Menu
September 30th 2025: The most horrifying event in the Irish film calendar, IFI HORRORTHON, returns to the Irish Film Institute from Thursday, October 23rd to Monday, October 27th.
This year’s festival will open on Thursday 23rd with the Irish premiere of Chris Stuckman’s Shelby Oaks starring Camille Sullivan and Brendan Sexton III, and is executive produced by Mike Flanagan (The Life of Chuck, Doctor Sleep, The Haunting of Hill House). The festival will close with Dust Bunny, Bryan Fuller’s visually ravishing tale of a young girl who hires a hitman to take care of the monster under her bed. The film sees Fuller reunite with his Hannibal collaborator, Mads Mikkelsen, with a supporting cast that includes Sigourney Weaver and BAFTA nominee Sheila Atim.
This year, IFI Horrorthon is especially delighted to partner with District Film Club for a very special Vampire’s Ball event on Saturday 25th. In a unique venue takeover, the IFI’s cinemas will host three classic films: District co-present both Tomas Alfredson’s Let The Right One In and Stephen Norrington’s Blade, starring Wesley Snipes and Stephen Dorff; and Clive Barker’s Lord of Illusions, which will be preceded by a talk on Barker’s body of work from Dr Sorcha Ní Fhlainn of Manchester Metropolitan University. The screenings will culminate with a fangtastic party in the IFI foyer with District DJs on the decks and drinks flowing from the IFI Cafe Bar until late. Expect spot prizes, undead glamour and more!
Lina Leandersson as Eli in Tomas Alfredson’s Let the Right One In
Speaking about this year’s festival, Darcie Faccio of Horrorthon said, ‘Another year of delivering the finest horror cinema at IFI Horrorthon. This year’s selection mixes exciting new releases with classic rep titles, offering something for every genre devotee. Highlights include opening film Shelby Oaks, fresh off rave reviews at Fantastic Fest, our surprise film, sure to be a major crowd pleaser, and a closing title hailed as one of the most visually striking of 2025. Returning is our annual strand, this time devoted to the transgressive New French Extremity, showcasing four landmark films that defined the movement. So, settle in for the best Halloween frights on offer!’
Commenting on the special Saturday night events, IFI Director Ross Keane added, ‘One of the most exciting aspects of this year’s IFI Horrorthon, is our very first Vampire’s Ball, presented in collaboration with the District Film Club. This venue takeover special event will include screenings and talks, all culminating in an unmissable and unforgettable party in the IFI foyer.’
Following its sold out success last year, the Horror Table Quiz will return on Friday evening. Compete with the biggest horror fans around for the title of the IFI Horrorthon Quiz Champion – with thrilling prizes to be won! The Surprise Film, a perennial IFI Horrorthon favourite, will also return in its traditional Sunday evening slot. Tickets for both events will sell out fast, so don’t miss out!
This year’s festival will include a focus on New French Extremity cinema, with four classics of the genre. Screenings will include Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury’s Inside starring Béatrice Dalle; Gaspar Noé’s acclaimed Irréversible starring Monica Bellucci and Vincent Cassel; Pascal Laugier’s Martyrs, arguably the key film of the New French Extremity movement; and Alexandre Aja’s High Tension, starring Cécile de France and Maïwenn as two women terrorised at a secluded farmhouse. Considered transgressive and graphic, these high-octane titles offer a rare opportunity for hardcore horror fans to explore this boundary-pushing phenomenon.
IFI Horrorthon’s ever-popular double bills return on Friday, with a fascinating look behind the camera. David Kittredge’s engrossing Boorman and the Devil looks at the troubled production history of John Boorman’s Exorcist II: The Heretic; Kittredge’s documentary will be followed by a rare screening of Boorman’s unfairly-maligned sequel. Michael Felsher’s Hearts of Darkness: The Making of the Final Friday looks at Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday, the divisive ninth instalment in the Friday the 13th franchise; both films will screen. Rounding out the double bills will be Stuart Gordon’s Re-Animator and Lamberto Bava’s Demons, two films celebrating their fortieth anniversaries in 2025.
