5 films to see at the FANTASIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2026

It’s that time again and this time, it’s special. Fantasia International Film Festival, North America’s largest film festival, is entering its 30th year of diverse cinematic delights. The Montreal-based film festival has a great lineup this year, ranging from the return of an idiosyncratic cinema auteur to the return of a zombie film master to a new action-packed gem. Fantasia has always the place to enjoy great genre delights, coming from both revered filmmakers and exciting up-and-coming filmmakers.

The festival runs from July 16 to August 2, 2026. To purchase tickets, visit the website here.

Check out the festival promo video here:

Here are 5 exciting films coming to Fantasia this year that I would highly recommend:

Colony (2026; dir – Yeon Sang-ho); Horror, Action; South Korean Language

Synopsis from Fantasia:

Professor Se-jeong (Gianna Jun) attends a biotech conference to hopefully start looking for a new career in the field. What is supposed to be a simple day of finding a new job turns into blood-soaked terror as she and other survivors are trapped in the building with nowhere to run as a dangerous virus mutates people into infected beings undergoing horrifying transformations. It’s a fight for survival against these mindless, cannibalistic freaks, while struggling to figure out how to end this deadly threat…

Why I’m Excited:

“Train to Busan” is easily one of best zombie horror films ever made. Seeing Yeon Sang-ho return to the genre he knows all too well is going to be a no-brainer cinematic treat. Balancing great suspense with compelling character development, Sang-ho’s films are a notch above the typical zombie film. The talented cast also includes Gianna Jun, who returns to the big screen after 11 years. This film is automatically set to be a crowd-pleaser and it’s on the top of my list.

Trailer:

Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma (2026; dir – Jane Schoenbrun); Horror

Synopsis from Fantasia:

Queer, polyamorous director Kris (Hannah Einbinder, HACKS) is obsessed with rebooting an outdated and overdone slasher franchise, known as CAMP MIASMA. Her complicated and woke filmmaker life is consumed by these problematic movies and especially re-casting the final girl of the original film, Billy Presley (Gillian Anderson, THE X-FILES). Billy Presley is the ultimate slasher love interest, allowing her body and performance to be a place of both pleasure and pain for Kris’ enjoyment and the meta-audience of this franchise and film. Eventually, Kris’ obsession with the final girl transforms from cinephile fixation to full-on psychosexual infatuation. Attempting to modernize a film franchise riddled with ignorant and transphobic tropes, TEENAGE SEX AND DEATH AT CAMP MIASMA explores how complicated identity and desire is when it is informed by problematic pop culture.

Why I’m Excited:

Proving themselves to be a director in their own league with their last two films, critically acclaimed director Jane Schoenbrun is back with a unique horror film that is sure to bend our minds. Teaming up with an exciting cast, led by Gillian Anderson and Hannah Einbinder, this is the kind of psychosexual odyssey that is sure to be lingering in our brains like “I Saw the TV Glow” is still lingering there after it touched the big screen. Sex and cinema (specifically horror cinema) have long been intertwined with each other in interesting ways and I’m sure it’s going to be unforgettable experience to see how Schoenbrun deconstructs that union.

Trailer:

Her Private Hell (2026; dir – Nicolas Winding Refn); Drama, Horror, Thriller, Science-Fiction

Synopsis from Fantasia:

Set in a fog-basked futuristic city that curves, arches, juts, and glows like pathways into the subconscious, HER PRIVATE HELL opens in a towering, empty hotel. We meet Elle (Sophie Thatcher, YELLOWJACKETS, COMPANION), the daughter of decadently successful filmmaker Johnny Thunders (Dougray Scott, MY OXFORD YEAR, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 2), who sees in her the elements of himself that he most loathes. Elle’s relationship with her once-lover-now-stepmother Dominique (Havana Rose Liu, LURKER, BOTTOMS) is… difficult. Into this circle enters ingenue actor Hunter (Kristine Froseth, SHARP STICK, THE BUCCANEERS), who’s elated to be working with everyone and welcomes any pain that may come. And pain is indeed coming. The mist that permeates this city is known to bring out a ghostly serial killer with flesh-cutting, diamond-studded gloves. Also coming out of the fog is an American GI, Private K. (Charles Melton, MAY DECEMBER, RIVERDALE), who appears to exist in a realm decades past, on a violent mission to find his disappeared daughter… whom he suspects may be in hell.

