Golden Scythe Horror Awards 2026 Nominations Are Here

The Golden Scythe Horror Awards are back, and the 2026 nominations make one thing clear. Horror had a very strong year, and the genre is not playing small anymore. The 4th Annual Golden Scythe Horror Awards nominations were officially announced, with Bring Her Back and Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 leading the pack. Each film earned 16 nominations, including Best Picture, signaling major support across both creative and technical categories.

The winners will be revealed during a live-streamed ceremony on Sunday, February 22, 2026, broadcast globally on the official Golden Scythe Horror Awards homepage, which you can visit here:
https://www.goldenscythehorrorawards.com/

Films Leading the Nominations

Danny and Michael Philippou’s Bring Her Back matched Emma Tammi’s Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 with 16 nominations apiece. Both films landed major recognition across directing, acting, writing, and craft categories.

Bring Her Back also turned into a box office success, grossing $39.1 million against a $15 million budget. Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 continued the momentum of the franchise, pulling in $125.5 million worldwide.

Best Picture

 

Black Phone 2
Bring Her Back
Clown in a Cornfield
Companion
Final Destination Bloodlines
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
The Long Walk
Shelby Oaks
Sinners
Weapons

Best Director

Ryan Coogler, Sinners
Drew Hancock, Companion
Danny & Michael Philippou, Bring Her Back
Chris Stuckmann, Shelby Oaks
Emma Tammi, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2

Best Actor in a Leading Role

Dave Franco, Together
Cooper Hoffman, The Long Walk
David Jonsson, The Long Walk
Michael B. Jordan, Sinners
Mason Thames, Black Phone 2

Best Actress in a Leading Role

Katie Douglas, Clown in a Cornfield
Julia Garner, Weapons
Sally Hawkins, Bring Her Back
Madeleine McGraw, Black Phone 2
Sophie Thatcher, Companion

Best Supporting Actor

Ethan Hawke, Black Phone 2
Carson MacCormac, Clown in a Cornfield
Jonah Wren Philipps, Bring Her Back
Jack Quaid, Companion
Tony Todd, Final Destination Bloodlines

Best Supporting Actress

Brec Bassinger, Final Destination Bloodlines
Sarah Durn, Shelby Oaks
Mckenna Grace, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
Mia Tomlinson, The Conjuring: Last Rites
Sora Wong, Bring Her Back

Best Original Screenplay

Bring Her Back, Bill Hinzman & Danny Philippou
Companion, Drew Hancock
Dangerous Animals, Nick Lepard
Together, Michael Shanks
Weapons, Zach Cregger

Best Adapted Screenplay

Black Phone 2, C. Robert Cargill & Scott Derrickson
Clown in a Cornfield, Carter Blanchard & Eli Craig
Final Destination Bloodlines, Guy Busick & Lori Evans Taylor
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, Scott Cawthon
The Long Walk, JT Mollner

Best International Film

Bring Her Back, Australia
Dangerous Animals, Australia
The Exit 8, Japan
Noise, South Korea
The Ugly Stepsister, Denmark

Best Original Score

Black Phone 2, Atticus Derrickson
Bring Her Back, Cornel Wilczek
Companion, Hrishikesh Hirway
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, The Newton Brothers
Shelby Oaks, James Burkholder & The Newton Brothers

Best Sound Design

Black Phone 2
Final Destination Bloodlines
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
The Long Walk
Wolf Man

Best Production Design

Black Phone 2
Clown in a Cornfield
Companion
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
Night of the Reaper

Best Cinematography

Black Phone 2, Par M. Ekberg
Bring Her Back, Aaron McLisky
Good Boy, Wade Grebnoel & Ben Leonberg
Shelby Oaks, Andrew Scott Baird
Weapons, Larkin Seiple

Best Makeup & Hairstyling

Bring Her Back
Companion
Keeper
Together
The Ugly Stepsister

Best Costume Design

Black Phone 2
Clown in a Cornfield
Companion
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
V/H/S/Halloween

Best Editing

Companion, Brett W. Bachman & Josh Ethier
Final Destination Bloodlines, Sabrina Pitre
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, Timothy Alverson & Derek Larsen
The Long Walk, Mark Yoshikawa
Shelby Oaks, Brett W. Bachman & Patrick Lawrence

Best Use of Visual Effects

The Conjuring: Last Rites
Dangerous Animals
Together
V/H/S/Halloween
Wolf Man

Best Use of Practical Effects

Bring Her Back
Clown in a Cornfield
Companion
Final Destination Bloodlines
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2

Best Poster

Black Phone 2
Bring Her Back
The Conjuring: Last Rites
Fear Street: Prom Queen
Final Destination Bloodlines
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
Good Boy
Shelby Oaks
Until Dawn
Weapons

Best Trailer

28 Years Later
Bring Her Back
Final Destination Bloodlines
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
I Know What You Did Last Summer
Keeper
The Long Walk
The Monkey
Shelby Oaks
Sinners

Best Horror Movie Moment

Black Phone 2, Gwen in the Phone Booth
Bring Her Back, Kitchen Scene
Clown in a Cornfield, Frendos Attack
Companion, Iris Takes Back Control
Final Destination Bloodlines, Premonition
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, Opening Scene
The Long Walk, Ending
Night of the Reaper, Twist Reveal
Shelby Oaks, Prison Scene
Weapons, Gladys In Control

Best Kill

Bring Her Back, Andy & Wendy
Clown in a Cornfield, Matt
Companion, Josh
Final Destination Bloodlines, Erik
Weapons, Gladys

Best Slasher

Clown in a Cornfield
Fear Street: Prom Queen
I Know What You Did Last Summer
Night of the Reaper
Silent Night, Deadly Night

Best Title Sequence

Black Phone 2
Companion
Final Destination Bloodlines
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
Weapons

Best Remake or Sequel

Black Phone 2
Final Destination Bloodlines
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
Silent Night, Deadly Night
Wolf Man

Best Marketing Campaign

Bring Her Back
Final Destination Bloodlines
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
The Long Walk
Weapons

Final Take

The Golden Scythe Horror Awards continue to carve out their own lane by spotlighting both mainstream hits and cult favorites without apology. The 2026 nominations reflect a genre that is confident, commercially viable, and creatively fearless.

Now comes the fun part. Watching which films walk away bloodied, bruised, and victorious when the winners are announced in February.