Matt Donato’s Favorites of 2025

It’s unbelievable, truly, that we’ve wrapped another year of horror releases. Not even in the hokey, “OMG time kept moving,” kind of way. Every year down is by sheer willpower on our parts at this point, because the world is… what it is. Horror movies provide a brilliant distraction from the day-to-day bullshit we’re forced to choke down, which felt especially abysmal in 2025. But, creators kept creating, and the movies helped lessen the blow of [gestures wildly]. And, because of that, I’d like to celebrate the ten things that made me smile the biggest this year in horror.

1. I Became An Oz Perkins Guy (The Monkey)

Let 2025 be known as the year Oz Perkins endeared himself to me forever. No, not with Keeper. That's Perkins being the MOST Perkins. Instead, Perkins showed he can indulge in bloody madness with a smile and a wink, and did so magnificently in The Monkey.

"Everybody dies. Some of us peacefully and in our sleep, and some of us... horribly. And that's life."

It's not just that I adored The Monkey as Final Destination meets The Monkey's Paw, or I was impressed with how Perkins adapted Stephen King's short story into a feature-length existential crisis. I've struggled with Perkins' slowly brooding, sluggishly dreadful style until The Monkey, which feels like a response to every one of my prior complaints. We all have filmmakers who speak to us fluently, and others who send us running in the other direction. Finally, I have "my" Oz Perkins movie. Y'all still have The Blackcoat's Daughter, don't worry.

2. Jai Courtney Got To Be Jai Courtney (Dangerous Animals)

The blandification of Jai Courtney is the worst thing that happened to his career. Another attractive male lead stacked next to the Sam Worthingtons, Jamie Dornans, and Charlie Hunnams of the world. That’s not the Jai Courtney we deserve. Sean Byrne understood that, and that’s why Dangerous Animals is such a blessing.

Byrne lets Jai Courtney explore the psychosis and depravity of a serial killer as only he can. The man’s greatest acting accomplishment is Captain Boomarang, no sarcasm. Tucker is even more of a challenge, but Courtney’s not afraid to go darker, meaner, and nastier. It’s in his playful deviance, dancing in his skivvies to celebrate another dead victim. His sociopathic tendencies, the way Tucker can switch from charming and nonchalant to savage trapper and cold-blooded killer. Courtney thrives in chaos and excels in weirdness, submerging himself in the demented eloquence that is Tucker—it’s where he belongs.

3. Studio Horror Stood Strong

Every year, I write an all-encompassing Top 10 or Top 20 horror ranking (depending on the outlet). Most years, my selections lean more independent than studio-produced. But this year, surprisingly, the top of my list brought more studio titles than I expected. The Ugly Stepsister is my headliner, but Heart Eyes, The Long Walk, The Monkey, Sinners, Him, Weapons, Black Phone 2… the big dogs came to eat this year. It’s nice to see studios taking more risks on filmmakers with robust visions and seeing their efforts rewarded with both box-office and award success. And also, when both studio films and independent pictures are thriving at the same time, we all win.

4. Jackie Earl Haley (Your Host)

Jackie Earle Haley is in his indie B-movie era, and that’s already providing some noteworthy results. Your Host has its struggles as a movie, but Haley brings his all to the role of the murderous game-show host. He’s always been a phenomenal actor—A Nightmare On Elm Street isn’t his fault. So now, C-grade movies about “What if Jigsaw was Pat Sajak” are getting A-list talent to go all-in on their bizarre visions. Haley is tremendous in the part, spiraling into madness with unmuted talents that are sometimes hard to come by in films such as Your Host. A deranged, television-ready Haley is such a treat.

5. I Got To Plant My Flag (HIM)

Yes, I adore HIM. I’m one of the only critics who seemed to enjoy Justin Tipping’s sports-horror hybrid, frankly. I haven’t been as outnumbered in my love for a movie since The Gallows. But that’s one of the best parts about being a critic. When you see the sparkly, diamond-in-the-rough qualities in a movie that is otherwise despised, and you have the chance to make an argument in an underdog’s favor. Maybe it goes unnoticed, but perhaps it convinces a few more viewers to give the film a shot. In the case of HIM, if I can drive a few more watches the film’s way, then I’m a happy critic.

6. Tina Romero (Queens of the Dead)

The best horror films celebrate individual voices, and no creator exploded onto the scene more than Tina Romero with her queer zombie comedy Queens of the Dead. There’s not a whiff of nepotism from the daughter of George A. Romero. This is all Tina’s brand, unleashing her glitter zombies on a cast of drag queens and club goers in an extremely outspoken way. Everything Tina stands for is loudly and proudly put to screen, done independently, so she never has to sacrifice the messages she deems most important to champion. Queens of the Dead is a refreshing ode to Romero-esque zombie flicks that’s brimming with Tina’s passions, which sets a shining example for other filmmakers who want to bet on themselves. Movies like Queens of the Dead and filmmakers like Tina open doors for others to follow—that’s the inspiration the horror genre desperately needs.

7. Defying Sequelitus (Black Phone 2)

Are sequels a blessing? A curse? That’s up to the filmmakers, studios, everyone behind and in front of the camera. In the case of Black Phone 2, Scott Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill put their all into developing a sequel to The Black Phone that’s so unlike its predecessor. Reincarnating The Grabber as a Freddy Krueger type stays in line with the original’s supernatural kidnapping story, and putting Gwen in the lead veers more into slasher detective territory. It’s a brilliant example of how horror sequels don’t have to be copy-and-paste, promoting originality within a franchise-building model. Kudos to Derrickson and Cargill for showing how sequels can become their own beasts, hopefully a lesson other filmmakers take to heart in their second, third, or fifteenth continuations.

8. Indy (Good Boy)

I mean this in all honesty: Indy’s performance in Good Boy is one of the more impressive horror movie achievements this year. Director and writer Ben Leonberg and producer Kari Fischer do everything right to get a pitch-perfect leading role from their family dog. Indy conveys emotion, hits every mark, and advances the story of Good Boy with outstanding precision for a canine. Like, you can see Indy’s worry, excitement, everything the scene needs. You can sense when Indy’s terrified and feel the warmth of compassionate moments. It’s not just a gimmick; Indy’s giving it 110% with the utmost authenticity. He’s a good boy, goshdarnit—they deserve an award.

9. Blitz/Berlin

No creator had a better 2025 than Blitz//Berlin. The Canadian composer trio showed tremendous range by providing scores for five different 2025 releases and festival hits. They did it all: met the pop-star thrills of Sweetness, got all fantasy metal-y in Deathstalker, brought the queer dance party vibes in Queens of the Dead, and jingled the Christmas creeps for Silent Night, Deadly Night. You’d never guess these were all scores written by the same musicians, and yet Blitz//Berlin stamps their brand on each. The mark of a good score is that you never notice it’s there, but the mark of a great score is that it makes a film better—and that’s the level of quality that Blitz//Berlin brings time and time again.

10. Emilie Blichfeldt (The Ugly Stepsister)

Have you ever watched a movie and known, immediately, that a filmmaker is destined for greatness? That’s Emilie Blichfeldt, the megastar behind The Ugly Stepsister. No one’s feature debut should be this poised, this immaculately conceptualized, and this confidently executed. I saw The Ugly Stepsister at Sundance, and at that point, I knew there was a not-that-insignificant chance it’d remain my favorite horror movie of the year. My intuition was correct, and that’s because Blichfeldt’s debut is impressive in ways that I’ve already summarized in my review. It’s the kind of star-making talent that reminds me why I love traveling to festivals and seeing careers break out in real time. No matter what Blichfeldt does next, after that, and until she retires, I’ll be first in line.