The film business has been severely harmed by the epidemic. Several films have been postponed, and several have been shelved as a result of the tangle of delays. However, things appear to be returning to normal, with some major box office blockbusters in 2021.
When we look at the films set to be released in 2022, there are a few that stand out in particular. Of course, everyone is looking forward to the impending Batman film and the new Marvel Cinematic Universe release. It is a well-known fact that new films by luminaries such as James Cameron will be successful, and there are also several popular animated pictures scheduled to hit theatres.
But today’s conversation will be about some of the unsung heroes. These are the possible sleeper hits, which usually fly under the radar. They don’t have enormous budgets or major marketing efforts, and they don’t have big brand names to back them up. Some of these underappreciated future films may be well worth your time, and in this video, we highlight some of the lesser-known films set to hit theatres in 2022. Check them out for yourself and determine if they’re worth checking out.
Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Leatherface, the cannibalistic insane killer, and his deranged family’s stories never grow old. Following the success of TobeHooper’s debut film in 1974, the Texas Chainsaw Massacre series has grown to include eight films and a video game adaption. Leatherface is one of the most notable horror villains of all time, but the problem with the later movies in the franchise was that they simply couldn’t make him as terrifying as the first movie.
Since the 2000s, there have been three reboots in the franchise, but none managed to impress the fans or critics. Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning complicated the plot unnecessarily without focusing on what the franchise is known for! Texas Chainsaw 3D tried to work things out with an elaborate backstory, but the strategy fell flat on its face.
Later, Leatherface was released in 2017, but the fans of the original simply could not accept the portrayal of Leatherface. Besides handing us a complicated chronology, these reboots were only a pale shadow of the brilliance of the past.
However, we remain optimistic for the Texas Chainsaw Massacre in 2022. Fede Alvarez, who has worked on films such as Don’t Breathe and Evil Dead, is in charge of the story. Clearly, the man can manage the complexities of a terrifying chase thriller, which is essentially the franchise’s major premise in a nutshell.
2013’s Evil Dead managed to retain the essence of the original, and we hope that he can work out the same brilliance for Texas Chainsaw Massacre as well. So far, we have heard that the upcoming movie will act as a direct sequel of the original and the makers would try to go back to the basics.
The story suggests that Leatherface is back after being in the hiding for almost fifty years. A group of friends moves to the remote town in Texas to start an idealistic business, but they have something different in store for them! They accidentally destroy the house of the crazy serial killer, and now the psycho is back for his brand of blood-soaked vengeance.
Sally, the sole survivor of the 1973 massacre is still around and together they are up against a demonic person who just wants them dead. The trailer suggests that the same old, creepy ways are back, and Leatherface seems to be triggered by something that causes him to embrace his old murderous self after all these years.
The movie is being directed by David Bleu Garcia, and it is all set to release around February 2022. The formula for success is simple, and yet very complicated. The creators just have to retain the same fast-paced action-packed thriller as the original, and the fans aresureto lap it up!
Wyrmwood: Apocalypse
When Wyrmwood was first released in 2014, it wowed everyone with its gripping storey. The protagonist of this Australian zombie action film is Barry, a mechanic who lives with his wife and daughter. After his wife and kid are turned into zombies, he urgently tries to flee, and he quickly finds some odd allies among the survivors.
Together, they discover that the zombie disaster could be due to a meteor shower. According to the Bible, a star called Wyrmwood has fallen on Earth and caused the apocalyptic situation. Meanwhile, a crazy scientist is conducting experiments on Barry’s infected sister and other zombies.
However, due to these experiments, she develops the ability to psychically control the other zombies. It all seems to be a part of a wider conspiracy, but Barry and his sister seem to command the zombie forces and work as a team. The open-ended movie left us asking for a sequel, and after seven years, we finally seem to get one!
The forthcoming film appears to be a lot meaner and deadlier than the original, based on the preview. KiahRoache-Turner, who also directed the previous film, is the director, and Kiah and his brother Tristan wrote the script. The storey will purportedly follow a soldier called Rhys as he patrols the zombie-infested landscapes in search of survivors.
He wants to find a cure for the devastating zombie infection, and he is joined by a group of survivors, each of whom has distinct superpowers. They come across a young woman who is about to fall victim to the military experimentations on the zombie infection, and together they must save her from death.
Since the original movie was hit by piracy in the US, this time the makers plan to release the movie in Australia first. The director is quite optimistic about his sequel, and he compared the grandeur of the second movie to that of Mad Max 2, which was bigger and bolder than the original.
