeders” by Matt Serafini (Coming out on May 20 from Gallery Books) — A wannabe influencer gets wrapped up in a toxic world of social media in “Feeders.” No, it’s not about the decline of Twitter after Elon Musk bought it, but rather MonoLife, a shadowy platform that encourages bad behavior and gets our protagonist, Kylie Bennington, caught up in its deadly path. It’s a fast, fun title from the writer of cult hits such as “Feral” and “Under the Blade.”

“Never Flinch” by Stephen King (Coming out on May 27 from Scribner) — The master returns with another Holly Gibney story, this time a crime tale following his fictional muse as she’s hired to be a bodyguard for an outspoken women’s rights activist, as well as asked to help stop a mass killing before it happens. While it’s not directly horror, it’s a dark, fast read, and will keep King fans turning the pages.

“Lake Yellowwood Slaughter” by Alejandro Arbona and Gavin Guidry (Coming soon via Goats Flying Press) — This 90-page graphic novel is close to the finish line via Kickstarter. A love letter to giallo, “Slaughter” purports to be the adaptation of the never-existed 1983 slasher of the same name. The art looks great so far and the influences — from “Blood and Black Lace” to “Deep Red” — are spot-on.

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