2026 FANGORIA Chainsaw Awards Nominees Are Out

Horror’s biggest fan-voted celebration is back for another year, and the 2026 FANGORIA Chainsaw Awards have delivered a nominations list that reflects just how varied the genre has become. From blockbuster studio productions to fiercely independent discoveries, this year’s ballot spans 35 films, television series, documentaries and video games, with fans now deciding who will take home the coveted Chainsaw trophies.

Voting officially opened today and remains live until 15 July, with winners set to be revealed during the annual Chainsaw Awards broadcast on Shudder on 25 October.

FANGORIA Chainsaw Awards Nominees

Leading this year’s race are 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple and Dust Bunny, each earning nine nominations. They are closely followed by Backrooms with six, while Frankenstein, Hokum and The Bride! each secured five nominations. Curry Barker’s breakout hit Obsession also performed strongly, collecting four nominations including Best Director and Best Lead Performance for Inde Navarrette.

The flagship Best Wide Release category features 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, Backrooms, The Bride!, Faces of Death, Forbidden Fruits, Hokum, Leviticus, Obsession, Send Help and Weapons. Competing for Best Limited Release Movie are Dust Bunny, M?rama, Queens of the Dead, The Serpent’s Skin and Touch Me, while Best Streaming Premiere recognises I Am Frankelda, Influencers, Mother of Flies, Reflection in a Dead Diamond and V/H/S/Halloween.

International horror also enjoys a strong presence, with Alpha, Exit 8, M?rama, Reflection in a Dead Diamond and The Wailing nominated for Best International Movie. The Best First Feature category includes Backrooms, Buffet Infinity, Dust Bunny, Iron Lung and Queens of the Dead.

Performance categories feature an eclectic mix of established names and rising stars. The Best Lead Performance nominees are Zazie Beetz (They Will Kill You), Jessie Buckley (The Bride!), Peter Dinklage (The Toxic Avenger), Chiwetel Ejiofor (Backrooms), Ralph Fiennes (28 Years Later: The Bone Temple), Rachel McAdams (Send Help), Inde Navarrette (Obsession), Toby Poser (Mother of Flies), Adam Scott (Hokum) and Sophie Sloan (Dust Bunny).

The Best Supporting Performance shortlist includes Stacy Clausen (Leviticus), Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein), Elle Fanning (Predator: Badlands), Regina Hall (Scary Movie), David Jonsson (The Long Walk), Amy Madigan (Weapons), Mads Mikkelsen (Dust Bunny), Dacre Montgomery (Faces of Death), Jack O’Connell (28 Years Later: The Bone Temple) and Sigourney Weaver (Dust Bunny).

Behind the camera, the Best Director nominees are Curry Barker (Obsession), Zach Cregger (Weapons), Nia DaCosta (28 Years Later: The Bone Temple), Bryan Fuller (Dust Bunny) and Maggie Gyllenhaal (The Bride!). Best Screenplay honours Barker, Cregger, Alex Garland for 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, Isa Mazzei and Daniel Goldhaber for Faces of Death, and Damian McCarthy for Hokum.

The technical awards recognise cinematography, score, costume design, makeup effects and creature effects, with films including Backrooms, Dust Bunny, Frankenstein, The Bride!, Faces of Death, Mother Mary, Queens of the Dead, The Toxic Avenger, Primate, Predator: Badlands, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 and Lee Cronin’s The Mummy all receiving nominations.

The remaining categories celebrate horror beyond feature filmmaking. Best Documentary Feature nominees are 1000 Women in Horror, Chain Reactions, In Search of Darkness: 1995-1999, The Last Sacrifice and Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror. Best Non-Fiction TV Series or Miniseries includes The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula: Titans, Grave Conversations, The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs, Monstrum and Svengoolie, while Best Series recognises Alien: Earth, The Creep Tapes, Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen, The Vampire Lestat and Widow’s Bay. The Best Video Game nominees are Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake, Little Nightmares III, No, I’m Not A Human, Resident Evil: Requiem and Silent Hill f.

FANGORIA Editor-in-Chief Phil Nobile Jr. said this year’s nominations demonstrate that horror audiences continue to champion both major releases and smaller independent productions, while Chainsaw Awards writer and director Michael Varrati praised the breadth of stories and filmmakers represented across the ballot.

Fans can cast their votes now, with polling closing on 15 July before the winners are announced during the 2026 FANGORIA Chainsaw Awards on Shudder on 25 October.

Cast your vote here: vote.fangoria.com/