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Popcorn Frights 2025 Curtain Raiser: Five Unmissable Films from the Festival Where Horror has the Most Fun

By. Professor Horror

                     

Popcorn Frights is back…and bloodier, weirder, and more wonderful than ever. With a deliriously stacked lineup of world premieres, bold documentaries, and chilling virtual offerings, the 11th annual edition of South Florida’s premier genre fest promises to be a haven for horror heads of every type. From rising stars to cult legends, the festival’s selections revel in horror’s power to shock, seduce, and shake audiences to their core. Whether you're stalking the aisles of the in-person screenings or braving the nightmares from home, here are five of the wildest, weirdest, and most exciting titles you don’t want to miss:

                                                  

BLOOD SHINE
World Premiere
From married filmmakers Emily Bennett and Justin Brooks (Alone With You), BLOOD SHINE drags folk horror into a deliriously twisted new light…literally. Set in the desolate reaches of upstate New York, the film follows Clara (Bennett), a religious zealot whose lonely, sacred rituals worship the light, and Brighton West (David Call, Insidious: The Red Door), a horror filmmaker seeking solitude to finish his next script. Their chance encounter ignites a hallucinatory spiral of devotion, flesh, and transformation, trapping Brighton in Clara’s escalating rites where salvation comes at the cost of becoming something far less (or far more) than human. Inspired by the unnerving tradition of classic British folk horror, the film blends spiritual mania with jaw-dropping practical gore from effects master Brian Spears (American Horror Story, Smile 2). Produced by Aaron B. Koontz and Cameron Burns (Scare Package), BLOOD SHINE world premieres at Popcorn Frights, primed to claim its place among the next great entries in folk horror’s long, unholy lineage.

                                                   

TO ALL THE BOOKS
World Premiere + Live Conversation
What scares the man who made Bird Box? In TO ALL THE BOOKS, author Josh Malerman invites audiences into the disorienting corridors of his imagination, offering a rare peek behind the literary curtain. This personal documentary tracks the intersection of creativity, madness, and storytelling, revealing how horror is not just written…it’s lived. It’s not just a film about books, but it’s about obsessions, voices, and the strange rituals that fuel artistic creation. Malerman is joined in conversation by filmmakers Scott Beck & Bryan Woods (Heretic, A Quiet Place), who help peel back the layers of genre craft and inspiration.  Expect laughs, insight, and a few moments of genuine eeriness as Malerman confronts the ghosts behind his pages. For anyone who’s ever been haunted by a story, this is a must-watch.

                                                    

HACKED
World Premiere – Florida Focus Program
Based on a true cybercrime case, HACKED drags the digital underworld into the sweltering streets of Tampa for a sharp, chaotic spin on the techno-thriller. When a family’s $20,000 home deposit is stolen by an elusive online criminal known only as “The Chameleon,” their faith in banks, the law, and even their own security shatters overnight. With their savings gone and their kids’ digital lives wiped clean, they decide to take matters into their own hands, so they arm themselves with homemade weapons, blind determination, and a five-foot battle axe. Starring The Walking Dead’s Chandler Riggs, Shane Brady’s Florida Focus entry blends high-tech paranoia with gritty, real-world danger, exploring how desperation blurs the line between justice and obsession. Part revenge thriller, part digital fever dream, HACKED turns the Sunshine State into a hotbed of neon-lit chaos where the dark web has very real teeth.

                                         

THE MANNEQUIN
In-Theater Premiere
Beauty is deadly in THE MANNEQUIN, a hypnotic and horrifying exploration of fashion, identity, and decay. Set within a high-end boutique with secrets behind every mirror, the film follows an up-and-coming designer who discovers a cursed mannequin that grants success…at a gruesome price. With echoes of Suspiria and The Neon Demon, the film leans into stylized surrealism, drenching every frame in color, movement, and dread. But beneath the glamorous surface lies a body horror tale about obsession, self-erasure, and the monstrous standards we internalize. The film’s visuals are as sharp as the scissors that snip through silk and skin alike, and its metaphorical power grows with every scene. If you've ever wondered what would happen if Black Swan met House of Wax in a Vogue editorial spread…this is it.

                                                   

WHAT THE TIDE DRAGGED IN
World Premiere – Virtual Program
Chile’s WHAT THE TIDE DRAGGED IN is a ghost story steeped in memory, salt, and sorrow. When a grieving woman returns to her coastal hometown after a tragedy, she finds herself drawn to the sea, and to something in it that refuses to stay buried. With its languid pace and painterly cinematography, the film conjures a sense of emotional undertow, pulling viewers deeper into themes of guilt, trauma, and the uncanny persistence of the past. The supernatural elements are subtle but gut-wrenching, arriving in whispers and waterlogged visions rather than screams. It’s a meditation on how places remember pain, and how we’re never quite done grieving the people (or parts of ourselves) we’ve lost. For fans of atmospheric horror with emotional heft, WHAT THE TIDE DRAGGED IN is one to stream with the lights low and the volume high.

So, whether you’re in Florida or following from afar, Popcorn Frights 2025 is more than a festival…it’s a movement. Therefore, grab your ticket, dim the lights, and prepare for blood, sweat, and screaming. The genre is alive and foaming at the mouth.

Popcorn Frights 2025 runs August 7–17, both in theaters and virtually. For tickets, streaming access, and the full schedule, visit popcornfrights.com. Prepare yourself… the nightmares are just getting started.