Horror at SXSW: Five standout scary movies from the 2024 festival

The film festival portion of South by Southwest is always packed with stars, bringing their would-be blockbusters out to Austin, Texas, for splashy premieres. But it’s also a festival that’s never lost sight of the power of genre. Through its Midnighters section and beyond, the annual movie extravaganza makes quite an effort to deliver the best in sci-fi, fantasy, and, of course, horror to audiences. This year was no different.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see every single horror film rolled out at SXSW this year, because I’m just one guy and it’s a big festival, but I did see quite a few that piqued my interest and even scared me right out of my seat. So, from big names to potential indie hits, here are five horror films from this year’s festival that you’ll want to put on your radar right now.

Birdeater

Easily the least crowd-pleasing of the films on this list (in a good way), Birdeater is a truly uncomfortable watch that will make you look twice at even your closest confidants. The setup is simple: In an effort to get his fiancée (Shabana Azeez) closer to his friend group, a groom-to-be (Mackenzie Fearnley) invites her to his bachelor weekend at a secluded house out in the woods. It’s a recipe for awkwardness, sure, but no matter how awkward and tense you’re expecting things to be, you’ll never see the depths of this one coming. It’s one of those films that keeps making you question every single relationship in its ensemble while never losing its grasp of character, tone, or pacing. That makes it brutal, but in the best way.Release Date: TBD