Now S(cr)eaming: New Gothic Film + Series Releases for Fall
Spooky season’s 18 most anticipated dark releases, from late-summer through Christmas
By: The Lace Ledger Staff
Werwulf
Photo Credit: IMDb
As the nights grow longer, few things sound better than curling up on the couch with something dark on screen, or surrendering an evening to a spooky cinema field trip. And this season, we are spoiled.
Gothic classics have already enjoyed a banner year with Frankenstein and Dracula in the rear-view, while A-list talent continues to descend on horror alongside a particularly exciting crop of arthouse releases. With Practical Magic 2 marking our next trip to the theatre and a gloriously gruesome calendar stretching through Christmas, consider your fall viewing schedule booked.
Her Private Hell
Now Streaming on Apple TV
Nicolas Winding Refn returned to Cannes after a decade away with this neon-soaked nightmare, which premiered Out of Competition at the festival in May. Sophie Thatcher leads the cast alongside Havana Rose Liu and Kristine Froseth in a futuristic metropolis swallowed by a mysterious fog, where troubled young women collide with forces considerably darker than the city itself. We had the honour of speaking with Hair and Make-up Designer Louise Bruun, who alchemized the film’s aesthetic through iconic looks that translate its character arcs while delivering the kind of luminous complexions we’re still thinking about. Full interview HERE.
The End of Oak Street
Now Playing in Theatres
It Follows director David Robert Mitchell turns suburbia inside out when a mysterious event transports an ordinary neighbourhood somewhere decidedly unfamiliar, leaving one family to navigate its transformed surroundings. Anne Hathaway and Ewan McGregor lead the family, with My Old Ass breakout Maisy Stella joining them for one of the season’s stranger big-screen propositions.
A Tale of Two Cities
September 6 — MGM+
Dickens returns to the screen in a four-part limited series beginning in 1782 London, where Lucie Manette’s discovery that her presumed-dead father may still be alive draws her toward French émigré Charles Darnay and mercurial lawyer Sydney Carton. Kit Harington plays Carton opposite Mirren Mack and François Civil in the latest adaptation of the gothic literary classic.
Practical Magic 2
September 10 — In Theatres
Nearly three decades after the Owens sisters first cast their spell, Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman return as Sally and Gillian alongside original stars Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing. Joey King and Maisie Williams join the family as the sequel returns to the Owens women, their inherited magic and the curse that has followed generations of the family. While we count down the days, study up on Owens sister style with our fall fashion guide, breaking down the wardrobes of Sally, Gillian and the Aunts HERE.
YAGA
September at TIFF 2026; October on Crave
The ancient witch steps into the modern world in YAGA, a contemporary reimagining of Slavic folklore starring Carrie-Anne Moss. We had the pleasure of speaking with Costume Designer Sarah Runnalls about constructing the film’s characters through clothing, including the custom pieces that helped bring its formidable central figure to life. With its world premiere unfolding right here at TIFF, this is one we’re especially excited to experience with its first audience. Sarah’s full interview can be found HERE.
MobLand — Season 2
September 18 — Paramount+
The Harrigans are back at it, with Tom Hardy returning as fixer Harry Da Souza as the crime family attempts to defend its empire following the fallout of season one. Helen Mirren and Pierce Brosnan reprise their roles as Maeve and Conrad Harrigan, giving us another season of immaculate tailoring accompanying nefarious behaviour.
Victorian Psycho
September 25 — In Theatres
Maika Monroe trades Longlegs for a remote Gothic manor as Winifred Notty, an eccentric governess whose arrival at Ensor House coincides with a troubling tendency for members of the household to disappear. Based on Virginia Feito’s novel, the period horror also stars Ruth Wilson and Thomasin McKenzie, with Jason Isaacs presiding over the house as Mr. Pounds.
East of Eden
October 1 — Netflix
Florence Pugh takes on one of literature’s great dark feminine antiheroines as Cathy Ames in Zoe Kazan’s seven-part adaptation of John Steinbeck’s epic. Christopher Abbott and Mike Faist play brothers Adam and Charles Trask, while the series places Cathy at the centre of a multigenerational story concerned with inheritance and the darker reaches of human nature.
