2026 R-Rated Horror Movie That Grossed 9X Its Budget Gets Major Sequel Update From Director

The story of Buddy is not over.

2026’s horror movie is centered on a murderous Barney-esque orange unicorn character who torments children trapped within his television series. The film was a massive box office success, going on to gross $27 million after being made on a reported production budget of $3 million. Earning back nine times its budget is a major win for the movie and distributor Roadside Attractions, building on the horror genre’s momentum after the record-breaking box office hits of Obsession and Backrooms both earlier this year.

On the That Was Pretty Scary podcast, Buddy director and writer Casper Kelly was asked about how much of the movie’s mythology he has mapped out and whether there are plans to explore the universe further. The filmmaker confirmed that he has ideas about where he wants to take the story next and is “very hopeful and optimistic about more getting made. It’s being discussed.” He also acknowledged that, due to the positive audience response, he is debating how to balance their expectations and theories alongside his own creative vision. Check out Kelly’s response below:

With confirmation of discussions taking place, having a vision of what comes next, and his optimism, Kelly’s comments are promising for the story to continue. That Was Pretty Scary host Jon Lee Brody highlights the mural featuring Buddy, Bobby, and Benny, and the titular character not being the center of this universe, as being one avenue that another film can explore, but the writer-director indicates that he has plenty of other ideas about where to take the story after Buddy‘s ending.

In an interview with ScreenRant‘s Grant Hermanns about the R-rated horror movie, months before the theatrical release, the significance of the mural was also brought up, and Kelly teased that he knows more about the world than is included in the movie: “I like the idea of a history that we don’t know all of it, or maybe you don’t know all of it. Maybe I know some of it, but yeah. I like the world building of it, I won’t lie. It’s fascinating to me. I like the feeling of that mural. I just love it.”

As for the positive audience response, along with grossing nine times the budget at the box office, Buddy has a “Certified Fresh” 88% Tomatometer score based on 138 reviews and a 75% Popcornmeter score based on more than 1,000 verified ratings. The audience consensus on Rotten Tomatoes states that “intentionally weird and darkly funny, Buddy is to horror fans what Bluey is to millennial parents: chicken soup for the soul,” while the critics’ consensus is “Buddy weaponizes the cheery conventions of children’s entertainment into an inventive, hilarious, and creepy descent into pop culture madness.”

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Keegan-Michael Key voices Buddy, while Emmy Award winner Cristin Milioti plays Grace, a woman who gets pulled into the It’s Buddy! show against her will. Topher Grace plays Grace’s husband Ben, while Delaney Quinn, Madison Skyy Polan, Caleb Williams, Tristan Borders, Luke Speakman, and Tory Jacqui Malone play children trapped in the series. The voice cast of anthropomorphic characters surrounding Buddy features Patton Oswalt, Michael Shannon, the late Eric Bauza, Jimmica Collins, and Devon Hawke.

Kelly’s prior credits include Too Many Cooks, The Scooby-Doo Project, and the 2018 horror movie Mandy starring Nicolas Cage. He wrote the Buddy screenplay with Jamie King, who was a writer on Marvel’s critically acclaimed three-season series Jessica Jones featuring Krysten Ritter in the titular role. J.D. Lifshitz was one of the producers of Kelly and King’s new film, after previously working on the films Barbarian, Woman of the Hour, Friendship, Companion, and Weapons.

Release Date

September 4, 2026

Runtime

95 minutes

Director

Casper Kelly

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