Autumnal Witch-Centric Horror The Heretiks (FANTASTIC) Attempts to Usher in the Apocalypse
Title: The Heretiks
First Non-Festival Release: TBD
Director: Gregg Bishop
Writer: Ben Collins, Luke Piotrowski
Runtime: 89 Minutes
Starring: Ava Mae Seidensticker, Josie Juliette Wert, Kimberly Epstein
Where to Watch: Check out where to find it here
This film’s review was written after its screening at the Fantastic Film Festival in 2026.
Halloween is a special time of year. The energy charges the air with the laughter of trick-or-treaters and the gloom of the autumn moon. Many horror films take inspiration from the creepiest time of year to deliver scares, thrills, and chills. From gateway films to extreme horror, even those who avoid horror find themselves drawn to something in the month of October.
That’s why young Mabel (Ava Mae Seidensticker) is so hellbent on going out to get candy on the most special night of the year. Along with her best fired Wesley (Luke Speakman), Mabel begs her sister Ada (Josie Juliette Wert) to take them to trick-or-treat. Ada agrees but only on the condition that they visit a house party first so she can reconnect with her ex-boyfriend Ryan (Spencer Brabham) after her failed attempt at college caused a rift between them. When the kids get antsy and leave, they find themselves followed by cloaked figures. A terrifying encounter leads them back to their home when a Samaritan (Kimberly Epstein) with dubious intentions saves them from near death.
A deliciously simple gateway horror film, The Heretiks captures the youthful wonder of the holiday with a little edge.
Capturing the chilling energy of the season, The Heretiks focuses on grounded supernatural horror to its benefit. Starting like any endearing holiday feature, the simple introduction to the main characters is exaggerated on purpose. There’s a Disney Channel original feel to the first act, despite the interstitial violence, that gives The Heretiks a fresh feeling to it. Mabel’s headstrong nature and Wesley’s reluctant compliance straddles the same characterizations one would find in the Mouse’s catalogue. It’s when they are introduced to Cai, and her stoic, no-nonsense approach to protecting the kids, that The Heretiks juices up its comedic elements. The goofiness of the children’s reactions and motivations to being stalked by a coven of witches and then protected by another is reminiscent of a more violent Hocus Pocus. It works, even if it doesn’t nail each interaction.
These issues are mostly prevalent in the beginning but find themselves cropping up throughout the narrative. Falling into the precocious little girl trap that has been plaguing horror films as of late, The Heretiks squeezes every last drop of personality from the leads, particularly its younger ones. Thankfully, most of the cast are on the same page for the final act, which is when The Heretiks largely hits its stride and abandons most of the repository dialogue to truly take chances.
And chances does it take! The Heretiks puts its young cast through the wringer and dishes out some surprisingly nasty moments of body horror despite its cutesier approach to the holiday. Children are stabbed repeatedly in the gut, bodies are flayed and then used like marionettes, and everyone learns to feel each other’s pain, physically and mentally. Much of this is due to the mechanics of this world’s magic system and the rules that govern it.
Belief is the central tenet that guides Cai and her former coven. Forcing her to tap into her emotions to control her magic, Cai gives a crash course on power to Ada, who is now ordained as a witch to protect her baby sister. Her love for her sister becomes the propelling force for Ada. Bogged down by the guilt she faces for failing out of college and ruining her relationships, Ada’s motivation to save her sister forces her to confront her own shortcomings and do something about it. It defaults to an admittedly corny, but always welcome message on the power of love. Thankfully, since the manifestation of said magic is largely grounded, it works to add just a bit of whimsy to the film’s inner world while supporting its gateway sensibilities.
Just because The Heretiks has some family-friendly messaging and a lighter approach to horror doesn’t mean it can’t hit hard when it feels like it. One of the film’s most exciting sequences involves one of the largely silent coven members. A witch whose powers allow her to control her shadow becomes a force to be reckoned with when she uses the darkness of night to her advantage, sneaking around and sucker punching characters with astounding precision and upping the film’s creep factor. Other magical moments include the contortion of bones and mind control that adds a personal feeling to the horror inflicted on the youths. Without the excellent practical and special effects teams, The Heretiks would be a far emptier experience.
What makes the film work most of all is the feud between Cai and Neve (Tess Williams), the ringleader of the coven’s betrayal against the lone witch and whose sole desire is initiating the apocalypse. Their performances far eclipse the rest of the cast, which are largely hit-or-miss throughout the film.
Kimberly Epstein’s Cai manages to be terrifying yet level-headed in her fight against her former follower. Capturing the intensity needed to accurately portray a witch of her caliber, Epstein’s icy approach to the mysterious figure makes the fight feel equal, even when it realistically shouldn’t. William’s Neve provides the danger that is sorely lacking from most of the film, which is mostly confined to the largely impotent attempts to break into the house. Her vocal choices make every bit of dialogue unnerving, the sickly-sweet intonation juxtaposing against the terror she promises. It gives credence to her motivations and mental state while making her actions feel more dangerous.
The Heretiks is a fun, yet flawed Halloween-set film that is certain to earn goodwill from horror fans seeking something cozier and comforting for the holiday season. Its hit-or-miss humor and goofier tone may be hard to get into even if some of the horror elements are truly horrific, both in presentation and implication. There’s more good than bad in Gregg Bishop’s most recent genre offering, and you should make sure you save it for your next holiday viewing for a sweet night of witchy horror.
Overall Score? 6/10
