So far, 2026 has offered fans of thriller movies some exceptional experiences on the big screen. Full of suspense, great performances, and nail-biting sequences of pure tension, the best thriller films of the year so far are bound to still be remembered as some of 2026's best movies by the time 2027 rolls in. From the great to the absolutely perfect, they've all been masterclasses in how to make thrillers that hit hard.
Of course, with us being only halfway through the year, not all 2026's best thrillers have been perfect; but they've all been so great that it'll take something truly special to take any of their spots. Whether it's an underappreciated indie darling like The Death of Robin Hood, a big blockbuster like Disclosure Day, or a micro-budget surprise like Obsession, these are all worthy of being considered among the best thrillers of the last few years.
10 'The Death of Robin Hood'
Gritty revisionist takes on mythical heroes like Robin Hood aren't a new concept, but rarely do they work as well as The Death of Robin Hood does. Directed by Michael Sarnoski, this A24 action thriller is an adaptation of the Early Modern English ballad Robin Hood's Death, widely considered one of the oldest existing tales of Robin Hood.
Nowadays, most people are familiar with an image of Robin Hood as a romantic, idealist folk hero. In the oldest Medieval ballads about the character, however, he was a ruthless outlaw who didn't much care about robbing the rich to give to the poor. Sarnoski's film is all about subverting that classic swashbuckling folklore to deliver a richly profound meditation on aging, regret, and the burden of legacy. The pacing is a bit tedious, but the narrative is irresistibly compelling.
9 'Crime 101'
Image via Amazon MGMDad movies are important, often the driving force of the quieter pre-summer months of movie releases. This year, that dad movie was Crime 101, which has the potential to become a true dad movie classic going forward. Elevated by a star-studded cast and based on the 2020 novella by Don Winslow, this Bart Layton gem may not be a masterpiece, but it sure is masterfully entertaining.
Though the film was unfortunately a box office bomb, critics and audiences who saw it absolutely loved it. A sleek neo-noir the likes of which Los Angeles is already accustomed to by now, it's an incredibly suspenseful and surprisingly well-written two-and-a-half hours of pure adrenaline. That runtime definitely feels a little excessive at times, but as soon as the next explosive set piece comes along, it becomes easier to forgive the film being overlong.
8 'Dead Man's Wire'
Image via Row K EntertainmentOne of the most important Hollywood indie filmmakers of his generation, Gus Van Sant can be a little hit-or-miss sometimes. This year, however, the director delivered a definitive hit: Dead Man's Wire, inspired by the real 1977 hostage standoff involving American kidnapper Tony Kiritsis. Though the film premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in September 2025, it only received its wide release on January of this year.
It's already one of the best thrillers of the 2020s, perfectly recreating its '70s setting with a dark sense of humor and some nail-biting suspense. Anchored by Bill Skarsgård and Dacre Montgomery both at the top of their games, it's a top-tier anti-capitalist thriller unlike anything else the 2020s have delivered thus far. Gripping, absurdly amusing, and delightfully retro, it's the sort of modern gem that all those who love '70s thrillers like Dog Day Afternoon are guaranteed to enjoy.
7 'The Moment'
Image via A24Between the early and mid-2010s, Charli XCX started gaining mainstream traction. Today, she has one of the most loyal cult followings of any musical artist of her generation. With her popularity skyrocketing in the 2020s, it's no surprise that she's begun her incursion into acting. However, this year's The Moment is no traditional acting role for the singer-songwriter. This hugely meta psychological thriller mockumentary is a semi-autobiographical satire all about the pressures and anxieties of artistic control.
Directed by Aidan Zamiri and based on an original idea by Charli, this wildly creative A24 project isn't quite as sharp as it needed to be in order to be considered a masterpiece; but it's nevertheless one of the most daring and ingenious thrillers we've seen in recent years, and a must-see for fans of contemporary pop music.
6 'Send Help'
Image via 20th Century StudiosIf only because it represents a return to the same campy, bloody, over-the-top, bodily-fluid-filled form that Sam Raimi fans missed so much, Send Help is easily one of the best thriller movies of 2026. It's the kind of survival horror thriller that the blockbuster landscape needs more of nowadays: Purely fun, unapologetically auteur-driven, and completely unafraid of alienating those who prefer their thrillers less quirky.
Rachel McAdams and Dylan O'Brien are both chewing the scenery here in ways that could only work this well in a Raimi film, and it's their chemistry that anchors the movie's emotional core as it twists and turns in all sorts of entirely unexpected directions. As an allegory for power dynamics and workplace misogyny, the film is not particularly subtle; but it never pretends to be anything other than an exquisitely hammy delight anyway.
5 'Is God Is'
Image via Amazon MGM StudiosBased on writer-director Aleshea Harris' 2018 stage play, Is God Is can be counted among the greatest stage-to-screen adaptations of the last few years. It's a Southern Gothic revenge thriller with a razor-sharp comedic edge, ferociously creative and entirely deserving of its impressive 97% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes.
It's a love letter to sisterhood and a powerful deconstruction of the complexities of generational trauma and Black womanhood, a near-masterpiece that deserves far more love than it's gotten so far. It's a future cult classic that juggles all of its diverse genre elements brilliantly, furiously entertaining but also undeniably heartbreaking and psychologically intense.
4 'Disclosure Day'
Image via Universal PicturesThere is no blockbuster filmmaking working in Hollywood today than the father of blockbusters, Steven Spielberg himself. Even though the director's 21st-century output hasn't been quite as masterful as his work before the 2000s was, it's still true that every time a new Spielberg movie comes out, it's a cultural event. That's particularly true for his first true alien invasion movie since 2005, Disclosure Day.
The film plays out as more of an espionage thriller, and though some may not like that, others may find that it often works in its favor. Disclosure Day may not be one of Spielberg's highest-rated sci-fi movies on Letterboxd, but it's nevertheless one of his best modern films to date. Suspenseful, creative, visually striking, and as life-affirmingly humanist as one can always expect from a Spielberg blockbuster, it can already be counted among the most underappreciated films of the year thus far.
3 '28 Years Later: The Bone Temple'
Image via Sony Pictures ReleasingBack in 2002, Danny Boyle revitalized and revolutionized the zombie genre for 21st-century filmmakers with 28 Days Later, even though Boyle himself doesn't actually consider it a zombie movie. Five years later came the controversial 28 Weeks Later, but 18 years after that, the franchise returned to form with Boyle's 28 Years Later. Cut to a mere 7 months after that gem's release and you get Nia DaCosta's 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, a direct sequel that some would confidently call the second best installment in the series.
Few zombie movies are better than The Bone Temple; yes, it's that good. It's hauntingly intense and brilliantly directed, a thematic study of systemic human cruelty that understands the irresistible charm of both its franchise and its genre perfectly. As a horror movie, it's just the right amount of scary and gory. As a thriller, its suspense is almost unbearable. All in all, 2020s horror thrillers don't get much better than this.
Collider Exclusive · Horror Survival Quiz Which Horror Villain Do You Have the Best Chance of Surviving? Jason Voorhees · Michael Myers · Freddy Krueger · Pennywise · Chucky
Five killers. Five completely different ways to die — if you're not smart enough, fast enough, or self-aware enough to avoid it. Only one of them is the villain your particular set of instincts gives you a fighting chance against. Eight questions will figure out which one.
🏕️Jason
🔪Michael
💤Freddy
🎈Pennywise
🪆Chucky
TEST YOUR SURVIVAL →
01
Something feels wrong. You can't explain it — you just know. What do you do? First instincts are the difference between the survivor and the first act casualty.
ALeave immediately. I don't need to understand a threat to respect it. BStay quiet and observe. If I can see it, I can understand it. If I can understand it, I can avoid it. CStay awake. Whatever this is, I am not going to sleep until I feel safe again. DConfront it directly. Fear grows in the dark — I'd rather know what I'm dealing with. ECheck everything, trust nothing. The threat might be closer than I think — and smaller.
NEXT QUESTION →
02
Where are you most likely to find yourself when things go wrong? Setting is everything in horror. Where you are determines which rules apply.
ASomewhere remote — a cabin, a campsite, off the grid and away from people. BA quiet suburban neighbourhood where nothing ever happens. Except tonight. CIn my own head — the most dangerous place of all, depending on what's already in there. DWherever children are — because something about this place attracts the worst things. ESomewhere ordinary — a house, a toy store, a place where the last thing you'd expect is a threat.
NEXT QUESTION →
03
What is your most reliable survival asset? Every survivor has a quality the villain didn't account for. What's yours?
APhysical fitness — I can run, I can swim, I can outlast something that relies on brute persistence. BSpatial awareness — I always know the exits, the hiding spots, the fastest route out. CPsychological resilience — I've faced my worst fears before. They don't have the same power over me. DEmotional steadiness — I don't panic. Panic is what gets you caught. EScepticism — I don't underestimate threats because of how they look. Size is irrelevant.
NEXT QUESTION →
04
What kind of fear is hardest for you to fight through? Knowing your weakness is the first step to not dying because of it.
AThe unstoppable — something that will not stop, cannot be reasoned with, and is always getting closer. BThe invisible — a threat I can feel but can't locate, watching from somewhere I can't see. CThe psychological — something that uses my own mind and memories against me. DThe unknowable — something ancient, shapeless, that feeds on the fear itself. EThe mundane — a threat so ordinary-looking that no one will believe me until it's too late.
NEXT QUESTION →
05
You're with a group when things start going wrong. What's your role? Horror movies are brutally clear about who survives group situations and who doesn't.
AThe one who says "we need to leave" first — and means it, even when no one listens. BThe one who stays quiet, watches the others, and figures out the pattern before anyone else does. CThe one who holds the group together when panic sets in — because someone has to. DThe one who asks the questions nobody wants to ask — because ignoring them gets people killed. EThe one who takes the threat seriously when everyone else is laughing it off.
NEXT QUESTION →
06
What's the horror movie mistake you're most likely to make? Honest self-assessment is a survival skill. Denial is not.
AGoing back for someone — I know I shouldn't, but I can't leave them behind. BAssuming I'm safe once I've found a hiding spot. That's when it finds me. CFalling asleep when I absolutely cannot afford to. Exhaustion is its own enemy. DLetting my curiosity override my instincts — I always need to understand what I'm dealing with. EDismissing the threat because of how it looks. That's exactly what it wants.
NEXT QUESTION →
07
What's your best weapon against something that can't be stopped by conventional means? Every horror villain has a weakness. The survivors are always the ones who find it.
AThe environment itself — I use the terrain, the water, the geography against it. BPatience — I wait, I watch, and I strike at the one moment it doesn't expect. CLucidity — if I can stay in control of my own mind, it loses its primary weapon. DCourage — facing it directly, refusing to run, taking away the fear it feeds on. EImprovisation — I use whatever's at hand, however unconventional. Creativity over brute force.
NEXT QUESTION →
08
It's the final scene. You're the last one standing. How did you make it? The final survivor always has a reason. What's yours?
AI kept moving. I never stopped, never hid for too long, never let it corner me. BI figured out the pattern before anyone else did — and I used it against the thing following it. CI stayed awake, stayed lucid, and refused to give it the one thing it needed most. DI stopped being afraid of it. And the moment I did, everything changed. EI took it seriously from the start — and I never once made the mistake of underestimating it.
REVEAL MY VILLAIN →
Your Survival Odds Have Been Calculated Your Best Chance Is Against…
Your instincts, your strengths, and your particular way of thinking under pressure point to one villain you actually have a fighting chance against. Everyone else — good luck.
Jason Voorhees
Jason is relentless, but he is also predictable — and that is the gap you would exploit.
- He moves in straight lines toward his target. He doesn't strategise, doesn't adapt, doesn't outsmart. He simply pursues.
- Your ability to keep moving, use the environment, and resist the panic that freezes most victims gives you a genuine edge.
- The Crystal Lake survivors were always the ones who stopped running in circles and started thinking about terrain, water, and distance.
- You think like that. Which means Jason, for all his indestructibility, would face someone who simply refused to be where he expected.
