10 Worst PG-13 Horror Films Since 2020
5. Imaginary
In the same year (2024) that John Krasinski released a family comedy about imaginary friends, Jeff Wadlow directed a similar story but through a horror lens instead.
In Imaginary, children’s author Jessica, her new husband, and his two daughters all move into her family home. Jessica feels bad that one of the kids, Alice, has nightmares about one of her characters, so is delighted when Alice falls in love with one of her old teddy bears.
It’s not just a bear, though - it’s an evil bear!
Alice quickly falls under the bear’s spell, as it tries to lure her into a magical demon world called the Never Ever. Themes of imagination and childhood fears are rife throughout this picture, and whilst those are usually fertile ground for storytelling, this crop failed to yield.
Many viewers felt that Imaginary spent way too much time establishing its setting and characters and not enough time driving the story forwards and delivering on the scares. There was also a limit imposed on how freaky the Never Ever could get, thanks to the age rating, which rendered that part of the movie not worth waiting for.