New Stephen King-esque Horror Movie Earns Stellar Rotten Tomatoes Score

A new horror movie is officially a worthy Stephen King-esque pastiche.

Dubbed the King of Horror, the iconic author is known for delivering vivid horror and suspense stories, with classics like Misery and The Dark Tower. Since writing his first novel, Carrie, in 1974, several of King’s works have been adapted into movies or shows, such as The Mist, The Shining, and The Long Walk. As this became the norm over these four decades, his stories and style have inspired many filmmakers to create movies with a similar flair, including Scott Derrickson’s The Black Phone and Robert Eggers’ The Witch.

Joining the list of non-King movies is Neon’s new horror movie, Hokum, which is already winning over critics and audiences. According to Rotten Tomatoes, the supernatural movie holds a strong 87% based on 119 reviews, while audiences have been just as receptive with an 82% score.

The horror movie has the essence of King’s finesse, with a classic haunted hotel story akin to The Shining and 1408. Adam Scott leads the Hokum cast as a novelist who visits an Irish hotel to disperse his parents’ ashes while dealing with writer’s block. After learning lore about a witch haunting the hotel’s honeymoon suite and the disappearance of a staff member, he slowly uncovers dark secrets.

Many reviews have described Scott’s dramatic performance as a career best for portraying a snarky but emotional protagonist. If the score stands, Hokum would be his fifth-highest-rated movie in his entire career behind Passenger Side, Little Evil, Who Loves the Sun and Other People.

In addition, several critics praise filmmaker Damian McCarthy for a worthwhile suspense centered on a creepy hotel, fueled by deep supernatural folklore and a few jump scares. While it is only his third directorial feature, it continues a strong Rotten Tomatoes streak, where all his movies, including Oddity and Caveat, were well-received by critics and have scored above 80%.

In ScreenRant‘s review of Hokum, Brandon Zachary lauded McCarthy’s latest effort as “a terrifically composed throwback that knows when to play things grounded and when to embrace the horror for its full potential.” Awarding a strong 9 out of 10 stars, the review also highlights Scott’s performance as “finding the right balance of silence, snark, and sincerity to deliver a time great horror lead role.“

Although Hokum is not a King-based story, there are several projects in development based on his books. Mike Flanagan, another creative known for the horror genre, is developing an eight-episode Carrie series, The Dark Tower show, and a new The Mist movie. Additionally, both The Institute and It: Welcome to Derry have been renewed for a sophomore season.

In the meantime, McCarthy hinted that he plans to “make one more out-and-out horror film just to see if I can take everything I’ve learned and apply it.” Speaking with Polygon, he is working on the script, but confirmed that “It’s self-contained, almost like a classic haunted house movie.” However, he indicated that he will “move on” from the horror genre after that project.

On the other hand, Scott has two more movies expected to be released this year, including the sci-fi thriller The Saviors and the crime feature The Whisper Man. He will also reprise his role of Mark Scout in Severance season 3, but the Apple TV series has yet to be filmed.

The Hokum supporting cast includes Peter Coonan, David Wilmot, and Florence Ordesh, while McCarthy also wrote the story. Producers are Roy Lee, Steven Schneider, Derek Dauchy, Ruth Treacy, Julianne Forde, and Mairtín de Barra.

Hokum is now playing in theaters.

Release Date

May 1, 2026

Runtime

101 Minutes

Director

Damian McCarthy

Writers

Damian McCarthy

Producers

Derek Dauchy, Mairtín de Barra, Roy Lee, Julianne Forde, Steven Schneider, Ruth Treacy