Why I’m Excited:

Doesn’t that synopsis sound insane? When Nicholas Winding Refn is given a budget and a camera, he throws it all at the wall – damned if it sticks, damned if it doesn’t. A director rarely known to never receive polarizing reception, Refn’s hyper-stylish direction and maddening storytelling is a league all on its own. One thing a person cannot say walking out of a Refn film is that did not witness anything unique. Boasting a great cast, including Sophie Thatcher and Charles Melton, “Her Private Hell” is set to be another unique Refn experience – unlike anything we’ve ever witnessed before.

Trailer:

Attack on Paradise (2026; dir – Bob Colaers); Action; Dutch, Arabic Language

Synopsis from Fantasia:

They say one person’s hell can be another person’s home, but for Suleyman (Saïd Boumazoughe, GANGSTA, REBEL) what was once his home is now hell. Newly released after seven years in prison, Suleyman only wishes to return to Antwerp’s Paradise apartment complex and spend time with his ailing mother. But Paradise no longer lives up to its name. Drug lord Prince Hamza (Achmed Akkabi, MOCRO MAFFIA) has taken over, placed himself at the top floor and made Paradise his personal fortress. And just as Suleyman returns, a police raid of Paradise begins, one that pits the outmatched and outgunned police against the Prince’s private army. The cops go in hard and are happy to accept innocent dead tenants as collateral damage. Now paired with splintered-off rookie cop Yasmine (Clara Cleymans, MATCH), Suleyman only wants to protect his mother and get her out of Paradise before things get worse, but that’s not going to be easy. Suleyman and Yasmine are now going to take on the Prince’s thugs and retake Paradise floor by floor, flight by flight and fight by fight. And we do mean fight.

Why I’m Excited:

This sounds like an exciting new entry in action cinema. As stated by Matthew Kiernan on Fantasia’s website, “’Attack on Paradise’ is the exhilarating ass-kicker of Fantasia 2026.” While the film’s description may match “The Raid” or “Dredd” in plot, the film stands on its own merit with unique visuals and magnetic performances. There’s also excitement for the lead standout performance from actor and co-writer Saïd Boumazoughe, providing great choreography in action scenes and a relatable presence in his dramatic scenes. This is set to be one of those unforgettable gems you can only find at Fantasia.

Trailer:

The Samurai and the Prisoner (2026; dir – Kiyoshi Kurosawa); Drama, Thriller, Action, Crime; Japanese Language

Synopsis from Fantasia:

In the final, climactic years of Japan’s bloody Warring States period, Araki Murashige (Masahiro Motoki, DEPARTURES), lord of Settsu province, has suddenly undone his longstanding allegiance to the ruthless warlord Oda Nobunaga. Arioka Castle proves resilient against the ensuing siege from outside, but within its walls, a succession of baffling events threaten the resolve of the defenders. A boy is murdered with a seemingly invisible arrow. An enemy’s severed head becomes startlingly misshapen. A teapot of great value vanishes, and a turncoat is struck by lightning. Four impossible occurrences, one for each season. Signs of divine intervention—or perhaps very human conspiracy. Murashige must unravel these puzzles, and to do so, he must enter into a contest of wits with a man he has chained in his own dungeon, the brilliant strategist Kanbei Kuroda (Masaki Suda, DON’T CALL IT MYSTERY).

Why I’m Excited:

Kurosawa is one of the most prolific directors of his peer group. Being known as a master of J-horror with classics like “Cure” and Pulse”, the director has also put his foot in drama, sci-fi, action, romance and many other genres. With this latest film, the acclaimed director is balancing murder mystery with a period piece. Coming off his acclaimed psychological thriller 2024’s “Cloud’, Kurosawa is not missing a step as he brings forth what is sure to be another critically acclaimed film. I’m excited to see what Kurosawa brings this time around and I just know it’s going to be unforgettable.

Trailer: