All through October, I’ll be posting reviews of the best of the best films in the horror genre released since October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026. As an added bonus, I’ll be doing a secondary review that may be somewhat related to the main review or slightly missed the countdown by inches. Follow along the countdown every day in October. Feel free to agree, disagree, or better yet, give me your own picks for your favorite horror movies of the year. Happy Halloween!

The Best in Horror 2025-2026 So Far…

#31 – DOLLY (GATOR FACE)
#30 – THINESTRA (SACCHARINE)
#29 – ONSLAUGHT (BEAST OF WAR)
#28 – READY OR NOT 2: HERE I COME (PENNY LANE IS DEAD)
#27 – IN OUR BLOOD (V/H/S/HALLOWEEN)
#26 – SEND HELP (HEEL)
#25 – THE CARPENTER’S SON (THE BOOK OF SIJJIN AND ILLIYYIN)
#24 – OTHER (YOU ARE NOT ME)
#23 – WHO’S WATCHING (MATCH)
#22 – HOPE (TOUCH ME)
#21 – THEY WILL KILL YOU (MEAT KILLS)
#20 – IT ENDS (ANACORETA)
#19 – TEENAGE SEX AND DEATH AT CAMP MIASMA (PLAY DEAD)
#18 – IRON LUNG (THE DEEP DARK)
#17 – LEE CRONIN’S THE MUMMY (SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT)
#16 – BUFFET INFINITY (KETCHUP ON WAFFLES)
#15 – DUST BUNNY

#15 – DUST BUNNY (2025)

Released on December 12, 2025!
Streaming on HBO MAX from Thunder Road Pictures and Entertainment One!
Directed/Written by Bryan Fuller.
Check out the trailer here!

A young girl named Aurora (Sophie Sloan) is haunted by a monster under her bed. When the monster eats her parents, Aurora hires an Intriguing Neighbor (Mads Mikkelsen) who she believes to be a monster killer. Turns out, this neighbor really is a killer, and he believes the “monster” Aurora is talking about are people who wanted him dead and mistook her apartment for his own, killing her parents. But the monster is real and it’s hungry for anyone who touches the floor of Aurora’s room.

How the hell did I miss this movie? I remember seeing trailers for it, but man, did they just not sell the movie I just saw. I know Bryan Fuller had a vibrant imagination from his previous work, specifically HANNIBAL. But I had no idea he could make a movie like this!

DUST BUNNY is THE PROFESSIONAL by way of PETE’S DRAGON. It’s one of those movies I would have loved as a kid. There isn’t a scene in this film that hasn’t been worked on with vibrant colors, creative camera angles, and wall-to-wall sheer creativity. This movie plays as if Luc Benson had a one-night stand with Terry Gilliam and Salvadore Dali. It’s a feast for the eyes. So much work went into the look of all the different locations in DUST BUNNY. From the shark tanks in a sushi restaurant to the wallpaper and gilded decor of the apartment building most of the action takes place in, the set designer and effects team went above and beyond.

Yes, this film is derivative as all get out. Beat for beat, the first half plays out like Luc Bresson’s THE PROFESSIONAL. But wow! This is one gorgeous looking movie. While I wouldn’t necessarily categorize DUST BUNNY as horror, it has horrifying elements. It deftly utilizes the concept of the monster under the bed and some of the scenes of the monster eating people can get intense, but this is a film that makes the viewing fun for both adults and kids. There’s a LEMONY SNICKET/MATILDA vibe going on. Yes, there’s lots of gunplay and some death, but not a drop of blood is spilled. Ok, maybe a drop or two, but don’t worry, Mads Mickelsen will clean it up with his sock (See the film to get that joke).

This cast is awesome as well. You see Mads Mikkelsen being a total badass. He channels Jean Reno in every scene, never believing Aurora about the monster, and calmly looking death in the eye at every turn. Mads is an actor who is simply fun to watch and Fuller makes sure he looks cool in every scene. Little Sophie Sloan as Aurora is cute as a button but never given cutesy lines. Her adult-like responses to Mads’ questions are hilarious. We see this film through her giant eyes, and they see the world in a dazzling spectacle that I want to live in. Rounding out the cast is Sigourney Weaver as Mads’ handler who gives him his gigs. She’s surprisingly goofy in this role saying and doing all kinds of quirky things and turns out to be quite good at it. Finally, David Dastmalchian is given another offbeat role as another hitman. I’ll watch anything with Mads, but with a cast like that to back him up, this movie sells itself.

The dust bunny itself is quite horrifying and the way it comes together during the opening credits is genius. I love the way it swims through the floorboards like some kind of shark. And when it finally grows to full size, its fury as it attempts to swallow every person in its path is every kid’s worst case scenario nightmare. Fuller somehow taps into those primal, youthful fears and makes them thrilling and gorgeous to look at.

