And the Winner is… The Horror Genre!

Sinners © 2025 Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. and Domain Pictures, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

The Academy Awards are almost upon us, which means we’re locked into that annual jamboree of bold predictions, finger crossing for your favourites and a never-ending stream of articles about Timothée Chalamet’s chances of finally picking up an Oscar. Or not.

But this year we have something new. Horror fans rejoice! Because whatever happens on the 15^th, our time is now! Sinners (2025), Frankenstein (2025) and Bugonia (2025) are just three of the films flying the flag for a genre that’s not always triumphed come awards season. And so as we approach the finale of the 2026 awards season, we’re taking a look at what the nominations mean for horror movies and audiences who love them…

A vampire movie is up for Best Picture. At the Oscars. Best Picture! This in itself represents a memorable triumph. As UK Film Review pointed out when discussing Sinners, ‘For a horror-inflected drama to be the frontrunner for the night's top prize suggests Coogler has crafted something far more profound than a mere genre piece... He follows in the footsteps of legends like William Friedkin and Jordan Peele, who proved that "genre" films can be high art.’

But if that accolade seems unexpected, the full breadth of Sinners’ haul of nominations is staggering. Ryan Coogler’s historical horror has smashed the record for the most Academy Award nominations received by a single film and is in the running in 16 categories, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Original Screenplay.

Frankenstein © 2025 Netflix

Perhaps even more surprising is the fact that Sinners won’t be horror’s sole ambassador when it’s envelope-opening time at Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre. It’s been 116 years since the first big screen adaptation of Frankenstein hit cinemas, and the Baron has finally made it to the major awards. Guillermo del Toro’s gorgeous, gothic take on Mary Shelley’s tale has been recognised in an impressive nine categories, including Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay. But it doesn’t stop there. Bugonia received four nominations, including Best Picture and Best Actress, whilst Weapons (2025) and The Ugly Stepsister (2025) are also in the running for the much-coveted statuettes.

So, whoever steps onto the stage, and whoever’s forced to wear their best ‘I’m happy for you’ smile, the 2026 Academy Awards will be remembered as an evening where horror re-emerged from the shadows and was acknowledged as a vital and vibrant component of modern cinema. Which begs the question… does it matter, and if so, why?

Here at Hammer we may be slightly biased, but it’s hard to argue it’s anything other than positive. Any young filmmaker, inspired by directors such as Jordan Peele, Terence Fisher or James Whale, will hopefully feel more empowered to stick to the genre they love after it’s been so overtly invited to the top table. And the people in charge of financing productions will surely feel more inclined to look favourably on horrors when it’s clear they can deliver both at the box office and at cinema’s swankiest night of the year.

Weapons © 2025 Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. and Domain Pictures, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Let’s be honest, that’s not always been the case. The award-winning director, writer and horror academic Rebekah McKendry summed up a widely held belief when she ventured, ‘Many people disregard horror films as B-grade, campy and silly… Because of this, many people don't view horror films as sources of art and social messages. It's a genre many audiences are afraid to approach in general, let alone celebrate with major awards.’

Of course, no single style of storytelling absolutely needs the approval of judges or awards committees, but the kind of recognition given by this year’s Oscars helps to stem the flow of misconceptions that McKendry outlined, which in turn benefits anyone hoping to evolve the genre.

Want more good news? Well, there are several additional upshots to horror’s bonanza year at the Academy Awards. Research consistently reveals that Oscar success, either with a win, wins, or significant nominations, boosts a film’s profile and by extension, it gains a larger audience. This is worth emphasising, as it suggests that people who wouldn’t normally choose to watch a horror movie may well sit down and give say, Sinners or Frankenstein a go.

What a world of cinematic joy, thrills and excitement awaits every newbie who’s plunged into the genre thanks to the works of talents like Coogler or del Toro. Both directors have been gracious in their acknowledgement of filmmakers who inspired them, with Coogler referencing icons such as Spike Lee, John Singleton, Steve McQueen, Christopher Nolan, Jordan Peele, Nicolas Roeg and John Carpenter.

