The UK & Ireland Horror Critics Group has announced the nominees for the 2025 Golden Claw Awards!
The group, founded in 2022, hosts the Golden Claw Awards to celebrate the best of horror released in the last 12 months. The Golden Claws are presented in partnership with NightTide Magazine, and The Hollywood News, and are designed to boost the perspectives of UK & Irish horror critics.
This year, the most nominations go to The Substance, with ten nominations. Just behind are Longlegs with eight nominations, and I Saw The TV Glow with seven nominations.
The UK & Ireland Horror Critics Group’s current standing committee is Tim Coleman, Kat Hughes, Mo Moshaty, Andrew Pope, and Zoë Rose Smith. Announcing the nominations, Pope said “This is an exciting time for horror movies, and that shows in the list of nominees. I can’t wait to see which of them takes home a coveted Golden Claw. The Horror Critics Group is committed to celebrating the UK and Irish horror scene. I’m particularly excited to see who wins out in the UK or Irish Horror Film category. It’s so important that we nurture our local talent!”
Coleman agreed, adding, “It’s such an honor to be involved in the Golden Claw Awards. Right now, we’re living through an incredible time for horror cinema, so it’s wonderful to celebrate the incredible films being made in a genre that means so much to us all.”
Smith said, “I’m incredibly excited about the Golden Claw Awards because there is just so much phenomenal horror out there right now.”
Moshaty said, “Horror is great at highlighting social issues, and this lineup features a diverse mix, from LGBTQ+ stories to tackling ageism and facial difference. That impact matters now more than ever.”
Hughes finished with, “The horror genre has been overlooked for far too long by other awards bodies and I’m delighted to be part of an organization seeking to correct this. This year, our members have once again selected a diverse range of titles that prove genre cinema is an all-encompassing conduit for exploring a vast scope of issues.”
Last year the big winners were: Talk To Me (four awards: Best Film with a Cinema Release, Best Directors for Danny and Michael Philippou, Best Lead Performance for Sophie Wilde, and Breakout Star for Sophie Wilde) and Godzilla Minus One (three awards: Best Film Not In English, Best Visual or Special FX, and Best Score or Soundtrack for Naoki Sato).
Now Check Out The Full List of Nominees For The 2025 Golden Claw Awards!
Best Horror Film
- I Saw The TV Glow
- Longlegs
- Oddity
- Strange Darling
- The Substance
Best Lead Performance
- David Dastmalchian (Late Night With The Devil)
- Demi Moore (The Substance)
- Hugh Grant (Heretic)
- Juliette Gariépy (Red Rooms)
- Justice Smith (I Saw The TV Glow)
- Lupita Nyong’o (A Quiet Place: Day One)
- Maika Monroe (Longlegs)
- Naomi Scott (Smile 2)
- Nell Tiger Free (The First Omen)
- Sydney Sweeney (Immaculate)
Best Supporting Performance
- Alicia Witt (Longlegs)
- Blair Underwood (Longlegs)
- Dan Stevens (Cuckoo & Abigail)
- David Jonsson (Alien: Romulus)
- Dennis Quaid (The Substance)
- Ingrid Torelli (Late Night With The Devil)
- Jack Haven (I Saw The TV Glow)
- Kyle Gallner (Strange Darling)
- Margaret Qualley (The Substance)
- Nicolas Cage (Longlegs)
- Sophie Thatcher (Heretic)
Best Director
- Coralie Fargeat (The Substance)
- Damian Mc Carthy (Oddity)
- Jane Schoenbrun (I Saw The TV Glow)
- JT Mollner (Strange Darling)
- Osgood Perkins (Longlegs)
Best Screenwriter
- Coralie Fargeat (The Substance)
- Jane Schoenbrun (I Saw The TV Glow)
- JT Mollner (Strange Darling)
- Osgood Perkins (Longlegs)
- Scott Beck & Bryan Woods (Heretic)
Best VFX/SFX
- Alien: Romulus
- In a Violent Nature
- Infested
- Smile 2
- The Substance
Best Horror Film Not in English
- Chime
- Exhuma
- Infested
- MadS
- Red Rooms
- The Coffee Table
Best Kill
- Acid Blood Kill (Alien Romulus)
- Baby Meets Table (The Coffee Table)
- Chainsaw in the Shower (Terrifier 3)
- Rock Meets Baby (Immaculate)
- Yoga Kill (In a Violent Nature)
- Broken Bird
- Daddy’s Head
- Oddity
- Stopmotion
- The Moor
Trailblazer of The Year
- Chris Nash (Writer-Director, In A Violent Nature)
- Coralie Fargeat (Writer-Director, The Substance)
- Jane Schoenbrun (Writer-Director, I Saw The TV Glow)
- A Different Man
- Cuckoo
- I Saw The TV Glow
- Love Lies Bleeding
- The Substance
Best Feature Debut
- Arkasha Stevenson (Director, The First Omen)
- Chris Nash (Director, In a Violent Nature)
- Sebastian Vanicek (Director, Infested)
- Zelda Williams (Writer, Lisa Frankenstein)
- Zoe Kravitz (Director, Blink Twice)
Best Horror TV Show
- From
- Inside No. 9
- Interview with the Vampire
- The Creep Tapes
- True Detective: Night Country
Technical Excellence
- Chime (Sound Design)
- Longlegs (Score)
- MadS (Cinematography)
- Strange Darling (Cinematography)
- The Substance (Production Design, Makeup & Costuming)
The 2025 Golden Claw winners will be announced at a central London location on March 1, 2025.
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 Claws, can be followed on Bluesky and at horrorcritics.group.
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