REVIEW: THE STRANGERS: CHAPTER 3 (2026)

By Stephen Pytak

I can't remember the last time a studio set out to make a slasher film trilogy, a three-part story that was planned from the start.

So, no matter how Renny Harlin's three-part take on The Strangers turned out, I was curious about the project.

I wasn’t a fan of The Strangers: Chapter 1 (2024). But I didn't mind The Strangers: Chapter 2 (2025). And I kind of enjoyed part three, even though it's far from perfect.

I'd like to see all three parts cut together into one film, like Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair, which was released to theaters last year. Perhaps then I'll really get to experience the vision of the writers and filmmakers as it was intended.

According to "The Ultimate Home for The Strangers News" at https://istamarahome.net/, we should see a "supercut" later this year.

In general, the critics weren't kind to The Strangers: Chapter 3 (2026). It has a 17 on the RT.

 

To date, there have been five films in this franchise, and none of them are fresh: The Strangers (2008) is at 50. The Strangers: Prey at Night (2018) is at 40. The Strangers: Chapter 1 (2024) is at 21. And The Strangers: Chapter 2 (2025) is at 14.

Ouch.

But I have a soft spot for films in this genre. And I enjoy seeing sequels, remakes and requels and chatting about them and debating their merits, if there are any to be found.

Madeleine Petch behind the scenes of The Strangers: Chapter 3 (2026). Photo from "The Ultimate
Home for The Strangers News" at https://istamarahome.net/

Since I liked Chapter 2, I made it a point to see Chapter 3 on opening day, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. 

And it delivered for the most part, giving me a lot to think about. I want to list a few of the things I really enjoyed.

For starters, it's really the first film in the franchise to take the audience on a journey from the point of view of the title characters. 

We got some hints of that from a few flashbacks in Chapter 2. But in Chapter 3, we actually get to follow them as they break down the doors of motel rooms in Venus, Oregon to terrorize some out of towners.

And our final girl, "Maya," played by Madeleine Petsch, is along for the ride.

Oh, by the way, we're in spoiler territory.  Just sayin'.

So what's going on here? 

At the end of Chapter 2, Maya manages to slay one of the three masked murderers, "Shelly (a.k.a. Pin-Up Girl)" played by Ema Horvath.

This shakes up the other two, "Gregory (Scarecrow)" played by Gabriel Basso and "Jasmine (Dollface)" played by Ella Bruccoleri.

So, how will our favorite home invaders deal with such a loss?

We'll, turns out these ghouls are irredeemable psychopathic killers who have somehow managed to continue their reign of terror for years.  

They live by a code. For the most part, that means they only kill people from out of town. Not locals; just strangers.

They don't have many friends. Actually, they don't really have any. All they've got aside from a genuine taste for murder and mayhem is each other. 

So how will they go on without Pin-Up Girl?

They hunt down Maya and take her to their lair, a sawmill on the edge of town. But instead of feeding her to a woodchipper, Scarecrow gives her a unique opportunity.

She fascinates him. Not only is she the only one of their victims to survive, but somehow she managed to take out one of their murderous clan. 

And he wonders if deep down Maya is someone like him, someone who could learn to enjoy the hunt and the kill. And he and Dollface roll the dice to find out. 

They decide to make Maya their new Pin-Up Girl. 

This was teased on the film's one sheet, a really nice poster actually. I kind of liked the posters that accompanied all the films in this trilogy actually.

Anyway, the motel room scene which follows is the best scene in the film. It's very interesting, and batshit crazy. I loved it.

Some scenes from this film reminded me of Tobe Hooper's The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986), a film I also have a soft spot for.

In particular, I remember the part where our heroine, "Stretch (Caroline Williams)" enters the amusement park lair inhabited by the Sawyer family.  And she is captured by "Leatherface (Bill Johnson)." 

He is attracted to her. And he wonders if she has an attraction to him. So he rips the face from one of his victims, "L.G. (Lou Perryman)" and slaps the bloody thing onto her. 

She's sickened by all of this, but keeps it together in a bid to survive.

Then he pulls her up on to her feet and he spins her around and around to the tune of the "Leatherface Waltz" by Tobe Hooper and Jerry Lambert. Great track by the way.

The relationship between Maya and Scarecrow is similar in Chapter 3. But ultimately, he comes to realize his attempts to woo her don't pay off in the way he expected.

Sure. After all she's been through, Maya has developed some bloodlust. But she no intention of wearing Pin-Up Girl's mask for very long.

The film is like Hooper's 1986 film in another important way. It's the story about how our villains meet their end.

The films in The Strangers franchise were for the most part about home invasion.

Here, that idea is turned on its head. And it's our final girl who gets to invade their turf to show them what it's like to have their world turned upside down.

For fans of the genre, like myself, there's a lot to like here. Harlin does a pretty good job with directing duties. The script isn't bad. And the final 15 minutes is unlike anything I've seen in this series. 

It's a good-looking film. And actually, while I was watching it I thought 'This is what The Texas Chain Saw Massacre would look like if it was made by the Hallmark Channel.' 

There are a couple of decent scares. Honestly, I was hoping for a little more gore. And I wonder if there will be an extended cut on home video. Time will tell.

When I heard they were going to give The Strangers a trilogy, I was really hoping to see something unique, something different, something we hadn't seen before.

Chapter 1 didn't give me that. But I found the other two parts a little more interesting. I may feel different about part one if I ever get to see the supercut. We'll see.

The best film in this franchise is the 2008 original.

And I think Chapter 3 is the second best.

Following that, my ranking is: The Strangers: Chapter 2 (2025) and The Strangers: Prey at Night (2018). And at the bottom of the list is The Strangers: Chapter 1 (2024). 

 RATING (On a scale of 1 to 5): 3.5.