Each January, the UK & Ireland Horror Critics Group runs the Golden Claws, looking for the best in horror cinema from the previous year. The 2026 Golden Claw nominations are in, and it’s good news for fans of the vampires and the blues: the widely-admired Sinners leads the field, with eleven nominations. 28 Years Later is close behind, and the rest of the slate reflects a genre that’s as polymorphous as ever, with no two films alike.
With eleven nominations, Sinners emerges as this year’s clear frontrunner. Its presence cuts across every major area, from film, director, and screenplay to multiple acting categories, cinematography, and score. This isn’t a case of one breakout element carrying the rest – the nominations suggest a film that held together at every level, and one that voters kept returning to.
28 Years Later follows with nine nominations, including Best Film and Best Director. Its strong showing also cuts across performance, craft, and technical categories. Just behind them, Bring Her Back, Weapons, and The Ugly Stepsister all register strongly across the ballot. The Golden Claws have often been strongest when recognising this kind of mid-budget, craft-driven horror, and this year is no exception.
The acting categories continue to be one of the awards’ great strengths. Across all four acting categories, Sinners delivers a remarkable six out of twenty acting nominations – 30% of the acting nominations belonging to Ryan Coogler’s vampire juke-joint vampire tale.
The international slate also stands out. Horror films not in the English language are not siloed as curiosities, but form part of the year’s core conversation. Fréwaka’s presence across categories reinforces the sense that language boundaries are no longer barriers for horror audiences. As Andrew Pope noted when announcing the nominations, “One thing horror fans have never been afraid of is subtitles.”
Other UK&I Horror Critic Group committee members hailed the nominations: Zoë Rose Smith framed the wider context succinctly, describing horror as “a way for us to connect with one another, and find safety in community.” That idea threads through the nominations, with many of the films engaging with fear as something shared and lived, rather than abstract or symbolic. Mo Moshaty added that “horror remains one of the clearest ways to explore cultural identity, shared anxiety, and the persistence of trauma.” Kat Hughes said that “This year’s nominees champion a diverse range of films and are a testament to just how strong the last twelve months in horror cinema has been,” while Tim Coleman added “in our current uncertain times we need [horror] more than ever.”
The Golden Claw winners will be announced in early February.
PRESS RELEASE
NOT EMBARGOED – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
UK & IRELAND HORROR CRITICS GROUP ANNOUNCES THE NOMINEES FOR THE 2026 GOLDEN CLAW AWARDS:
SINNERS AND 28 YEARS LATER LEAD THE PACK
The UK & Ireland Horror Critics Group has announced the nominees for the 2026 Golden Claw Awards, celebrating the very best in horror cinema released in the UK over the past year.
This year’s nominations reflect a striking breadth of horror filmmaking, from large-scale studio releases to fiercely personal and formally adventurous independent work, spanning multiple countries, styles, and sub-genres.
Leading the pack, with 11 nominations including Best Film and Best Director, is Sinners.
Just behind, with 9 nominations also including Best Film and Best Director, is 28 Years Later.
Weapons and The Ugly Stepsister (6 nominations each) are also well-represented.
Founded in 2022, the Golden Claw Awards exist to champion horror as a vital, expressive, and culturally significant form of cinema. The awards celebrate outstanding films, performances, and technical craft across the genre. The Golden Claws are presented in partnership with NightTide Magazine, The Hollywood News, Ghouls Magazine, and The Top 100 Films Of All Time podcast, and are designed to amplify the perspectives of UK and Irish horror critics.
The 2026 Golden Claw Award winners will be announced in early February.
All horror film critics based in the UK or Ireland are eligible to vote. Ballots have been circulated, with additional ballots available from the Group upon request. The UK & Ireland Horror Critics Group, and the Golden Claw Awards, can be followed on Bluesky and at horrorcritics.group.
The Group’s current standing committee is Tim Coleman, Kat Hughes, Mo Moshaty, Andrew Pope, and Zoë Rose Smith.
Announcing the nominations, Zoë Rose Smith said:
“We continue to live in a world where horror is our escape from the atrocities we’re seeing all around us. It’s a way for us to connect with one another, and find safety in community. This year’s awards demonstrate how pertinent the genre is, whilst delivering on the gore, catharsis, scares and relevance we seek from fear.”
