10 Best Horror Movie Performances Of 2024 So Far
7. James McAvoy - Speak No Evil
The remake of the 2022 Danish thriller of the same name, Speak No Evil sees the Dalton family meet and befriend a British couple and their son while on holiday in Italy. After returning home, the Daltons are invited to stay at the other couple's remote farmhouse. While initially seen as a strange request from people they barely know, the Daltons decide to accept, believing that the visit could be good for them.
Tensions quickly grow between the families when the hosts start to display strange and inappropriate behaviour, which only becomes more aggressive as the stay goes on. Although the Daltons initially try to tolerate the couple's unsavory actions to be polite, they soon find themselves fighting for their lives upon discovering the real reason their hosts invited them to their home.
Like the original film, most of the horror is rooted within the taut social anxieties as the Daltons avoid offending the homeowners. However, it's James McAvoy's ferocious stint as Paddy that reinforces the terror, with the actor relishing every scene in a frighteningly physical performance that makes him a constantly intimidating presence. Having already proved his horror chops in the likes of Split, Speak No Evil is McAvoy at his absolute best.