The teaser shows glimpses of mean weapons, fast cars, explosions, and even a giant cyborg! Apparently, they wanted to make this movie back in 2014, but the budgetary constraints back then forced them to cut down on the narrative. If Wyrmwood: Apocalypse is successful, there will be a third movie to follow, and we are certainly looking forward to this zombie thriller!
Gold
When done well, Survivor thrillers may hit the right notes! The new Australian survival thriller Gold has a lot to offer. To begin with, the cast looks to be pretty enticing, with Zac Efron, Susie Porter, and Anthony Hayes among the cast members. The story seems to be about the gold rush events when people risked everything to look for gold in the middle of nowhere.
Two such men find one of the biggest gold nuggets ever in the middle of the Australian desert, and they must work tirelessly to excavate it. While one of them has to go and get the equipment for the excavation process, the character played by ZacEfron has to stay put protecting the gold. He is up against various dangers in the desert, and solitude brings some terrible thoughts for him. What if he has been abandoned to his fate!
The film is due to hit theatres in January 2022, and the teaser shows ZacEfron in a stunning makeover. He appears to be trapped against all odds, and the only thing that can save him is his innate survival instinct! We were impressed by his appearance and acting skills in the brief trailer, where his clothes keep getting more tattered and his mental stability becomes questionable.
He seems to come to the point, where random hallucinations cloud his thinking abilities. Besides, there are more threats in the desert than the daytime heat and the wild animals! The cinematography looks breathtaking, and the harsh barren landscape of the deadly Australian desert has been wonderfully captured. If all goes well, we are surely going to have a gem of a movie on our hands, and this might be another stellar performance from ZacEfron!
Shattered
This may be one of the greatest previews for forthcoming movies in 2022 that we’ve seen. Shattered follows Chris, a software billionaire whose life is turned upside down by a deadly infatuation. He appears to be drawn to Sky, an attractive young lady, and she takes good care of him when he gets hurt on the streets by a thug. However, he soon learns that Sky is far from the innocent and loving girl that he thought her to be.
There is a spine-chilling scene in the trailer, where she admits that she killed her roommate, and all this was just a setup to trap Chris. He soon finds himself being tortured and tormented by the young lady, who wants to take everything from him, including his identity. There seems to be no way of escaping from this grueling torture, and the trailer even shows one of his escape attempts gone wrong because his rescuer is an ally of Sky!
We’re sold by the trailer alone, and Luis Prieto’s film has the potential to be one of the year’s most tense psycho thrillers. The cast appears to be promising as well, with Cameron Monaghan (Gotham) and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order star Cameron Monaghan leading the way. He is ably supported by the likes of Frank Grillo, Lilly Krug, Sasha Luss, and John Malkovich.
The makers have described the movie as something in the line of Basic Instinct and Fatal Attraction, and we are keen to learn what drives Sky to become a psycho version of herself, and how Chris is responsible! There might not be a maddening craze behind this movie, but it might take the audience by surprise with some compelling storytelling!
The Jack in the Box 2
Killer clowns have long dominated the horror genre, and The Jack in the Box 2 appears to be the next addition to the canon. It’s a follow-up to The Jack in the Box, which came out in 2019. The previous film told the terrifying tale of an antique Jack-in-the-Box that was discovered and donated to a museum.
One of the staff members, Casey Reynolds, believes that the creepy doll inside the box has a life of its own. When his colleagues start dying under mysterious circumstances, he believes that the clown might be responsible for the killings. However, his ideas seem absurd, and there won’t be many believing his ridiculous version.
Will he be able to solve the curse of the box, or will he be the next victim! This horror B-movie didn’t really please the fans because the true potential of the plot wasn’t realized effectively. Directed by Lawrence Fowler, this movie tried to bring in the flavors of movies like Hellraiser, and the fateful box does have similarities with the Lament Configuration.
The Jack in the Box: Awakening, the sequel, will be released in January 2022. If the trailer is any indication, the film is heavily influenced by the Hellraiser, Killjoy, and Conjuring universes. That isn’t necessarily a negative thing, though, because there appear to be plenty of unexpected moments in store for the audience.
The creature design seems perfect, and the clown looks absolutely terrifying. The filming has been done in some genuinely spooky locations, and this movie promises to punch a notch higher than its predecessor. The director from the first movie is back once again, but this time the story seems fresh. A terminally ill heiress named Olga Marsdale acquires a mysterious box that contains the demonic Jack inside.
