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Curtain Raiser: Five Premieres to Watch at FrightFest UK 2025

Every August, Leicester Square becomes the epicenter of terror as FrightFest London takes over two ODEON theaters for five days of cinematic carnage. This year, beginning Thursday, August 21, the self-styled “Woodstock of Gore” returns for its twenty-sixth edition, offering horror fans sixty-nine films across four screens including over twenty-five World Premieres. Whether you’re a diehard genre junkie or a curious newcomer, FrightFest is the place to scream, squirm, and discover the next great nightmare. Tickets are available directly through the FrightFest website, (https://frightfest.co.uk/) where attendees can snag festival passes, day passes, or individual tickets for the films of their choice. With screenings running from morning until well past midnight, the only thing scarier than the movies is deciding what to see first.

If the sheer size of the lineup feels overwhelming, these five premieres stand out as essential entries that capture the spirit of this year’s festival.

                                    

APPOFENIACS

Imagine a world where truth is impossible to separate from fabrication. That’s the landscape of APPOFENIACS, Chris Marrs Piliero’s ambitious new ensemble horror that explores the human fallout of AI deepfakes. Anchored by Sean Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy), the film threads together intersecting stories of people whose lives unravel when digital illusions begin replacing lived reality. What makes APPOFENIACS so exciting as a premiere is its blend of tech-paranoia and character-driven storytelling. Horror has long thrived on fears of identity theft and loss of self, but the deepfake angle drags those anxieties straight into the present. Piliero uses the concept to ask pressing questions: if you can’t trust what you see, can you trust your own mind? Early buzz describes the film as both satirical and deeply unsettling, striking a tone somewhere between Charlie Brooker’s Black Mirror and Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Pulse. By connecting multiple narratives into one escalating nightmare, APPOFENIACS promises to be not just a commentary on digital disinformation but a true exercise in cinematic paranoia. Gunn’s performance is already being highlighted as one of his best, bringing manic charm and tragic humanity to a story where every character might be a victim…or a fabrication. In an age of misinformation, APPOFENIACS feels urgent, topical, and terrifyingly real. Expect it to leave audiences checking their own reflections (and maybe their social media feeds) with newfound suspicion.   

                                                                                 

WHAT SHE DOESN’T KNOW

Carrying the legacy of horror royalty, WHAT SHE DOESN’T KNOW arrives with a script penned by Terry Castle, daughter of William Castle, the showman behind House on Haunted Hill. Directed by Juan Pablo Arias Muñoz, this Chilean-helmed premiere blends classic Castle-style suspense with modern slasher sensibilities, making it one of FrightFest’s most intriguing debuts. The film centers on two high schoolers who skip prom while a serial killer stalks their town. They retreat instead to a secluded mansion with friends, seeking safety in isolation. But of course, isolation is never safety in horror. What begins as a night of whispered secrets and adolescent tension transforms into a deadly game of survival as the killer’s presence (and the characters’ own betrayals) come to light. Expect sharp contrasts between the glittering promise of prom night and the shadowed, echoing halls of the mansion. And while Castle’s name evokes nostalgic funhouse horror, the script also digs into modern themes of trust, trauma, and the masks we wear among friends. This is a film built on heritage but not weighed down by it. By blending Castle’s knack for showmanship with contemporary slasher grit, WHAT SHE DOESN’T KNOW has the potential to honor the past while carving its own bloody path forward. For those who crave suspense that balances classic chills with fresh twists, this is must-see.

                                                              

BAMBOO REVENGE

Revenge thrillers often ask what justice looks like when the system fails. BAMBOO REVENGE takes that question to sadistic new extremes. French director Edgar Marie delivers a claustrophobic, high-concept horror in which a grieving woman binds three men to the ground beneath a rare, fast-growing bamboo species. The only way out? Confess their involvement in her sister’s disappearance…or be slowly impaled as the stalks pierce flesh and bone. This is body horror rooted not in monsters or mutations, but in nature itself. Bamboo, a symbol of resilience and growth, becomes a weapon of truth, forcing both characters and audiences to endure unbearable tension. Marie’s use of natural processes to exact vengeance feels fresh, brutal, and terrifyingly plausible. The premise alone is enough to guarantee BAMBOO REVENGE a spot on must-watch lists, but early word highlights the film’s blend of arthouse style with grindhouse grit. Expect painterly compositions of lush greenery set against grotesque violence, which sounds like a fusion of Park Chan-wook’s Oldboy and Takashi Miike’s Audition. At its heart, the film is about power and silence: who controls the narrative of trauma, and what happens when victims seize the tools of punishment. It’s not just horror, but a meditation on complicity and consequence.

                                        

 

THE RED MASK

Meta-horror has become a genre staple, but THE RED MASK sharpens the blade by turning toxic fandom itself into the villain. Directed by Ritesh Gupta, this Queer-centered slasher finds a screenwriter tasked with concluding a beloved franchise, only to face harassment, death threats, and (eventually) bloodshed when fans decide they know the story better than the creator. If Misery gave us a single Annie Wilkes, THE RED MASK imagines more than one of them…an obsessive collective determined to seize their beloved character and twist the story into their own. Fleeing to the woods for safety, the writer discovers that obsession doesn’t stop at online threats. The fans arrive, masked and merciless, determined to dictate their “true” ending. What follows is a savage exploration of entitlement, authorship, and the blurry line between love and possession. Gupta brings a deeply personal lens, queering the horror of fandom while celebrating the transformative power of storytelling. The wooded setting lends itself to primal imagery, positioning the act of writing as survival itself. THE RED MASK looks especially vital in today’s climate, where creators face harassment campaigns from hostile fanbases. By literalizing those dangers into masked maniacs, Gupta not only crafts a gripping slasher but also reframes horror as a battleground for creative autonomy. Fans may see themselves reflected on-screen but not always in flattering ways. This is the kind of premiere that cements FrightFest’s reputation: bold, current, and unafraid to take aim at the culture surrounding horror itself.

                                                                                    

THE WEED EATERS

Sometimes horror needs to be funny, outrageous, and unforgettable, and THE WEED EATERS is shaping up to be all three. This premiere takes stoner comedy to the darkest of places: cannibalism. The story follows a group of friends on a New Year’s getaway who stumble upon their eccentric host’s stash of ancient cannabis. Smoking it doesn’t just give them the munchies…it gives them an insatiable hunger for flesh. What begins as a goofy hangout quickly escalates into a blood-soaked orgy of pot-fueled paranoia, betrayal, and carnage. What sets THE WEED EATERS apart is its tone. Director Callum Devlin leans into the absurdity of the premise while never skimping on the shocks, twisting dark subject matter into something both disturbing and wildly entertaining. New Zealand has long been a breeding ground for brilliant horror-comedies. From Bad Taste to What We Do in the Shadows…and The Weed Eaters proudly carries that torch. Expect outrageous gore effects, absurd humor, and a satirical bite aimed at indulgence culture. It’s Reefer Madness meets Cannibal Holocaust…with a wink. Horror-comedy is notoriously hard to pull off, but the premise here is irresistible, and early word suggests Devlin balances shock value with clever commentary. In a lineup stacked with bleak psychological tales and brutal slashers, THE WEED EATERS looks like the palate cleanser…bloody, bizarre, and totally unmissable.