We all slept on this one, but now it’s more accessible streaming, so rectify that mistake and check this visual feast out. I wish there were more filmmakers out there with Fuller’s bottomless well of creativity. DUST BUNNY feels like early Tim Burton but also kicks all sorts of ass. Don’t miss this amazing film about a little girl, a big monster, and Mads being Mads. It’s not full-on horror, but this is the type of gateway genre film that got me loving horror as a kid. If you’re sick of Disney crap and want to see something your little one and you can enjoy, watch DUST BUNNY. Just do it.

Worth Noting – THE YETI (2026)

Released on April 10, 2026!
Streaming on Shudder from WellGo USA!
Directed/Written by Gene Gallerano, William Pisciotta.
Check out the trailer here!

It’s 1947 and after one expedition to the Alaskan wilderness ended with the entire team of explorers going missing, another excursion consisting of a team of experts is put together to rescue the missing team which includes billionaire Meriell Sunday Sr.(Corbin Bernsen) puts together a team of experts, including two soldiers (played by Linc Hand and Jim Cummings), an explosives expert (Gene Gallerano), son of the billionaire Merriell Sunday Jr. (Eric Nelsen), and gifted cartographer Ellie Bannister (Brittany Allen). Ellie’s estranged father Hollis Bannister (William Sadler) was on the earlier excursion, giving Ellie a personal investment in the trip, though she hasn’t seen him for years. Once in the Alaskan wilderness, the team gets lost but eventually can track down the cabin where the team was last seen and a not-so mythical creature known as the Yeti.

THE YETI is a classically made, practical effects-laden, good old creature feature. And they just don’t make movies like this anymore. Well, they do. But usually, films of this sort have a very low budget, so they are bound to have the seams of production and lack of funds show though here and there. While most likely, THE YETI was made on a limited budget, filmmakers Gene Gallerano and William Pisciotta make the best of it, making the film look as if it could have been made in the fifties and sixties, the golden age of the creature feature. So, there is the feeling that certain sets are used and reused, such as the wilderness spot where the explorers stop to rest and argue seeming to be the same spot where the climax takes place and any other scene that takes place in the woods for that matter. It’s little things like that that annoy nitpickers but only endears me to the film for being creative on a limited budget.

One of the other things that occurs in creature features is that you always had to wait to see the monster. While there were snippets here and there—a clawed paw slashing an innocent, a shadow or a quick glimpse of the creature, it wasn’t until the last act that we see the monster. It’s a stable of creature features, mainly because the monster wasn’t really that scary once the curtain is pulled back. Well, though they do hold back a good view of the monster until late in the game, the good news is that the Yeti looks damn intimidating once it is revealed, towering over the explorers, covered in realistic fur and sporting an articulated face and not just a monkey mask. A lot of work was put into this practical effect and it looks the part. It seems, in certain scenes, the monster is worked as some kind of puppet with the mouth and large arms being moved by artists offscreen. It reminded me a bit of the way Ludo from LABYRINTH moved in certain scenes.

I usually don’t look at other reviews, especially those on IMDB, as the “reviews” seem to be made by the worst of the remedial class, but I made the mistake of peeking and seeing a lot of people ripping all over THE YETI for all these factors I listed before. Those who are ripping on this film for being low budget simply haven’t seen enough horror movie and haven’t seen the sheer amount of horrible Bigfoot movies available out there. THE YETI may not have the largest budget, but the filmmakers have been able to recreate that awesome Saturday afternoon movie creature feature vibe perfectly. And I love it.

What adds to the quality of THE YETI is a cast to die for. First, you have two elder actors, Corben Bernsen and William Sadler as explorers with conflicting views on how to treat the monster they are hunting. These two actors are not phoning it in with Bernsen offering a fierce performance as Merriell Sunday Sr. and Sadler plays some heart-warming but gruff beats as well. But that’s not all THE YETI has in star power. Filmmaker Jim Cummings is charismatic, yet unique as the laid-back soldier who fancies the lead, Ellie. He’s not playing your typical hero-type but still stands out in the cast. Finally, Brittany Allen, who was last seen as Dexter’s mother in DEXTER: ORIGINAL SIN, embodies classic Hollywood beauty. She looks like a cross between Grace Kelly and Toni Collette here, showing tragic beauty, but still comes off as tougher than most in her group of explorers.

I’m going to give THE YETI four feets and three toes. Sure, I’d have liked to have seen more Yeti too, but what I did see, I liked a whole lot. THE YETI offers strong performances from its cast, a fun story, and enough bits and pieces of Yeti to entertain. Though it isn’t big budget, it shoots for the stars and turns out to be a wonderful ode to creature features of old. If you grew up loving those old monster movies, THE YETI is going to be a whole lotta fun.

Once again, feel free to agree, disagree, or how about you play along at home and give me your own picks for your favorite horror movies. It’s October, so let’s talk horror. Come back tomorrow for the next level in the Best in Horror Countdown. Be sure to hit all of the pertinent bells and whistles down below and you’ll never miss a post! Happy Halloween, folks!