SXSW 2026 Preview: 10 Huge Movies We’re Excited To See
It’s time for SXSW! Once again, film fans will be gathering in Austin, Texas, for a week of cool, largely genre-focused movies looking to build a bit of buzz before many of them come out over the next few months. SXSW has steadily been rising in reputation, with it perhaps most famous for being the place where eventual Oscar-winner Everything Everywhere All at Once had its world premiere. This will be JoBlo’s second time covering the fest, as we attended last year, where we caught the world premieres of The Accountant 2, Another Simple Favor, Death of a Unicorn, and more.
SXSW is interesting in that it seems to be a better place for studios to launch crowd-pleasers than a high-end indie market, with last year’s probably best film at the festival, The Rivals of Amziah King, yet unreleased. Yet genre indies do get sold there, with Good Boy having been a pretty big acquisition last year, and it did solid box office when it came out last summer. With that in mind, here are some of the movies we’re most eager to see this year.
Ready or Not 2: Here I Come
Radio Silence returns with a sequel to their survival horror flick, with Samara Weaving reprising her star-making role as a young woman marked for death by a family who wanted to use her as a satanic sacrifice. Fresh off killing her way out of that situation, her character is forced to participate in another “kill or be killed” game by another clan, which includes such genre stalwarts as Elijah Wood, David Cronenberg, and Sarah Michelle Gellar. Plus, Kathryn Newton co-stars as Weaving’s sister, who is forced to join the hunt. The last one was a blast, so here’s hoping the sequel is just as good.
They Will Kill You:
Oddly, this seems to have the same premise as Ready or Not, in which a young woman (in this case, Zazie Beetz) is hunted by a satanic cult that lives in the high-end hotel she’s just been hired at. Patricia Arquette co-stars. This comes from WB/New Line, who have had a strong run of horror movies as of late, so this might be another crowd-pleaser, although it’s odd that this and Ready or Not 2 are opening so close to each other (they hit theaters only one week apart).
Over Your Dead Body:
Samara Weaving seems to be the MVP of this year’s SXSW, with her showing up in not one, but two movies. This one pairs her with Jason Segel in a remake of the Norwegian action-comedy-horror flick The Trip. In it, Segel and Weaving play a couple who are each planning to murder the other on a weekend trip to the country, only to join forces against a bigger threat. This has action scenes by 87North and is directed by The Lonely Island’s Jorma Taccone, who also helmed MacGruber.
Pretty Lethal:
Another 87North production, this one focuses on a troupe of ballerinas forced to rely on years of brutal training to survive a team of armed men. Maude Apatow, Lana Condor, and Uma Thurman star.
Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice:
Vince Vaughn, James Marsden, and Eiza Gonzalez star in this buddy action movie about two hitmen, the woman they both love, and… a time machine? The trailer for this one looked like a lot of fun, and it’s nice to see Vaughn return to action, having slayed in the now-classic Brawl in Cell Block 99.
Power Ballad:
One of my favorite directors, John Carney (Sing Street, Once), returns with another music-driven comedy in which Paul Rudd plays a frustrated singer-songwriter whose composition is stolen by a pop star (Nick Jonas). I love Carney, and I love Rudd, so this one is an easy must-see and may well end up as my favorite of the fest (there’s never been a Carney movie I didn’t love).
Hokum:
Adam Scott stars in this Neon-distributed horror film about an author (played by the great Adam Scott) staying in a hotel in Ireland that might be haunted. Scott is having a much-deserved moment in the spotlight thanks to Severance, so I’m eager to see him stretch. Also, Neon has become a trusted name in horror.
Obsession:
Curry Barker’s film was a sensation at TIFF’s Midnight Madness, where I (regrettably) missed out on seeing it. I’m looking to remedy that, and Focus is using SXSW as a platform to launch a movie they surely hope will become the next indie horror smash, with it getting a prime summer release date.
Normal:
Bob Odenkirk makes a welcome return to action in Ben Wheatley’s small-town-set shoot-’em-up. Odenkirk plays a temporary sheriff who discovers the town he’s posted in harbors a deadly secret. I actually caught this one at TIFF (read my review), so this will be a repeat viewing for me — albeit a welcome one. It’s even showing on 35mm film!
I Love Boosters:
Boots Riley returns with his much-anticipated follow-up to his indie hit Sorry to Bother You. Not much is known about this one, but it stars Keke Palmer and Demi Moore, and is being positioned as a huge release by Neon.
Which movie are you most eager to see? Let us know in the comments!
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