This evil entity strikes a deal with Olga and her son. If they can bring him six victims, they will be spared. This marks the beginning of a deadly journey, where the mother-son duo brings in unsuspecting victims into their mansion to be killed by Jack. However, the young woman named Amy who is supposed to look after the estate is a smart young lady who will not surrender without a fight! The movie stars Nicola Wright, Matt McClure, and James Swanton among others.
Unwelcome
Unwelcome, the next film from Jon Wright, appears to be an intriguing monster feature for 2022. The trailer is eerie, and the tone shifts in the blink of an eye! It begins with a couple named Maya and Jamie as they travel to their family home in rural Ireland.
They want some peace, probably some time away from the hustle-bustle of urban life, and their new life here seems perfect in the middle of the lush green stretches of wilderness. However, the people around them seem to believe in some kind of fairytale creatures called Redcaps.
These goblin-like murderous creatures need to be appeased with some kind of blood offering, and it all starts when Jamie and Maya forget to leave out the offering one night! They have barely settled in when their life takes horrificturnwith these malevolent creatures making them feel unwelcome. Once the nightmarish creatures make their presence felt, no one is safe, and a pregnant Maya must find a way to protect her family!
Jamie Lee O’Donnell and Colm Meaney star in the film, which also features some prominent cameos, including Kristian Nairn, who portrayed Hodor in Game of Thrones. The appearance of Redcaps, a prominent malevolent figure in old Scottish folklore, is of particular importance to us. These vicious goblins haven’t been fully revealed in the trailer, but going by the look of some of their victims, it seems like these bloodthirsty creatures can be quite a handful. The movie is all set to release in February 2022, and we cannot wait to watch this unique goblin flick!
Lightyear
The Toy Story lovers were treated to a pleasant surprise at this year’s Disney Investor Day. Pixar’s chief creative officer indicated that a Toy Story spin-off film was in the works and that it would focus on Buzz Lightyear’s origins. The film will explore how Buzz Lightyear became a hero and how he became the inspiration for the Toy Story toy.
The fans were all the more excited to learn the involvement of Chris Evans in the project. However, contrary to what people were thinking, he will not be replacing Tim Allen. In fact, Chris Evans is voicing the human Buzz Lightyear in the Toy Story universe. He seems to be very excited to be a part of a Pixar movie, and we believe he will do justice to the role.
Disney has kept this a well-guarded secret for obvious reasons, and little information about the project has been released. We’ve learned that the tale is a sci-fi adventure centered on Buzz Lightyear, a youthful test pilot. He goes on to become the fabled Space Ranger, and Disney has said that the film is a stand-alone Buzz Lightyear narrative.
As you know, the main antagonist for Buzz Lightyear in the Toy Story franchise is Emperor Zurg, the evil lord who seeks to destroy planets. It has been hinted that Zurg might be up against Buzz Lightyear in this one. The movie is all set to release in June 2022, and the trailer is promising enough to make us hopeful for an unforgettable experience coming up.
Salem’s Lot
Stephen King’s 1975 horror novel was previously adapted for a TV mini-series, and the work was well-received by fans. This is without a doubt one of Stephen King’s best stories, therefore it’s no surprise that a new version of Salem’s Lot will be released in 2022. For a long time, the news had been circulating.
The horror fans were excited about this project because the producer and director of movies like The Conjuring and Aquaman, James Wan, was all set to be the producer of the new Salem’s Lot. Gary Dauberman was handling the script, and he revealed that he would make some improvisations to the story.
His goal was to bring back the fearful element of vampires, and the ones you see in this movie will be a far cry from the romanticized vamps that have scared you in the recent past. Going by his work in the Anabelle series, and It: Chapter Two, we are confident that he can pull off a terrifying narrative.
The novel follows Ben Mears, a writer who returns to Salem’s Lot, Maine, where he grew up. He’s returned after twenty-five years, and throughout his upbringing at the abandoned Marsten House, he experienced several terrifying incidents.
Now, he wants to write a book about the eerie mansion, but his plans are disrupted by the arrival of some form of an ancient evil. This force is turning people into vampires, and Ben wants to stop the horror of the undead to save his childhood town. The movie is supposed to come out in September 2022, and we expect a nerve-racking horror flick on our hands!
