Screamfest® Horror Film Festival Unveils Second Wave of Features for 25th Anniversary Edition

Screamfest 2025 unveils its second wave, featuring world premieres, special screenings, and the 4K restoration of Before The Fall.

Screamfest®, the longest-running horror film festival in the United States, has announced the second wave of films set to screen at its landmark 25th edition. Running October 7–16, 2025 at the iconic TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, the festival will showcase a packed slate of world premieres, international discoveries, and restored genre favorites.

Dubbed the “Sundance of Horror,” Screamfest has built its reputation on spotlighting bold, independent voices in the genre space. The New York Times has praised it as one of the “5 Halloween Festivals Worth Traveling For,” and this year’s programming reinforces why. Highlights include the special screening of Vicious, the latest from The Strangers director Bryan Bertino, and the West Coast premiere of F. Javier Gutiérrez’s apocalyptic thriller Before The Fall in a new 4K restoration.

World Premieres

Among the world premieres are Damned If You Do, a devilish reunion comedy-horror starring Harvey Guillén, Katie Siegel, and Ginger Gonzaga; Don’t Leave the Kids Alone, a psychological sibling showdown from Rodrigo Herranz and Emilio Portes; Love Is the Monster, Alex Noyer’s romance-turned-cult nightmare; and Host, a Thai Amazon Original reimagining of folklore directed by Pokpong-Pairach Khumwan.

Special Screening

Paramount Pictures will present Vicious, Bertino’s return to horror starring Dakota Fanning. The film follows a woman given a mysterious box with an ominous set of instructions—plunging her into a nightmare where memory and reality collapse.

North American, U.S. & West Coast Premieres

The lineup also includes the North American premiere of Polish director Dawid Torrone’s Dead by Dawn; the U.S. premieres of Edgar Nito’s folkloric A Fisherman’s Tale and Drazen Zarkovic’s island survival story Summer Teeth; and West Coast bows for Kevin and Matthew McManus’ parallel-universe thriller Redux Redux, Nathan Hertz’s grotesque body horror Thinestra, and Katherine Dudas’ LA-set demonic theater tale Theatre Is Dead.

The festival will also host the West Coast premiere of Gutiérrez’s Before The Fall (restored in 4K) and celebrate its history after previously winning four awards at Screamfest 2009.

A Quarter-Century of Fear

Formed in 2001 by producer Rachel Belofsky, Screamfest remains a female-run non-profit dedicated to elevating horror filmmakers and screenwriters. This 25th edition promises to honor that legacy with a line-up designed to shock, scare, and entertain—cementing its place as one of the world’s premier genre showcases.

Passes and tickets will be available soon at screamfestla.com.