Returning to Montreal from July 16 to August 2, 2026, the Fantasia International Film Festival celebrates its 30th edition as one of the world’s most respected showcases for genre cinema. Known for championing horror, sci-fi, fantasy, action, animation, and experimental filmmaking, Fantasia has become a global destination for filmmakers and fans seeking bold, imaginative, and unconventional stories.

The 2026 festival continues that tradition with a diverse lineup of films from emerging talents and established creators, offering audiences a thrilling mix of boundary-pushing premieres, unique cinematic experiences, and unforgettable discoveries. These seven jaw-dropping films are set to make their mark at Fantasia Festival 2026 and deserve a place on every movie lover’s watchlist.

Making its international festival rounds in summer 2026, Corpus will celebrate its world premiere at the 30th Fantasia International Film Festival before screening at the Melbourne International Film Festival. Directed by Corrin Evans in his feature debut, this visceral neo-noir body horror explores desire, obsession, and the darker side of ambition. Set during the sweaty summer of 1998 in New York City, the film follows Sayo who is an underground nightlife photographer and drug dealer.

His unspoken love for his friend Vince, a rising actor on the verge of fame, leads him into a surreal nightmare. After a seemingly wild weekend getaway turns unsettling, Sayo and his friends become trapped in a disturbing game of seduction and psychological terror.

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With its dreamlike late-'90s atmosphere, striking visual style, and themes of vulnerability, control, and identity, Corpus is shaping up to be one of Fantasia 2026’s most intriguing genre discoveries.

Following the haunting body horror of Corpus, Fantasia Festival 2026 continues its celebration of bold independent genre filmmaking with The Glorious Dead, which will make its world premiere at the 30th Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal from July 16 to August 2, 2026. From the Adams Family, the creative force behind acclaimed DIY horror films like Hellbender and The Deeper You Dig, this latest project expands their signature blend of intimate storytelling and unsettling genre chaos.

The film follows a sheriff and her young deputy as their quiet small town descends into madness after mysterious disappearances, strange creatures, and an ancient evil begin tearing the community apart. With inventive practical effects, a raw handmade aesthetic, and the emotional depth of a real family collaboration, The Glorious Dead promises a bloody, atmospheric horror experience exploring fear, survival, and the fragile bonds holding society together.

After bringing audiences a wave of unsettling indie horror with The Glorious Dead, Fantasia Festival 2026 is also embracing a more chaotic blend of holiday terror, outrageous gore, and dark comedy with Unholy Night. The film will celebrate its world premiere at the 30th Fantasia International Film Festival on July 25, 2026, as part of Montreal’s Septentrion Shadows lineup. Directed by Michael Gabriele, whose previous short film Get Away earned recognition at Fantasia in 2023, Unholy Night marks his feature-length directorial debut.

The film turns a traditional Italian-Canadian Christmas Eve dinner into a full-blown undead massacre when a resurrected grandmother sparks a neighborhood-wide zombie outbreak. Channeling the wild splatterstick energy of The Evil Dead through inventive practical effects and absurd humor, Unholy Night promises a bloody midnight movie experience. Beneath the chaos, the film explores family pressure, personal growth, and how dysfunctional relatives can become each other’s greatest protectors.

Exploring the fragile nature of reality, isolation, and the strange ways people can become disconnected from one another, Sour Minnows dives into an unsettling world where everyday life slowly collapses into surreal cosmic horror. The film follows Ricky and Tepper, two Los Angeles roommates whose ordinary routine is shattered after they witness an impossible event that sends Ricky’s perception of reality spiraling. As memories disappear, spaces begin to distort, and mysterious minnows appear in his pockets, Ricky’s world becomes increasingly impossible to understand.

Alongside Tepper and his new girlfriend Aura, he finds himself caught in a bizarre encounter with a terrifying entity known as “The Yellow Thing.” Directed, written, shot, and edited by Harrison Atkins, the film blends stoner comedy, existential dread, and Lynchian weirdness into a uniquely unsettling experience. Making its world premiere at the 30th Fantasia International Film Festival on July 24, 2026, Sour Minnows promises a surreal genre journey unlike anything else in the lineup.

Blending a tense crime thriller with a psychological battle of manipulation and revenge, Suzuki=Bakudan, available on Netflix, explores how information can become the most dangerous weapon in the hands of someone society has overlooked. The film follows Detective Ruike and a team of investigators after a seemingly ordinary arrest turns into a citywide terror crisis when an amnesiac suspect named Tagosaku Suzuki predicts a bombing before it happens.

As more threats emerge, the police are forced into a deadly game of riddles and secrets, with Suzuki controlling the investigation from the interrogation room. Directed by Akira Nagai and adapted from Katsuhiro Go’s acclaimed novel Bomb, the film stands out for its claustrophobic setting, intense dialogue-driven tension, and Jiro Sato’s chilling performance. After becoming a box-office success in Japan in 2025, the thriller has continued gaining international attention through major genre festivals and global streaming.

Bringing in fear, vulnerability, and the terror of losing control over the very sense we rely on most, The Eyes turns visual impairment into the foundation of a gripping psychological thriller. Released in South Korea and select international markets on June 24, 2026, the film quickly became a major box-office success, holding the number-one spot for multiple weeks. The story follows Seo-jin, a photographer slowly losing her eyesight.

She refuses to believe her blind twin sister’s death was a suicide and begins uncovering a hidden truth through the mysterious clues left behind in her sister’s studio. As her vision fades, the threat around her becomes increasingly impossible to identify. Leading the film, Shin Min-a delivers a challenging dual performance as both sisters, portraying grief, determination, and fear, while Kim Nam-hee adds emotional depth as the detective drawn into Seo-jin’s dangerous search for answers.

Becky Hooper’s fight for survival takes her from personal revenge to an international war against a dangerous extremist movement in The Last Temptation of Becky. Following the events of The Wrath of Becky, the 16-year-old survivalist has become a CIA operative, sent undercover to Poland, where she uncovers a conspiracy to rebuild a modern fascist empire from a tourist operation surrounding Hitler’s infamous Wolf’s Lair bunker. Forced to take on an army of enemies without backup, Becky turns her brutal instincts into a one-person mission of vengeance.

The action thriller will celebrate its world premiere at the 30th Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal from July 16 to August 2, 2026, before arriving in North American theaters. Directed by Jenn Wexler, the film expands the franchise’s violent, punk-inspired energy into a larger espionage thriller, with Lulu Wilson returning as Becky and Neil Patrick Harris bringing a chilling presence as the villainous Wilhelm Reuss.

Fantasia Festival 2026’s lineup celebrates the fearless creativity of genre cinema with seven standout films blending horror, suspense, sci-fi, and action. Featuring bold storytelling, unforgettable characters, and inventive worlds, these selections highlight the limitless possibilities of independent filmmaking while delivering some of the most exciting cinematic experiences for genre fans.

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Which Fantasia Festival 2026 film are you most excited to watch? Let us know in the comments.