While you might be torn between spending your time at the beach and in the movie theaters to catch all the new releases this summer, Popcorn Frights Film Festival is asking, “why choose?” The tropical, Florida-set festival just revealed its first wave lineup for 2026, and it’s full of both classics and brand new premieres that you won’t want to miss.
The festival opens with a zombie-infested double bill, featuring Yeon Sang-Ho’s new film Colony alongside a tenth anniversary screening of his beloved classic Train to Busan, now restored in 4K. They’ll also be welcoming horror veteran Stephen Lang for another, bloodier double bill — first, the 1986 action thriller Band of the Hand, followed by another tenth anniversary screening for Don’t Breathe.
They’re also celebrating plenty of anniversaries this year. Little Shop of Horrors comes to life for its fortieth anniversary with a special interactive shadowcast screening, and John Waters’ gloriously grotesque film Polyester returns to screens complete in “sensational odorama” to celebrate 45 years. (Smell at your own peril.) To top it off, star Michael Ironside is headed to Florida for a 45th anniversary screening of David Cronenberg’s Scanners, as well as the 4K restoration of Total Recall.
Other films on the docket also include Sender, starring Britt Lower and Rhea Seehorn, Caleb Phillips’ feature debut Imposters, the world premiere of Marrow, starring attendee Michael Ironside, and Hallowarrior, featuring Hereditary star Milly Shapiro. Their Florida Focus program will also be putting a spotlight on two homegrown horror films with Padraig Reynolds’ Southern Gothic film Gator Face, and the documentary Best Served Cold, telling the story of the long-lost revenge thriller The Farmer.
If you can’t make it in person, the festival’s acclaimed virtual program returns this year with over twenty titles to choose from. Films featured here include Incubation, Mary Kwon, Mary Kwon, Armageddon Road, New Zealand body horror Broken Beak, and If It Bleeds, starring genre vets Doug Jones, Dee Wallace, Krsy Fox, and Catherine Corcoran.
For filmmakers, submissions remain open via FilmFreeway until July 12, so there’s still a chance to claim a spot amongst the best up-and-coming creatives in genre cinema.
Popcorn Frights Film Festival takes place from August 6-16 in Miami. For more information and to purchase festival passes, you can check out their website.