Mo Moshaty added:
“Horror remains one of the clearest ways to explore cultural identity, shared anxiety, and the persistence of trauma. This year’s nominees engage with those realities directly, pairing sharp genre instincts with real emotional and social insight. As part of the Golden Claw Awards, I’m proud to bring NightTide Magazine’s commitment to diversity into the conversation, and this year’s nominees feel like real proof that horror is moving in a more equitable direction.”
Kat Hughes commented:
“Whilst it has been fantastic to see more traditional awards bodies finally start to embrace the genre of horror, the Golden Claws continue to strive to push genre cinema to the forefront of everyone’s consciousness. This year’s nominees champion a diverse range and film and are a testament to just how strong the last twelve months in horror cinema has been.”
Andrew Pope said:
“This year’s nominees reflect a genre in restless, fascinating health. Horror continues to absorb, interrogate, and challenge the moment we’re living in, and the range of films recognised here speaks to that vitality. I’m especially pleased to see such a strong showing in the British and Irish horror category, which continues to go from strength to strength, as well as among the nominated films not in the English language, which demonstrate the breadth of voices that are calling out across the horror landscape. One thing horror fans have never been afraid of is subtitles!”
Tim Coleman added:
“Horror has always been a vibrant – and much needed – voice in the cinematic landscape, and in our current uncertain times we need it more than ever. It is such a joy to once again celebrate the best the genre has to offer with the Golden Claws.”
The full Press Release is below:
FULL LIST OF NOMINEES FOR THE 2026 GOLDEN CLAW AWARDS
Best Film
28 Years Later
Bring Her Back
Sinners
The Ugly Stepsister
Weapons
Best British or Irish Horror Film
28 Years Later
Fréwaka
Get Away
Hallow Road
Sister Midnight
Best Horror Film Not in the English Language
Alpha
Best Wishes To You
Fréwaka
Sister Midnight
The Ugly Stepsister
Female Lead Actor
Sally Hawkins – Bring Her Back
Lea Myren – The Ugly Stepsister
Cassandra Naud – Influencers
Rosamund Pike – Hallow Road
Sophie Thatcher – Companion
Male or Non-Binary Lead Actor
Jai Courtney – Dangerous Animals
Cooper Hoffman – The Long Walk
Oscar Isaac – Frankenstein
Michael B. Jordan – Sinners
Alfie Williams – 28 Years Later
Female Supporting Actor
Jodie Comer – 28 Years Later
Mia Goth – Frankenstein
Amy Madigan – Weapons
Wunmi Mosaku – Sinners
Hailee Steinfeld – Sinners
Male or Non-Binary Supporting Actor
Miles Caton – Sinners
Ralph Fiennes – 28 Years Later
David Jonsson – The Long Walk
Delroy Lindo – Sinners
Jack O’Connell – Sinners
Director
Emilie Blichfeldt – The Ugly Stepsister
Danny Boyle – 28 Years Later
Ryan Coogler – Sinners
Zach Cregger – Weapons
Danny Philippou & Michael Philippou – Bring Her Back
Screenplay
Emilie Blichfeldt – The Ugly Stepsister
Ryan Coogler – Sinners
Zach Cregger – Weapons
Alex Garland – 28 Years Later
Danny Philippou & Bill Hinzman – Bring Her Back
Cinematography
Anthony Dod Mantle – 28 Years Later
Autumn Durald Arkapaw – Sinners
Aaron McLisky – Bring Her Back
Larkin Seiple – Weapons
Marcel Zyskind – The Ugly Stepsister
Original Score
Alexandre Desplat – Frankenstein
Robin Carolan – Nosferatu
Jerskin Fendrix – Bugonia
Ludwig Göransson – Sinners
Young Fathers – 28 Years Later
Marcelo Zarvos – K-Pop Demon Hunters
Best Kill
Bring Her Back – Car and puddle
Final Destination Bloodlines – Garbage van
Final Destination Bloodlines – MRI scanner
The Monkey – Swimming pool
Weapons – Wave of Children (Finale)
Whitlock&Pope 