The 16 Best Thriller Movies of 2022

Ethan Hawke stars in this movie as a character simply titled “The Grabber,” so that’s the vibe. The Black Phone follows a child abducted by a killer (read: grabber) who finds a mysterious phone while locked in a soundproof basement. Think Room meets Saw, and that’s The Black Phone.

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Our most favorite redheads, Jessica Chastain and Eddie Redmayne, star in this awardsy new film that follows the true story of a nurse who murders dozens of patients across nine hospitals via lethal injection.

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While Taylor and Jack were making Midnights, their partners Joe Alwyn and Margaret Qualley were busy filming this new thriller from director Claire Denis. The film, which follows an American journalist stuck in Nicaragua who finds herself in the throes of romance with a mysterious Englishman, won big at the Cannes Film Festival.

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The darling of book clubs everywhere, Where the Crawdads Sing hit theaters this year and stars Daisy Edgar-Jones of Normal People and Under the Banner of Heaven fame. The story follows a girl who lives in a marsh and becomes wrapped up in a murder investigation.

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This upcoming thriller stars Anya Taylor-Joy and Nicholas Hoult as a couple visiting a buzzy new restaurant with a mysterious menu from an acclaimed chef (Ralph Fiennes).

In theaters November 17

A24 stans, assemble! Men is one of the new horror flicks from your indie friend’s favorite entertainment company. This film, starring Jessie Buckley and Rory Kinnear, comes from writer/director Alex Garland, the mind behind Ex Machina and Annihilation.

Men follows the story of a young widow who takes a solo trip shortly after her husband’s apparent suicide, and naturally, psychological chaos ensues.

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The latest from writer/director David Cronenberg, Crimes of the Future stars Viggo Mortensen, Léa Seydoux, and Kristen Stewart. This “body horror” film premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, receiving a six-minute standing ovation and consideration for the Palme d’Or prize.

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R-Patz in his emo era = thrilling. Released in March of this year, director Matt Reeves’s take on Gotham City is sufficiently dark, gritty, and three hours long. The Batman also stars Zoë Kravitz as Catwoman, Paul Dano as a character whom I won’t spoil, and Colin Farrell as The Penguin.

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This satirical thriller from A24 follows a group of rich youngsters vacationing in a remote mansion during a hurricane whose innocent party game turns deadly.

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Jake Gyllenhaal’s most thrilling role in recent years sees him play himself in “All Too Well (Taylor’s Version)” while being a career criminal executing a $32 million bank heist with his adoptive brother, Candyman’s Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. Ambulance blends quiet suspense with Michael Bay-levels of action, including high-speed chases involving helicopters and (you guessed it) ambulances.

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This crime drama stars Mark Rylance, Zoey Deutch, and Dylan O’Brien and follows the story of an English tailor who services a family of gangsters. The Outfit is Graham Moore’s directorial debut, and he previously won an Academy Award for his screenplay for The Imitation Game, a historical thriller.

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“What’s more thrilling than a star-studded cast?,” asks the jaded viewer, forcing a vibe. The Northman stars Alexander Skarsgård, Nicole Kidman, Anya Taylor-Joy, Ethan Hawke, Willem Dafoe, and Björk. Björk! This film follows the story–that would later inspire Shakespeare’s Hamlet–of a Viking prince on a journey to avenge his father’s death at the hands of his uncle.

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The latest Jordan Peele joint, Nope is a horror film that follows small towners experiencing a “mysterious and abnormal event.” Starring Daniel Kaluuya, Keke Palmer, and Steven Yeun, Nope hits theaters this summer.

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Don’t worry darling, we couldn’t forget about Don’t Worry, Darling. Florence Pugh and Harry Styles lead this psychological thriller from director Olivia Wilde, but it looks like Chris Pine will be responsible for these thrills.

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What did we say about star-studded casts? Thrilling! Netflix’s action thriller, The Gray Man, stars Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Regé-Jean Page, and Billy Bob Thornton. The film follows the CIA’s most skilled mercenary on the run from international assassins and “psychopathic former colleagues” (a modern nightmare).

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Netflix’s latest science fiction thriller stars smokeshows Chris Hemsworth, Miles Teller, and Jurnee Smollett. Based on a short story by bestselling author George Saunders, Spiderhead follows a pair of inmates undergoing mind-altering treatment at a futuristic, Black Mirror-esque, experimental penitentiary.

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