Evil Dead Rise (2022)
Lee Cronin, who is best known for the highly acclaimed film The Hole in the Ground, is writing and directing Evil Dead Rise, the fifth episode in the Evil Dead franchise. The narrative follows Beth, a road-weary young lady who returns to see her older sister Ellie after a lengthy absence. Ellie is preoccupied with her well-ordered life, three children, and her small Los Angeles residence.
The emotional reunion of the estranged sisters, however, is interrupted abruptly when they discover a mysterious book in Ellie’s building. This ancient, evil book reanimates the flesh-possessing demonic creatures, and the two sisters have to bring in the best of their survival instinct to save their family from these vicious beings.
The film was initially revealed in October of this year, and fans of the first film are looking for more of the same humorous terror they loved previously. Despite the fact that the trailer has yet to be released, Lee Cronin has posted some of the bloody images from the film on his Twitter page. During the shoot, he also stated that around 6500 liters of artificial blood were utilized.
It seems like the narrative will stay true to its gruesome roots, and the gore element will be extreme. The cast comprises Alyssa Sutherland who worked in Vikings, and she will be playing the role of the mother in Los Angeles.
Lily Sullivan will play the role of her sister Beth, and Mia Challis, Morgan Davies, and Nell Fisher are some of the other members of the cast. However, there will be no Ash Williams this time around, and the new storyline might be a great opportunity to modernize the franchise and make things relevant. The filming process has been wrapped up, and the movie is set to be released around summer 2022.
You Won’t Be Alone (2022)
The plot is set in a remote Macedonian mountain town during the nineteenth century. A little girl is kidnapped and turned into a witch by an ancient ghost. She’s now fascinated by human existence and wants to understand more about what it’s like to be a human.
So, after she accidentally kills a peasant in a nearby village, she takes shape in order to live her life. However, her terrifying powers might come in the way of her curiosity! Noomi Rapace, whom you have previously seen in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, has been cast as the shapeshifting witch, and the narrative is all set to be a horrifying and emotional ride.
Goran Stolevski wrote and directed it, and the trailer depicts some of the witch’s adventures while in human form. She experiences love, pleasure, abuse, and death. The witch, on the other hand, is immortal and only needs to change bodies. This movie is not going to be an all-out horror thriller, and the witch is not just some malevolent entity.
There seem to be some impactful moments in the trailer and she comes close to realizing the meaning of life and humanity! We are quite intrigued by the premise of this movie because it is not often that we get to see a supposed antagonist simply taking the role of a curious onlooker! The film is set for an April release, and it has all the elements to be a huge hit.
Nope (2022)
When we initially learned that Jordan Peele is working on a new movie, we were ecstatic. We were even more excited to find that his future film is a horror film, since this Academy Award winner wowed audiences with the film Get Out.
Unfortunately, nothing has been revealed about the story so far, and fans are only speculating based on a picture shared by the director. The image is that of an ominous massive cloud, looming over a village. It has been clarified that the movie is a horror flick, so fans are imagining their own versions of the story.
It’s thought that Jesse Plemons was initially offered the starring part, but he had to turn it down due to schedule difficulties. Nope will be released on July 22, 2022, and stars Daniel Kaluuya, Steven Yuen, and Keke Palmer.
The Northman (2022)
The Lighthouse and The Witch director Robert Neil Eggers is most recognized for his work in horror films. He is, however, preparing for an epic historical film titled The Northman this time. The novel is set in tenth-century Iceland and follows a Viking Prince called Amleth on his angry expedition.
After his father is murdered, he seeks out revenge, and the narrative explores just how far he will go to get justice for his father! The movie boasts of a promising cast with Alexander Skarsgard in the lead, supported by veterans like Nicole Kidman.
The other members of the cast include Anya Taylor-Joy, Ethan Hawke, and Claes Bang. The Northman is supposed to release on 22nd April 2022, and the narrative promises loads of drama, thrill, and suspense.
The debut teaser teases a larger-than-life family drama laced with raw vengeance emotions. The magical environment appears to be stunningly gorgeous, and the cinematography is guaranteed to dazzle audiences. The director claims that this was one of his toughest projects, and visually, it does seem like an uphill task.
He has revealed that the narrative will contain elements of magic, swords, and mysticism, and the story is based on the same Norse legend that inspired Shakespeare’s Hamlet! This might just be one of the most glorious movies of 2022, and we are hoping for a kickass revenge drama to remember for times to come!
We’ve had some difficult times as a result of the epidemic, and maybe 2022 will be the year we move forward. Some amusement may be just what we need to forget about our traumas, and we’re banking on these and other upcoming films to keep the audience entertained throughout the year.