Despite the abundance of film genres, it’s easy to get tired of seeing the same types of movies over and over again. The horror genre, however, is continuously being reinvented in order to make it stand out from others by incorporating aspects like the psychological and the thriller. This year has been amazing in terms of horror films, with titles such as Scream VI, Renfield, and Evil Dead Rise.
In fact, the month of June saw the release of numerous highly anticipated horror films, such as The Boogeyman and Jagged Mind. While we’ve had our fair share of jump-scares and nightmares due to these, it’s not the end of the road just yet, as many more exciting films are yet to be released on streaming platforms or in theaters. So, without further ado, here are the best horror movies releasing in July 2023.
Insidious: The Red Door (July 7)
So far, Insidious has been a relatively unique horror franchise, with all the stories revolving around an appalling spiritual realm known as “The Further.” Since the franchise’s inception in 2010, four films have haunted fans on the big screen, and the fifth is just around the corner to scare you once again.
Apparently, Insidious: The Red Door will be the franchise’s final film, and it will see the return of the Lambert family, who were absent in the third and fourth films but pivotal in the first two. With the previous movie focusing on Elise, who was forced to revisit her traumatic childhood, the plot came full circle and eventually connected us back to the Lambert family.
In the upcoming movie, Josh (Patrick Wilson) and Dalton (Ty Simpkins) will venture deeper into The Further to confront the horrifying demons lurking behind the red door. The film will be released in theaters on July 7, 2023.
Bird Box Barcelona (July 14)
Bird Box, which was released on Netflix in 2018, was a true horror in certain ways, despite lacking the usual horror tropes. What would you do if you were confronted with a collapsing world where you couldn’t even see, rather than an evil spirit or possessed people? That is the main idea of Bird Box, and Bird Box Barcelona is a new spinoff film in the franchise set around the same time.
This time, the story takes place in Europe, in Spain, and follows Sebastian and his young daughter Anna as they fight to survive in the desolate streets of Barcelona while avoiding people possessed by strange entities. Although they eventually find a group of survivors, the real obstacle originates soon as they are unsure who to trust. According to reports, the Bird Box franchise will see more spinoffs in the future, with this film serving as the first.
The Flood (July 14)
As evidenced by Anaconda, King Kong, and Jaws, creature horror films have long been regarded as a sort of adrenaline-filled experience. These movies frequently provide nearly as much thrill as any classic horror film and sometimes even more. In the upcoming film The Flood, hungry alligators ambush convicts and guards in prison. The official synopsis of the film is as follows:
“After a massive hurricane floods Louisiana, it unleashes a threat even deadlier than the rising water level: a relentless horde of giant hungry alligators. When a group of in-transit prisoners and their security guards seek shelter in a local prison, they become prey for the flesh-eating attackers. To survive, the prisoners and guards must fight together in this action-thriller packed with slithery scares and jaw-clenching suspense.”
Cobweb (July 21)
The stars of The Boys and Party Down will feature in the new film Cobweb to investigate the bizarre sounds produced within the walls, but to their horror, a terrifying entity awaits them on the other side. Cobweb tackles a twisted horror notion through the perspective of a child, following Peter, an eight-year-old boy who is plagued by odd sounds originating from his bedroom walls at night.
However, much to his disbelief, his parents do not appear to explore the matter, instead dismissing his fear as a figment of his imagination. With time, Peter begins to wonder what type of presence their parents might be hiding behind the walls and starts to lose faith in them. Is there anything scarier for a child than that?
Sympathy for the Devil (July 28)
This July will see every horror film with an exceptional theme, with Sympathy for the Devil starring Nicolas Cage, being the most distinctive of them all. The trailer suggests that the film will be spooky as hell, with Nicolas Cage playing a maniacal part and Joel Kinnaman playing a victim.
The plot revolves around a driver who has no idea how he ended up in a situation where he had to play a life-or-death game while being held at gunpoint by his passenger on the most important night of his life. However, he believes that he will not make it out alive unless he plays the stranger’s bizarre games. Sympathy for the Devil will be released in theaters on July 28.