Verity
October 2 — In Theatres
Colleen Hoover’s psychological thriller gets the glossy big-screen treatment with Dakota Johnson as struggling writer Lowen Ashleigh, hired to complete the books of incapacitated bestselling author, Verity Crawford. Anne Hathaway plays Verity opposite Josh Hartnett as her husband Jeremy, as Lowen’s stay in the couple’s home uncovers material considerably darker than the novels she was hired to finish.
Carrie
October 7 — Prime Video
Mike Flanagan takes on Stephen King’s telekinetic teenager in a new series adaptation starring Summer H. Howell as Carrie White. The combination of Flanagan and one of horror’s defining stories about female rage makes this one of the season’s anticipated releases.
Other Mommy
October 9 — In Theatres
Jessica Chastain pulls double duty as an uncanny-valley-esque mother and the sinister entity assuming her likeness in this adaptation of Josh Malerman’s Incidents Around the House. Produced by James Wan and directed by Host filmmaker Rob Savage, the story follows young Bela as she develops a relationship with the increasingly disturbing presence inside her home.
Crystal Lake
October 15 — Peacock
A24 takes us back to Camp Crystal Lake for a Friday the 13th prequel centred on Pamela Voorhees in the aftermath of young Jason’s drowning. Linda Cardellini steps into the role of the grieving mother whose name horror audiences already know very well, with It: Welcome to Derry co-showrunner Brad Caleb Kane overseeing the series.
Sense and Sensibility
October 16 — In Theatres
It has been a banner year for literary heroines, with The Bride! drawing from Mary Shelley and Wuthering Heights bringing Emily Brontë back to the big screen amid major fanfare. Next up, Jane Austen joins the conversation as Daisy Edgar-Jones and Esmé Creed-Miles become the Dashwood sisters in Georgia Oakley’s new adaptation of Sense and Sensibility.
Wicker
October 23 Limited; October 30 Wide — In Theatres
#BookTok girlies, to the front of the class. Olivia Colman plays a scorned fisherwoman who commissions a basketmaker, played by Peter Dinklage, to construct her an ideal husband from wicker—only for her unconventional romance to scandalize the surrounding village. Alexander Skarsgård becomes said wicker husband, while Elizabeth Debicki joins a stacked cast bringing this … unique … love story to life ;).
Black Doves — Season 2
November 5 — Netflix
Keira Knightley returns as politician’s wife and covert operative Helen Webb, with Ben Whishaw once again beside her as assassin Sam. Netflix’s stylish Christmas espionage series also adds Neve Campbell and Ambika Mod for season two, giving us an early excuse to bring guns and champagne back into the holiday viewing rotation.
Ebenezer
November 13 — In Theatres
Horror filmmaker Ti West turns his attention to Dickens, directing Johnny Depp as Ebenezer Scrooge in a new adaptation that leans into the ghost story embedded within A Christmas Carol. We’re especially excited to see Depp back on screen creating unforgettable characters, with the trailers reminiscent of the transformative performances behind his Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland and Edward Scissorhands. Ian McKellen appears as Jacob Marley, adding another reason to make this our gothic Christmas appointment.
Violent Night 2
December 4 — In Theatres
David Harbour’s hammer-wielding Santa returns for another round of Christmas carnage, this time facing a gangster terrorizing the merchants of the Silver Bell Mall. Kristen Bell joins the mayhem as Mrs. Claus opposite Jared Harris, while director Tommy Wirkola returns to put another violent spin on holiday cheer.
Werwulf
December 25 — In Theatres
Robert Eggers follows Nosferatu with another creature of the night, this time turning to werewolf mythology for a story billed as a harrowing tale of damnation and the devil within. Aaron Taylor-Johnson reunites with Eggers alongside Willem Dafoe and Lily-Rose Depp, making this Christmas Day release perhaps the most gothic way imaginable to close out 2026. Following her covetable Nosferatu, Crimson Peak and Sleepy Hollow collaborations, Micheline Pitt of La Femme En Noir has already teased a Werwulf collection—and we’re eagerly awaiting the reveal.
If this year has taught us anything, it’s that gothic storytelling is in very good hands. We have old favourites being reconsidered, strange new worlds arriving and some of our favourite creatives getting wonderfully weird with the genre. We can’t wait to see each new expression of the gothic arrive on screen.
Which films are you adding to your list?
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