Grimmfest Returns with Tentacles, Terror and Teased Titles

Grimmfest, Manchester’s premier horror and genre film festival, has confirmed its 2025 edition will run from Thursday 9 to Sunday 12 October, returning once again to the Odeon Great Northern. A cornerstone of the UK’s horror calendar, the festival continues to build momentum with the first two feature premieres now officially announced, alongside the reveal of this year’s poster art, which leans into cosmic dread with a design steeped in Cthulhu mythos.

Screenings this year will alternate between Screens 11 and 12 of the venue, and early-bird access has already opened, with both weekend passes and gala opening night tickets available to buy. Further programming announcements are expected over the summer.

Leading the initial slate are Tribe and Landlord, two genre features that promise distinctive visions. While detailed synopses remain under wraps for now, both titles are being positioned as centrepieces of the 2025 line-up. Tribe hints at a survivalist tale with mythological undertones, while Landlord has reportedly drawn comparisons to both The Sentinel and The Tenant in early festival circles, teasing a slow-burning psychological descent with sociopolitical bite.

The 2025 festival artwork, unveiled alongside the programming news, sets the tone for this year’s thematic direction. Featuring tentacled forms and otherworldly landscapes, it draws clear influence from Lovecraftian horror, positioning cosmic terror and existential unease as key motifs for this year’s curation.

Beyond the October festivities, Grimmfest is continuing its year-round programming with its Summer Season at Minicini. Running from June through July, the slate features cult double bills at discounted prices for a limited time. Highlights include a Friday the 13th pairing on 13 June with The New Blood and Jason Takes Manhattan, a psychological double-header on 27 June with Censor and Saint Maud, and two nights of ‘80s sci-fi and horror classics in July, with Total Recall, The Running Man, and two Elm Street entries (Freddy’s Revenge and Dream Warriors).

With early signs of a thematically bold line-up and new premieres to be unveiled in the coming months, Grimmfest 2025 looks set to deepen its reputation as a vital fixture for both domestic and international genre cinema.

Tickets and further information on Grimmfest 2025 are available through the official website: grimmfest2025.eventive.org/welcome