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 (THE YETI)
#14 – BUDDY (MONKEY’S MAGIC MERRY GO ROUND)

#14 – BUDDY (2026)

Released on August 28, 2026!
Available On Demand from Roadside Attractions and Saban Films!
Directed by Casper Kelly.
Written by Casper Kelly, Jamie King.
Check out the trailer here!

BUDDY is a Barney-like costumed icon singing and dancing with a gaggle of kids in his own TV fantasy land. But as multiple episodes play out in the film, it becomes apparent that something is definitely off in Buddy’s world as children begin to disappear and Buddy’s real intentions turn out to be not-so-wholesome.

The creator of TOO MANY COOKS and the YULE LOG movies, Casper Kelly, returns with a new film that begins with an over-saccharinated concept that quickly dissolves into primal terror. BUDDY is more like another Adult Swim-esque short film GREAT CHOICE, where the horror comes from the realization that one is living within a repetitious world that is not what it seems. When one of the kids goes missing, only one of the kids Freddy (Delaney Quinn) understands something is amiss. The fun in the first leg of BUDDY is seeing the story devolve in front of one’s eyes with an entire five-minute episode playing out numerous times. The differences at first are subtle, but soon things go straight to hell and it’s hilariously pleasing to see this seemingly harmless TV host slowly lose his patience and sanity.

This is an extremely cynical take, but entertaining, nevertheless. At the same time. BUDDY is far from an original concept. Again, much like films like MEET THE FEEBLES, WALLY’S WONDERLAND, DEATH TO SMOOCHIE, FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY’S, CHANNEL ZERO’s “Candle Cove,” and more recently THE FUZZIES and MONKEY’S MAGICAL MERRY-GO-ROUND, the fun with BUDDY is seeing something meant for children morph into something horrible and tasteless. While I missed the Barney phenomenon, I did love SESAME STREET and understood the urge to take a beloved property and make it edgy and twisted. That’s what the rough-around-the-edges MEET THE FEEBLES was for me. Still, seeing this play out feels somewhat try-hard for me, as if the concept isn’t as fresh as it feels like it is.

I’m not saying I didn’t have a blast watching BUDDY. It was interesting for me to see niche dark humor play out to a packed audience, as this is far from a mainstream, literally minded film. There were plenty of people in the audience that seemed to not share my twisted sense of humor, especially the old guy who sat right next to me who kept repeating to himself, “This is stupid.” over and again. There is a certain literal-minded viewer that BUDDY is just not going to hit with. Still, if you’re a fan of irreverent humor and a snarky way of looking at things, BUDDY’s going to connect hard.

There is a tonal shift about a half hour into the movie that is a risky move for Kelly. It’s a change in scenery that I feel slows the momentum down quite a bit, as it develops the story and characters a little more. The section is necessary for the plot, but I feel chunks of it could have been snipped for the flow of the film to move a bit smoother. That said, it offers up a chance to see Cristin Milioti shine as Grace, a housewife and mother who feels something just feels off in her seemingly perfect world. This reflects the feeling Freddy has in the world of Buddy’s show, so I understand why it is there. But the scene is a little long and makes its point then lingers a skosh. That said, once back in Buddy’s world, the pace picks up again and the depravity that began in the first third of BUDDY, picks up and continues to entertain.

BUDDY has some phenomenal voice-acting in its cast. Keegan Michael Key is amazing as Buddy, as he can capture the innocent tone in Buddy’s voice with a growing sense of menace. Key really knows how to bring on the wholesome, at the same time he can layer on the underlying menace with ease. Also offering up a solid performance is Patton Oswalt as Strappy the backpack. Then there is Michael Shannon as a ventriloquist’s dummy, who pairs with the one and only Clint Howard. It all makes for a gaggle of lunatic voice-overs pressing the narrative forward.

The effects are hit and miss. There’s an awesome DIY element to BUDDY. The suit is a straight up knockoff of Barney, but later when Buddy sheds his skin and reveals the monster underneath, I was underwhelmed by the low-fi look. It is supposed to be a menacing moment and the hokiness of the effects really makes it feel more like a Power Ranger monster. I understand that Buddy and the Power Rangers are from the same era and this is yet another callback, but I much preferred the more subtle effects seen earlier in the film when Buddy is burned and you can see bones and musculature under his plush fur sticking out. I wish the film had gone further with this concept, rather than the corny concept we got in the final act.

Still, I feel BUDDY only scratches the surface of the world Kelly created. There are hints that there are other Buddies of different colors out there and a long line of children who have come and gone in the show. BUDDY ends with an absolutely twisted note, once again promising a happy ending, but delivering with an outcome that is far from ideal. I don’t know if Kelly ever plans on following up with another one of these—I mean, I had no idea he was doing a sequel for YULE LOG, so another BUDDY is not out of the question and there are plenty of laces the story could go. If you’re a stranger to Kelly’s warped work and a fan of material teetering on the edge of horror and humor, this is going to be a real treat. But I feel there are less developed parts and chances not taken that showed up better in his previous works.

Worth Noting – MONKEY’S MAGIC MERRY-GO-ROUND (2024)

Released on May 19, 2026!
Streaming on Screambox from Cineverse!
Directed by Aidan Leary.
Written by Aidan Leary, C.R. Thompson.
Check out the
trailer here!

Michael Gilio plays Jimbo, the host of a children’s show called Monkey’s Magic Merry-Go-Round. Jimbo is the sole human on this show. The rest are puppets. Jumbo feels that something is off lately on the Magic Merry-Go-Round and begins to have flashback to a tome when he wasn’t part of the kids show. Jimbo wants to know more, but Monkey and his puppet pals will do anything to keep reality buried in Jimbo’s psyche forever.

MONKEY’S MAGIC MERRY-GO-ROUND is a brilliant little descent into madness. It’s a concept that has been done before, specifically as short stories as seen in TWILIGHT ZONE: THE MOVIE and episodes of Shudder’s CREEPSHOW series and Nick Antacosta’s CHANNEL ZERO, where the lines between reality and a children’s cartoon are blurred as a detriment to the protagonist’s sanity. The film is also derived from MEET THE FEEBLES and other puppets gone monstrous films, most recently in THE FUZZIES, where innocent looking puppets do horrible, horrible things. But what sets MONKEY’S MAGIC MERRY-GO-ROUND apart from the herd is how cruel it is to its protagonist Jimbo and how batshit the puppets’ world really is.

Michael Gilio is great as Jimbo. He has a pleasant face, but beneath that forced smile is a man in torment, a message conveyed just through Jimbo’s exhausted eyes. He has this cold stare that, even though he is saying and doing innocent things like drawing a smiley face on his knee or checking the mailbox for letters, there is a darkness and loneliness just below the surface. Gillio can communicate all this longing for a way out of Monkey’s world simply through a blank stare at the camera. That takes talent.

Things get dark. I mean really dark. Don’t be fooled by the childlike puppets. Blood flows and heinous acts are committed. I was surprised how filmmaker Aidan Leary can fracture what looks to be an ideal world into a million disturbing pieces through uncomfortable closeups, frantic edits of violence set against a seemingly innocent backdrop, and alternating sounds of mania and silence.

I loved this little movie that creatively and effectively shreds sanity to ribbons. The pacing might lag a bit in the third act, but by then I was fully invested in Jimbo’s fate. MONKEY’S MAGIC MERRY-GO-ROUND isn’t for the kids. But if you’re entertained by the non-stop mania of Adult Swim’s programming, then you’re the type of big kid that’ll love to be warped by this one.

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!