Halloween is set to take over BFI Southbank and BFI IMAX this autumn with a packed programme of horror, cult cinema, restored classics and special events.
Leading the celebrations is MOVIE MAVERICK: 100 YEARS OF ROGER CORMAN, a six-week season honouring the legendary filmmaker, producer, distributor and actor, alongside a major Halloween line-up featuring Sinners in IMAX 70mm, Donnie Darko, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Dracula: Restored And Uncut and much more.
Roger Corman Centenary Celebrated At BFI Southbank
Curated by the BFI’s Dick Fiddy, MOVIE MAVERICK: 100 YEARS OF ROGER CORMAN celebrates the extraordinary influence of Roger Corman in his centenary year.
A major focus of the season will be Corman’s celebrated cycle of Edgar Allan Poe adaptations, which helped redefine gothic horror for a generation of filmgoers.
The programme includes HOUSE OF USHER (1960), the film that launched Corman’s celebrated collaboration with Vincent Price, alongside THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM (1961), THE RAVEN (1963) and THE MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH (1964).
Julie Corman And The Corman Family Join The Celebration
The centenary programme will also feature special appearances from members of Corman’s family.
Julie Corman, Roger Corman’s producer and wife, will join an illustrated conversation on 12 November exploring his prolific career, B-movie classics, collaborations with some of America’s best-known filmmakers and her personal memories of the director.
Julie Corman will also introduce a special screening of HOUSE OF USHER on 14 November.
Roger Corman’s daughters will also take part, with Catherine Corman introducing THE WILD ANGELS on 12 November and Mary Corman introducing A BUCKET OF BLOOD on 13 November.
The wider season includes THE TERROR, ATTACK OF THE CRAB MONSTERS, MACHINE GUN KELLY, THE LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, THE INTRUDER, X: THE MAN WITH X-RAY EYES, THE ST. VALENTINE’S DAY MASSACREand ROGER CORMAN’S FRANKENSTEIN UNBOUND.
The season will also screen ROGER CORMAN: HOLLYWOOD’S WILD ANGEL and ROGER CORMAN AT THE NFT, offering audiences further insight into the filmmaker’s career and legacy.
Halloween Takes Over BFI IMAX
BFI IMAX will bring its own major Halloween programme to London’s biggest screen, beginning with the long-awaited return of SINNERS in IMAX 70mm on 30 and 31 October.
Ryan Coogler’s Oscar-winning genre mash-up stars Michael B. Jordan as identical twins who encounter unimaginable horrors in the Deep South.
FRANKENSTEIN returns in IMAX with Laser on 30 October, while Richard Kelly’s DONNIE DARKO receives a 25th anniversary screening on 31 October.
Stanley Kubrick’s THE SHINING returns in IMAX with Laser on 1 November, giving audiences another opportunity to experience one of cinema’s most acclaimed horror films on the big screen.
The Halloween weekend also features late-night screenings of THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW on 30 October and Robert Eggers’ NOSFERATU on 31 October.
Meanwhile, GODZILLA MINUS ZERO opens on the UK’s largest screen from 3 November following its UK Premiere at the 70th BFI London Film Festival.
Special Halloween Events At BFI Southbank
BFI Southbank will host a series of special events throughout the Halloween season.
The programme begins with a preview of GHOSTS: THE POSSESSION OF BUTTON HOUSE on 21 October, followed by a Q&A with guests.
On 30 October, Reece Shearsmith will present a screening of George A. Romero’s CREEPSHOW, while Halloween night itself brings DRACULA: RESTORED AND UNCUT.
The newly restored Dracula features footage unseen outside Japan since 1958, with an extended introduction and special guests celebrating the film and its new 4K restoration.
Silent Cinema fans can also see THE CAT AND THE CANARY with live piano accompaniment on 1 November.
The Devils Returns In Its Definitive Version
One of the most significant restorations in the programme is KEN RUSSELL’S THE DEVILS, returning to the big screen from 30 October.
Censored for more than half a century, the film has been restored in 4K and cut to Russell’s specific direction. It will screen at BFI IMAX and BFI Southbank, with select previews of a new 35mm print running from 23 to 29 October.
A screening of HELL ON EARTH: THE DESECRATION AND RESURRECTION OF THE DEVILS on 9 November will also feature a Q&A with Mark Kermode and director Paul Joyce.
Also joining the season from 6 November is PAN’S LABYRINTH, receiving a 20th-anniversary re-release at BFI Southbank and BFI IMAX.
Family Halloween Films At BFI Southbank
The Halloween programme isn’t just for horror fans.
Tim Burton’s FRANKENWEENIE will screen at BFI Southbank on 25 October, 1 November and 28 November, with a Funday workshop accompanying the 1 November screening.
TIM BURTON’S CORPSE BRIDE will also screen on 31 October and 9 November, bringing Burton’s distinctive stop-motion style to the Halloween programme.
With Roger Corman’s centenary celebration at its heart, alongside major restorations, cult favourites, modern horror and family cinema, the BFI’s Halloween 2026 programme offers an expansive celebration of the darker side of the big screen.
Tickets for late October and November screenings go on sale to BFI Patrons on 22 September, BFI Members on 23 September and the general public on 25 September.