IFI Horrorthon is proud to present the first Irish screening of a new 4k restoration of Neil Marshall’s classic The Descent, this year celebrating its twentieth anniversary. The film follows six women who become trapped in an uncharted cave system and struggle to survive against the monstrous creatures inside. Other classics to screen include Robert Butler’s 1980 classic Night of the Juggler starring James Brolin, plus the Saturday afternoon Secret Classic which will give audiences the opportunity to enjoy an overlooked film, possibly for the first time on the big screen.
As always, the festival will also showcase the best new horror cinema from around the world. From Thailand’s 13 Studio comes Attack 13, which follows a group of high school girls who discover their bully’s behaviour gets worse after her death; Flush, from French director Grégory Morin, centres on hapless middle-aged Luc who get his head stuck in a nightclub toilet; Zak Hilditch’s We Bury the Dead sees Star Wars‘s Daisy Ridley as a clean-up crew worker sent to clear Tasmania after an experimental weapon has, supposedly, killed all life on the island; New Zealand’s long tradition of brilliant horror-comedies continues with Callum Devlin’s The Weed Eaters, while Deathgasm 2: Goremageddon is the Kiwi sequel to Deathgasm, a hit of the 2015 festival.
Daisy Ridley in Zak Hilditch’s We Bury The Dead
New films from North America include Redux Redux from the McManus Brothers, which premiered at this year’s SXSW festival; Woody Bess’s Portal to Hell, starring the legendary Keith David; Paul Gandersman and Peter S. Hall’s Man Finds Tape, which took its bow at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival; Steven Kostanski’s Deathstalker, a remake of the 1980s notorious swords-and-sorcery film; and from Eli Roth’s The Horror Section comes the Canadian sleepwalking chiller Dream Eater. Rounding out the festival line-up is Rupert Russell’s The Last Sacrifice, a brilliantly constructed documentary exploring the roots of British folk horror cinema.
TICKETS Individual tickets for IFI Horrorthon films cost €15 for IFI Members and €16.50 for non-members. A five-day festival pass is available for €160 for IFI Members and €165 for non-members; ten-film passes are available for €100 (IFI Members) and €105 (non-members) with five-film passes are available for €60 (IFI Members) and €65 (non-members). All festival and bundles exclude the Vampire Ball and Horror Film Quiz. Tickets for the Vampire Ball cost €18 (IFI Members) and €20 (non-members). The Horror Film Quiz costs €20 for a table of 4.
Tickets are on sale now in person at the IFI Box Office, by phone on 01-6793477, or online at www.ifi.ie/horrorthon. Five-day passes and multi-film passes can be purchased in person or over the phone from the IFI Box Office.
IFI Membership is required for all films. If you are not an IFI Member then a membership fee of €1.50 will be added to each IFI Horrorthon ticket price, and/or a Festival Membership fee of €5.00 will be added to each IFI Horrorthon ticket bundle.
FULL FESTIVAL SCHEDULE
For further information, high-res images, or guest interview requests, please contact Casey Hynes (chynes@irishfilm.ie) at the IFI Press Office – 01-6795744.
The IFI acknowledges the financial support of the Arts Council.
BOOKING INFO Booking via ifi.ie/horrorthon/
TICKET BUNDLES* Full Festival Pass (All 5 Days)**: €160.00 (IFI Member) / €165.00 (Non-Member) 10-Film Deal: €100.00 (IFI Member) / €105.00 (Non-Member) 5-Film Deal: €60.00 (IFI Member) / €65.00 (Non-Member) **The Festival pass will cover all films except in instances where film times clash, so you must choose which title you want to see. These passes can only be booked in-person or by calling the IFI Box Office on 01 679 3477.
BLUE MOON 13.40, 18.40
BUGONIA 20.45 (35mm)
DIE MY LOVE 16.10
NUREMBERG 13.10
PALESTINE 36 20.50
PILLION 16.00 (OC), 20.30
THE DOORS: WHEN YOU’RE STRANGE
THE MASTERMIND 15.50
The IFI is supported by The Arts Council
More News