It Ends Just Tied the Best Horror Score of 2026 — And It's Not Even a Jump-Scare Movie

It Ends Just Tied the Best Horror Score of 2026 — And It's Not Even a Jump-Scare Movie

Forget everything you think you know about horror movie formulas. A tiny indie film called "It Ends" just climbed to a 95% on Rotten Tomatoes, tying with "Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma" for the highest-reviewed horror movie of 2026. And the wildest part? It's barely even scary in the traditional sense.

Written and directed by Alex Ullom in his feature debut, "It Ends" follows a group of recent high school grads — played by Phinehas Yoon, Akira Jackson, Noah Toth, and Mitchell Cole — who head out on a late-night drive for food. Instead of reaching a diner, they accidentally turn onto a never-ending, two-lane road surrounded by untold horrors and cosmic forces beyond their understanding. Cramped together inside a Jeep Cherokee with miles stretching infinitely ahead, they face a gut-wrenching choice: embrace their new existence or fight to escape it.

Why Critics Are Losing Their Minds Over It Ends

The film has been earning rave reviews since its 2025 SXSW premiere, where NEON (the studio behind "Parasite") acquired it. Bloody Disgusting called it "an inventive horror hangout movie that gets existential," while The Hollywood Reporter praised Ullom's "plenty of directorial craft" in delivering such a wild high concept. Unlike "Obsession" (which scored 94%) or "28 Years Later: The Bone Temple" (91%), "It Ends" doesn't rely on gore or jump scares. It's existential dread — the creeping realization that reality itself might be broken.

What makes this even more interesting is the "Backrooms" connection. The film shares a producer with A24's "Backrooms", the 2026 indie horror hit about liminal spaces. Both films explore the terror of infinite, inescapable places — but where "Backrooms" uses found-footage dread, "It Ends" takes a more meditative, character-driven approach. It's less about monsters and more about what happens when your mind can't process where you are.

The 2026 Horror Lineup Is Insane

With "It Ends" joining the party, 2026's horror landscape is stacked. The current top-tier RT scores read like a murderer's row: "Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma" (95%), "It Ends" (95%), "Obsession" (94%), "Send Help" (93%), "Leviticus" (92%), and "28 Years Later: The Bone Temple" (91%). Even lower down, films like "Hokum" and "We Bury the Dead" (both 88%) are getting love.

If you're looking for something different this horror season — something that'll mess with your head instead of making you cover your eyes — "It Ends" in theaters now via NEON is your pick. Just maybe don't watch it right before a late-night drive.