Michael Myers
Michael watches before he moves. He is patient, methodical, and almost impossible to detect — until it's too late for anyone who isn't paying close enough attention.
- But you are paying attention. You notice the shape in the window, the car parked slightly wrong, the silence where there should be sound.
- Michael's power lies in the invisibility of ordinary suburbia — the fact that nothing ever looks wrong until it already is.
- Your spatial awareness and instinct to map every room, every exit, and every shadow before you need them is precisely the quality Laurie Strode had.
- You are not a victim waiting to happen. You are someone who already suspects something is wrong — and acts on it.
Freddy Krueger
Freddy wins by getting inside your head — using your own fears, your own memories, your own subconscious as weapons against you. That strategy requires a target who can be destabilised.
- You are harder to destabilise than most. You've faced uncomfortable truths about yourself and you haven't looked away.
- The survivors on Elm Street were always the ones who understood what was happening and chose to face it rather than flee from it.
- Freddy's greatest weakness is that his power evaporates in the presence of someone who refuses to give him the fear he feeds on.
- Your psychological resilience — the ability to stay grounded when reality itself becomes unreliable — is exactly the quality that keeps you alive here.
Pennywise
Pennywise is ancient, shapeshifting, and feeds on terror — but it has one critical vulnerability: it cannot function against someone who genuinely stops being afraid of it.
- The Losers Club didn't survive because they were braver than everyone else. They survived because they faced their fears together, and faced them honestly.
- You ask the questions others avoid. You look directly at what frightens you rather than turning away.
- That directness — the refusal to let fear fester in the dark — is Pennywise's worst nightmare.
- It chose the wrong target when it chose you. You are exactly the kind of person whose fear tastes like nothing at all.
Chucky
Chucky's greatest advantage is that nobody takes him seriously until it's already too late. He exploits the gap between how something looks and what it actually is.
- You don't have that gap. You take threats seriously regardless of how they present — and you never make the mistake of underestimating something because of its size or appearance.
- Chucky relies on surprise, on the delay between recognition and response. You close that delay faster than almost anyone.
- Your instinct to treat every unfamiliar thing with appropriate scepticism — rather than dismissing it because it seems absurd — is the exact quality that keeps you breathing.
- Against Chucky, not laughing is already winning. You are very good at not laughing.
↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ
2 'Backrooms'
Image via A24Announcing A24's Backrooms as a film admirably directed by a 20-year-old ad nauseam has become a bit of a meme, but it's truly admirable that Kane Parsons became the youngest director in cinema history to have a film debut at number one at both the US domestic and global box offices. An addition to Parsons' cult classic YouTube web series, itself inspired by the 4chan creepypasta, it's the sort of Gen Z horror movie that could have only possibly come together in this hyper-digital age.Whether Backrooms will feel a bit too much like a product of its time a few decades from now remains to be seen; but for the moment, it's one of the biggest pop culture sensations that indie horror has provided in years, and one of the best movies of 2026 so far. Creepy, meticulously-paced, and surprisingly thought-provoking, this horror thriller has established Parsons as one of the most exciting horror filmmakers of his generation.
1 'Obsession'
Image via Focus FeaturesIt happens to be Curry Barker, another Gen Z filmmaker who found his origins on YouTube, who directed the best horror thriller of 2026, which may well also be one of the best of the century. It's Obsession, the highest-grossing live-action English-language original movie of the 2020s. Horror has been having a bit of a moment throughout the 2020s, and this psychological thriller perfectly demonstrates exactly why.
Somehow on a budget of under a million dollars, Obsession is far and away one of the best Blumhouse horror movies of all time—if not the very best. Absolutely horrifying purely thanks to Barker's perfect understanding of pacing and atmosphere, this horror thriller masterpiece is mainly anchored by Inde Navarrette delivering one of the greatest horror performances of the century. Thematically complex, deliciously clever, and injected with moments of humor that always come at exactly the right time, Obsession is an absolute masterclass in everything it does.
Obsession
Release Date May 15, 2026
Runtime 108 minutes
Director Curry Barker
Writers Curry Barker
English (US) ·