And this is where the interconnectedness of classic horror’s rich legacy comes to the fore. John Carpenter has long been open about his love of Hammer productions, for example, and how the studio’s horror output shaped his own approach. In fact he speaks eloquently on the subject in Hammer: Heroes, Legends and Monsters, and talking about recent releases, Nicolas Roeg’s fledgling forays include camera work on Doctor Blood’s Coffin (1961) an early British zombie picture recently added to the new Hammer Presents range.

Guillermo del Toro has been generous in his praise of Hammer, often citing Terence Fisher as a major influence, noting his use of colour and framing. Fisher was at the helm of lesser-known gems including Four Sided Triangle (1953) and Spaceways (1953) before directing classics such as The Curse of Frankenstein (1957). The latter especially caught del Toro’s eye and, when asked about screen versions of ‘the Creature’, his stance has been unequivocal: ‘The only guy that has ever nailed, for me, the emptiness, not the tragic, not the Miltonian dimension of the monster, but the emptiness is Christopher Lee in the Hammer films, where he really looks like something obscenely alive.’

Obscenely alive? Yuck. But sure, we’ll take it.

The last big Oscar night for horror came in March,1992 when The Silence of the Lambs (1991) scooped wins in all of the ‘Big Five’ categories. Widely perceived as a horror film, its impact, especially after its Oscars ‘validation’, proved enormous. Writing for Film Stories, Ryan Lambie noted, ‘The Silence Of The Lambs ushered in a fascination with serial killers that informed cinema for years afterwards… In terms of its mark on pop culture, The Silence Of The Lambs was perhaps the most consequential publishing and film phenomenon of its era. Both the book and the movie affected audience tastes for years afterwards…’ 

It’s fascinating to conjecture what impact the success of pictures like Frankenstein, Bugonia and Sinners, will have on Hollywood and wider viewing habits. No-one is suggesting the latter is ‘only’ a vampire movie (as referenced earlier, it stands as so much more) but it’s a powerful reminder of how scary, moving and creative a vampire film can be, and del Toro’s lush and intelligent Frankenstein shows how a familiar story can be retold with verve and much needed optimism.

Guillermo del Toro has been hugely positive about Hammer’s The Curse of Frankenstein and its director, Terence Fisher.

The future of the genre remains unknown, and it goes without saying that one year of critical success won’t define what follows. But surely it must influence its progress in a positive and practical way.

Back in the 1950s Hammer put Quatermass on the big screen and terrified a generation of cinemagoers. Shortly after this they reinvented horror with works that relied as much on psychology and characterisation as jump scares and monsters. Seven decades later, Hammer remains fiercely proud of its heritage and excited by what lies ahead, both in terms of its own future, and the wider possibilities offered by the genre it helped develop.

And come 15^th March we’ll be cheering for Sinners, Frankenstein, Bugonia, Weapons and The Ugly Stepsister, because their success feels like a nod to everyone who said Dracula (1958) should have won Best Picture and stars like Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee and Barbara Shelley should have had shelves buckling under the weight of winners’ statuettes.

So, let’s all celebrate! Because whatever happens, the 2026 Academy Awards promises to be a night of horror, for all the right reasons.

If Sinners has re-awakened your interest in vampire films, you might want to check out I am Dracula… The Scene that Started a Legend, or if you’d like to see why del Toro was so enamoured by Hammer’s version of Frankenstein, you can grab a copy of our Limited Collector's Edition now!

But if The Ugly Stepsister has put you in the mood for a dark jaunt into the horrors of cosmetic surgery, you’ll love Stolen Face (1952). Just watched Weapons and fancy reading about earlier school-based terrors? Take a look at our feature on Fear in the Night.

Meanwhile, if you’re after something like Bugonia… Okay. Honestly? We’ve got nothing there. I mean, come on. Have you seen Bugonia? But we do have a whole range of fabulous films, many of which are as surprising and frankly out there as Bugonia. Try one. To misquote Emma Stone’s character from that captivating movie, there is no possible scenario where you don’t benefit from that…